Anton Martinius Holter (1831-1921) was a

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...

pioneer, businessman and politician. He made his fortune in lumber, farming, real estate and hardware. He emigrated from his native

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

, arriving in the

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in 1854. He first worked as a carpenter in

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and

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

, before building his first sawmill near

Virginia City, Montana Virginia City is a town in and the county seat of Madison County, Montana, United States. In 1961 the town and the surrounding area were designated a National Historic Landmark District, the Virginia City Historic District. The population was 2 ...

. Holter established lumber yards in several other Montana towns, including Helena,

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, and Nevada City, among others. In Helena, he founded several general merchandise and hardware companies, including A.M. Holter Hardware Company, which remained in business until 1958. Holter also served on Montana's first territorial council and first legislature, as well as Helena's first school board. The Holter family remained active in Montana public affairs for many years and the family name is featured prominently in Montana, and especially within Helena, on places, institutions and landmarks, including the Holter Museum of Art, Holter Lake,

Holter Dam Holter Dam is a hydroelectric straight gravity dam on the Missouri River about northeast of Helena, Montana, in the United States.''Upper Missouri River Reservoir Fisheries Management Plan, 2010-2019,'' Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and ...

and Holter Street.Aarstad, et al., Montana Place Names From Alzada to Zortman, 2009, p. 125. The World War II

Liberty ship Liberty ships were a class of cargo ship built in the United States during World War II under the Emergency Shipbuilding Program. Though British in concept, the design was adopted by the United States for its simple, low-cost construction. Mass ...

SS ''Anton Holter'' was named in his honor.

References

External links

"Pioneering Lumbering in Montana"
reminiscences by Holter, Holter family papers held by the Montana Historical Society, viewabl
here
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Holter, Anton 1831 births 1921 deaths Norwegian emigrants to the United States Businesspeople in timber American real estate businesspeople Businesspeople from Montana