Richard Calmbert, Great grandfather of the current owner, James Calmbert started the Ironmongerry by building a hydrohammer sometime sometime after the fall (a hydrohammer is a water wheel powered hammer. It can operate a sledge significantly heavier than what a blacksmith can operate (100 lbs vs 10) for as long as necessary. Excellent for mass production of steel without steam of electrical power). Richards invention sparked a mini industrial revolution in Great Falls, making wrought steel widely available to the area, as opposed to scavenged steel. The Calmbert family’s fortune and industry are one of the primary reason why Great Falls has become a center of industry, spurring the rail and clockwerk industries. As a result the 32 year old James is considered one of the most eligible bachelors of the city and his Society Events are generally attended by anyone who matters.
Near the waterfront, but upwind of the Ironworks is the Red Light District. There’s always been a district for vice in Great Falls, but Miram and her employees have taken the brothels of town to a new place. Where once there were drug addled women desperate to survive and their masters who controlled their lives through virtual debt slavery, now there is fine dining. Escorts. Fantasy. If you’re traveling to the Falls to buy a two bit whore, you’d best move on. That’s not how Miram runs the District. Its not respectable exactly, but there is no longer any crime, nor the stink of desperation. No one knows how she’s done it, but The District is now accepted. Mostly. It may have something to do with the 25 year old raven haired beauty in charge of the place. Not that anyone would admit such a thing.
Abernathy William Sperket the Third. What can be said about Mr. Sperket? Industrialist. Inventor. Innovator. Visionary. Madman. It’s all been said, with many variations. This balding, portly Franklinesque whirlwind of a fop has been leading the charge for the industrialization of Montana for 30 years. Mr. Sperket originally partnered with Donald Calmbert to use two-stroke steam engines to move iron, coke, timber and other materials from the mines in the mountains to the city for processing. Its only recently that this service has expanded to limited freight between the cities, most to move mail, goods, and the odd passenger.
Just off of the famous open air Bazaar in Capitol Square is Annabelle’s. The first thing most notice about the place is the building. It is an old restored Firehouse, painted red with huge glass windows and looking right-out-of-a-story-book. Once people get past the building then they notice the inventory: the finest offerings Weird Science has for the public (and not a few items not quite yet for sale!). Servitors and mechs and constructors diggers and porters and guns and widgets galore! To those interested in the odd and scientific, this is the center of the universe, and Annabelle is the Goddess at the heart of it all.
The Bazaar
There is an old park from the pre-fall eara in the center of town. It sits across from the Capitol building and is surrounded by brownstones. This park is filled by the daily arrival of carts from the region and is permanently under colorful awnings of canvas and silk. The end result is an open air yearlong festival of food, goods and services awaiting to be found.
Tramsom Waterfront Shipping and Receiving
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Missouririvermap.jpg
Before the rail lines there was the Missouri RIver. Barges and later steamers would travel from Grand Falls to Fort Peck, up the Milk to Havre and down the Yellowstone to Billings - and sometimes all the way down to the Ruins of St. Louis and out to Jackson on the Mississippi. For years it was easier and cheaper to move goods by river instead of overland by wagon. The result of this traffic was the construction of the Waterfront named after one time Mayor Edward Tramsom who got his start by running a grain-barge to local farms and ranches after the Collapse. This mile long wharf on the waterfront is backed by warehouses and now a rail head connecting to the Harve to Billings line.
Paulson’s Scrapyard and Treasuries
Across the Missouri from downtown on the north bank near the old airport is Paulson’s Scrapyard run by Kyle Paulson. Most people would avoid such an obvious pile of junk: old pre-war cars, odd household devices, strange and useless data drives and computers. Who would care, except for the fact that on occasion Kyle can get the things working again. Kyle is a genius when it comes to making old tech work, from hand assembling fuel-cells for restoring old electric - motorcycles to a custom built ethanol refining stack that can be used to fuel vairous restored Internal Combustion engines, to running a trash incinerator power plant. The most startling feature of the scrapyard are the restored drones that he’s married to clockwerks - old tech joined with weird science. A novel place to say the least.
Embassy District
Old renovated houses to the southwest of downtown have been renovated and placed in walled compounds for representatives of several neighboring nations. Namely The CSA, A Dakota, Saskatoon, Boisie, Deseret and the Hawkeye Empire. Other nations generally do not have a permanent representative in District, and typically stay at The Grand Montanan. Rather unsurprisingly, most rumors and concerns gravitate toward the old Buckley Place, where the CSA staff and representative live.
Sheriff William Ferngert & Deputies
William ‘Will’ Ferngert has held the elective position of Sheriff now for 20 years. A Sheriff in Montana serves two purposes, the traditional role of a police constabulary for the town and also the role of a county ‘Ranger’ (which is different from a Marshall who has National jurisdiction). Will and his deputies (James, Kyle, Alvin, Carol, Alice, Zed, Jasmine, Max, Abbot, and Rex) have been re elected for 4 terms because they have (thus far) avoided any over scandals around corruption or favoritism (although some travelers have complained that the word of a local is worth more than theirs, which may have lead to... improprieties.) Overall though the people of Great Falls are happy with their Police, and it shows.
