Remembering Dave Walter

This gentle genius belongs to the ages-to all ages-for his writing, for his influence on the ways we conduct historical research, and for his generous enthusiasm for the efforts of teachers. He particularly belongs to the young across Montana. He belongs to those whom he mentored and taught, challenged, and inspired.

Dorothea M. Susag

Former Montana Heritage Project Teacher,

Fairfield, Montana

In recent years, I often seem to find myself telling students that there is no such thing as boring history, only boring historians and boring textbooks, possibly written by those same historians. History is about the human drama and should therefore always be intriguing, interesting, and perhaps even exciting.

Dave Walter never forgot that essential truth about what history could and should be. Dave had an amazing ability to bring the past alive-but never in a melodramatic, simplistic, or manipulative fashion. Humor, irony, understatement, and a telling phrase were his constant companions, both in his presentations and in his writings.

These very traits, which grew out of Dave's core values, also drew students to him. One year when I was on sabbatical, Dave was kind enough to teach the history research seminar at Carroll College. My only reservation in asking Dave to accept the position was my conviction that I would never be able to fill his shoes once I returned. And, of course, I was right. Fortunately, those seniors in the seminar-I always thought of them as "Dave's disciples"-all graduated, and thus the next generation of students never knew what they were missing.

What was it that made Dave so special, perhaps unique, as a teacher? The first quality that comes to mind was his genuine love of history, especially Montana history-a love that was so infectious that it had to rub off on those around him. His stories, often spellbinding, encouraged students to seek out their own stories.

Dave was always generous with his own research. He would never hoard information, as some scholars might. He would share whatever he had learned without worrying about who would receive the credit. And the sharing occurred at all levels-with a high school or college student discovering the mystery of history for the first time, with a budding doctoral candidate hoping for a career in history, or even a veteran historian such as myself who couldn't always keep his facts straight.

Another special quality was his determination to define history as broadly as possible. He would not limit himself to just the "major players." He had a soft spot for the underdog, for the so-called "common people" who often receive only a passing reference, if that, in a typical textbook. As a result of this conviction, he encouraged students-whether in the classroom, at the Montana Historical Society, or during one of his many public talks-to explore the unknown, the forgotten, or the misunderstood. He would never dismiss a student's topic or question as insignificant or as a "waste of time."

"Time"-a simple word, yet it can represent so much. Perhaps Dave's greatest gift to his students, to all of us, was his generosity, his willingness to give of himself. He would not only take the time to track down the answer to an obscure question or locate the rare document, he was also a wonderful listener. And as he listened to you, whatever your station in life, he made you feel important. You wanted to choose your words more wisely because he listened so carefully.