2010-2011 Montana Vacation Planner Available Soon

The 2010-2011 Montana Vacation Planner will soon be available for distribution. The 164-page guide incorporates stunning photography, hidden gems and events with vacation planning information.

New to the guide this year is a redesign of the business listings featuring graphic icons showcasing business amenities for a simple, easy-to-read format. The listings icon key, located on the back cover, can be laid on any page for a quick reference guide for vacation planners.

As in last year’s guide, creative elements and functionality of the Vacation Planner focuses around the brand initiative and the Montana Office of Tourism’s web site to provide a coordinated look, tone and message.

Businesses who would like to distribute guides to their customers should contact the Montana Office of Tourism at 406-841-2870. The office staff will send a shipment absolutely free. Visitors can also view the complete guide online at http://visitmt.dirxion.com.

History of Montana’s Place Names Now Available on Web

(HELENA) — Among Montana’s most enduring legacies are the names assigned to its geographic features and places found on the state map. As long as humans have inhabited Montana, they have named places. And Montana place names are as varied as its terrain.

If you’ve ever wondered who named Alzada or if you’ve ever pondered about the origin of Zortman, the Montana Historical Society and the Montana State Library have developed the perfect Web site for you. “The Montana Place Names Companion” is now freely available via the Internet at: http://mtplacenames.org.

“The Place Names Companion” is the online application based on the book, Montana Place Names from Alzada to Zortman, which was recently published by the Montana Historical Society press.

Thoroughly researched and written by staff of the Montana Historical Society, the book details the origin of place names for over 1,200 geographic locations in Montana and is filled with history and anecdotes for places throughout the state. Web users can search the online “Companion” application to find information about the same places that are highlighted in the book.

“It is wonderful to see the book in print and it is equally wonderful to see the new Web site ‘Companion’ made available to the people of Montana,” said Richard Sims, Director of the Montana Historical Society. “From the very beginning, we have partnered with the Montana State Library to develop a database that would catalog the thousands of bits of information we collected as we researched this book.”

The “Place Names Companion” Web site is easy to use. People can explore Montana via the Web by searching for specific place names, key words, phrases or personal names that might be found in the descriptions of the actual place names. Search results display in an online mapped application. Users can view the place name location on the Montana highway map, a state topographic map, or with aerial photos.

The details include complete text and any images from the book, ll related geographic information, plus atitude and longitude of each location.

“We hope that the book and the Web site work together to inspire visitors to explore our beautiful state and to share their knowledge, photos, and historical materials with us to further contribute to the information we can make available about Montana,” said Jennie Stapp, CIO and Digital Library Director at the Montana State Library. Visit http://msl.mt.gov.