Montana Marshall Association
The Marshals are altogether a different beast from the Sheriff. The Marshals represent a National constabulary whose sole purpose it to collar inter-jurisdictional criminals and extradition issues (those accused of crimes in other nations, and wanted fugitives who flee Montana). It has also been rumored that the Marshals operate a spying network on most near neighbors, but so far this is mostly rumors based on popular adventure novels. The Chief Marshal of Montana is Reginald Dixon, a gruff but erudite cowhand in his 50’s. The Marshals are not elected, but rather appointed by the Montana Republican Congress.
The Arsenal
On the east side of town, near the old Greek Orthodox Church there is a walled complex of buildings. Well, not really a wall, more a very large sandy berm topped by a wall with security towers. Inside this compound is the National Arsenal, where gunpowder is manufactured and stored. (To be honest, there are secondary storage locations. Most powder and ammunition manufactured here only stays for a very short time. It is generally distributed to army and militia bases as soon as possible to prevent ‘single point failures’). In other words, the Arsenal is a series of concrete bunkers surrounded by a minefield with flamethrowers and .50 sentry guns supported by all weather observation balloons. Just in case someone wanted some 5 finger discount ammunition.
The Arsenal Pub
Just across Arsenal way is the infamous Arsenal pub. In some ways this place is more famous than the Arsenal itself, if such a thing is possible. The most important aspect of the Pub is that it is home to the best whiskey distillery this side of the Mississippi. Just ask Yesult Gurkhan for a sampler. Just make certain you can walk home.
1st Street Bridge
All of the pre-war bridges across the Missouri either collapsed or were destroyed after the collapse (with the exception of the old rail bridge from the 1900’s interestingly enough). The first Street bridge only partially though. As a result it was repaired to makeshift condition before finally being replaced 40 years ago by a roman-style stone with keystone bridge. This bridge made expansion to the North and East shores of the Missouri practical. IT stood alone until the repair of and rebuilding of the rail bridges so that rail cars can travel both north and east out of the Metro area.
The Capitol Building and Courthouse
The old Montana State capitol building was renovated and restored 50 years ago. The entire government of the Montana Republic meets in the Capitol building, but in different wings or annexes. The House of Delegates meet in the West Wing of the Building, the working staff in the East. The Judiciary meets in the Old county courthouse on the lot, and the Executive manor is the old Haworth Building across 3rd.
Persons of Note:
President Harald Penwick III: A rancher from out north near Silo.
President of the Delegates: Carter Louis Renado and Delegate of Havre
Delegate William Rogvaaldson of Great Falls
Delegate Leah Tredmyer of Fort Peck
Delegate Master Gerald Shui-lin Carradine of Billings
Delegate Jerome Smith of Silo City
Delegate Angsley Coxswain of Bozeman
Delegate Dianna Hertferd of Butte
Delegate Barry Feldton of Missoula
Delegate Theodore Wyndham of Kalispell
Chief Justice Zebulon Buxton
Chief Marshall Reginald Dixon
The Tanning Quarter
North east of town, across the Missouri si the Tanning and Meatworks district. Ranchers from all over the region bring Cattle, Bison, Ostrich and whatever other critters they raise to be sold for local consumption, processing, or shipping to regional markets. The Tanneries are associated with all of the usual smells having to do with sausage making and hide tanning. On the positive one can get amazing leather goods and sausages with kraut and mustard better than anywhere else. Throw in a fresh Frenchroll (no one knows why they are called that, they just are) and you have the Montana national meal.
The Waterfront
Just north of the 1st Avenue Bridge and upstream from the Ironmongerry lies The Waterfront. This district represents the ‘well-to-do’ of Great falls, with boutique shops, cafe’s and expensive townhomes lining the waterway an cobblestoned streets.
Great Falls Balloonery and Glider Station
Out past the ‘Treasuries’ and on the location of the old airport lies the Great Falls Ballonery and Glider Station - also known as the Private Madhouse of Humboldt Periwinkle. Master Periwinkle (since the good sir does have a Masters and a PhD in Mathmaticalengineering don’tchaknow!) has had a dream for all of his 40 years; to touch the clouds. To soar like a bird, and preferably to live to regail others with the tale. In pursuit of this project, the Good master first began a project to mine methane from the ancient landfill. This spawned some of the first city Limelight projects what we see today. With his fundage thusly secured, Humboldt purchased a parcel of land that contained the ruins of the old Airport. He then expelled the native squatters, wildlife and mutants in order to fortify the old concrete hangars. Thusly secured we began a project of using a water wheel to generate electricity and then to derive hydrogen from base materials. Thusly began various projects to build and perfect the balloon launched gliding reusable airframes.
There have only been a few casualties thus far. But “no price is too high for the pursuit of Science!”, as Master Humboldt would say. Next he claims to have an idea to combine Clockwerk gearing to an airframe. Most assume the good professor will not survive his latest scheme.