The Franks' Family - circa 1864

We took this family pic in Virginia City, MT. Settled in 1864, it was the original capital of Montana and included lots of rough and violent people searching for gold. There are several interesting, authentic spots in and around town and it was an enjoyable day for a family that likes history and dead people (which is what most of our outings involve.) One odd and gruesome thing was a diorama of an historic hanging, complete with little dead people swinging from the rafters, the last one being a club-footed criminal and they made his figurine clubfooted. I always thought dioramas were cute because of the details, but this one with blood, hangings, and club foot outlaws was far from my expectations. It kind of weirded Roxy out, too.

And if the town and the diorama did not include enough death and violence, Scott and I decided to top it all off with a visit to the opera house. A troupe of players recreated "Sweeny Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street." In this musical/play, the title character slits his customers' throats, dumps them down a chute to the basement, and then they are cut up and made into meat pies. What a fond family memory this will be, I thought...

The play was good and both girls liked it! The opera house is quite old and historic, (another thing we like,) and the play was followed by a vaudeville show that was very entertaining with corny jokes, tap dancing, and lots of musical numbers that Darby said were in the Loony Toons episode featuring Michigan J. Frog. Darby could sing along, thanks to Bugs Bunny and the crew.

The whole day was fun, Darby and I loved dressing up in our elaborate hats, and Roxy got to be a cowgirl like she always wanted to be, and Scott looks oddly authentic in his western wear. It must be the Montana man in him.