Archives West Finding Aid

Lesley M. Heathcote (1904-1997) was a former director for the Montana State University libraries from 1949 to 1970. Heathcote obtained her bachelor and master's degrees from the University of Alberta and the University of Washington. She was also awarded an honorary doctorate from Montana State University in 1981. During her career she actively worked to expand public and school library development, serving as president of the Montana Library Association and the Pacific Northwest Library Association, as well as editing Montana Libraries. Heathcote also contributed to the field of library science. She helped to develop elementary library science courses at Montana State and wrote articles in the library science field. In addition to her research and writing on library and information science, Heathcote also published a historical study on the Montana State Arid Land Grant Commission.

The Montana State Arid Land Grant Commission was established on March 18, 1895 as a result of the Carey Land Act. Western States were eligible to receive patent on up to 1,000,000 acres of land as long as it met certain provisions: reclamation must take place within ten years, no settler could buy more than 160 acres, and not less than 20 acres of each tract must be occupied and cultivated. One problem the state faced was actually reclaiming the land without obligating the state financially. The Commission was in operation for eight years, under two separate groups: first, from 1895 until replaced by Governor Robert Smith for political reasons in 1897; then from 1897 until they were terminated by the Legislature in 1903. The Commission set up four districts during its tenure: 1) Billings (Huntley); 2) Big Timber (Holland); 3) Bridger; and 4) Dearborn. A fifth on the Sun River was planned, but never got past the initial stages.