C.M. Russell Museum | October 9-10, 2026 | Great Falls, MT

A Century Gone

The C.M. Russell museums marks 100 years since the death of Western icon Charles M. Russell.

By Michael Clawson

Charles M. Russell died late in the evening on October 24, 1926, in Great Falls, Montana. Three days later, on October 27, the entire city of Great Falls came to a screeching halt to honor the original “Cowboy Artist.” Russell, who didn’t want to be carried in a “skunk wagon,” was taken one more time through the city in a horse-drawn hearse. Businesses closed, including the United State Post Office, and thousands of mourners lined the street to pay their final respects.

Although Russell was laid into the earth that day, his legacy remained topside, and was only just getting started. Today, Charles M. Russell is one of the icons of Western art.

The funeral procession of Charles M. Russell, held October 27, 1926, in Great Falls, Montana. Photo courtesy the C.M. Russell Museum.

That legacy will be the subject of a two-day celebration at the museum that bears his name, the C.M. Russell Museum, in Great Falls. Charlie Russell’s Legacy: Celebrating 100 Years will take place October 9 and 10, and it will include a wide variety of community events and activities that are meant to honor the impact of the artist and his home of Great Falls.

“It’s a very Charlie-focused weekend. It’s a celebration of Charlie, but also of the community that supports his legacy. These are Western art enthusiasts who are helping keep Charlie Russell’s story alive,” says Jessica Nebel, chief operating officer at the Montana museum. “This weekend will also be a celebration of the culture of the West. We’ll have a teepee, a chuckwagon, Native American dancers and drummers, traditional games, vendors, artists who will be painting…it will be a real festival atmosphere. For those who have a family, there will be events for them, but then for those who are looking for more scholarly programming, we have something for them as well.”

Donna Howell-Sickles, Team Ropers, acrylic on panel, 6 x 24 in.

Events include a Reggie Watts concert at the Newbury venue on October 9, as well as the “Where Legends Lived” festival that will take place on the museum campus on October 10. The festival will feature food, music, performances, trick roping, a marketplace of regional artists, games and much more. Also on October 10 is the “Next Generation Art Showcase,” which will include 65 Western artworks that will be offered in a silent auction. The works come from artists such as Caleb Meyer, Chance Tedesco, Donna Howell-Sickles, Greg Kelsey, Lori Putnam, Maia Chavez Larkin, Michele Usibelli, Sally Vannoy, Summer Spitsbergen and many others. The proceeds benefit the museum and its exhibitions programming.

Summer Spitsbergen, In the Interim, oil on panel, 11 x 14 in.

“Charlie’s legacy is fun, it’s active, its forward-thinking, its inclusive,” says Duane Braaten, the museum’s executive director. “Charlie was a man who liked to look behind his own time, but he was very much a man ahead of his own time in many ways. During these events we honor him and his contributions.”

Braaten notes that the museum not only bears the artist’s name, it also has Russell’s home and studio on its campus, which is also where Russell died a century ago. “It all happened right here, and his life radiated out from this point,” he adds.

Except for the concert, all events are free. For a detailed event schedule and information, visit the museum website. —