By Stephen Glueckert Sponsored by the Historical Museum at Fort Missoula
To describe Meagher’s life-journey as an odyssey is not an exaggeration. Like the legendary Odysseus, he was blown by the winds of war and fate to the four corners of the earth.
Art engages the heart as well as the mind and is one of the most effective ways to engross an audience, pique their interest, and increase their awareness of history. As you spend time with Stephen Glueckert’s expressive oil pastel drawings you will feel the danger, energy, and emotion of Meagher’s odyssey.
Glueckert’s 24 colorful vignettes are filled with the celestial, earthly, and man-made symbols that governed Meagher’s life:
His birth and privileged upbringing in Waterford City, Ireland in 1823. His leadership in the Young Irelander Rebellion of 1848. His imprisonment in Van Diemen’s land and escape to the United States in 1852. As a commander on the bloody battlefields of the American Civil War. And finally, his mysterious and tragic death at Fort Benton, MT in the churning waters of the Missouri River in 1867.
Though Meagher’s time in Montana was short, he remains a source of Irish pride in our state and his story continues to capture the imaginations of Montanans of all types.
This exhibit is dedicated to Samuel Robert Robinson, a humble Irish immigrant who left Dunfanaghy, Donegal and found refuge in Butte, MT. And to his children James, Mary and Roberta and to his children’s children, many of whom remained in Montana.
Tour Schedule 2022 – 2024
- Schoolhouse History and Art Center, Colstrip, MT – November 1 – 30, 2022
- Carle Gallery in the Butte Silver-Bow Public Library, Butte, MT – March 19 – April 29, 2023
- Holter Museum of Art, Helena, MT – May 23 – July 21, 2023
- Waterworks Museum, Miles City, MT – October 7 – November 16, 2023
- MonDak Heritage Center, Sidney, MT – January 31 – March 30, 2024
MAGDA 