Arthur L. Stone
1865 – 1945

Inducted October 25, 1958

Arthur L. Stone, first dean of the University of Montana School of Journalism, was perhaps the most widely known newspaperman-educator in the mountain west. He founded the School, which began with a collection of borrowed army tents and developed into one of the foremost journalism schools in the nation.

A native of Spencer, Mass., Stone was trained as a chemist. He drifted into newspaper work when sent West to Laramie, Wyo., by the Union Pacific to make soda field investigations. He became the Western Montana correspondent of the Anaconda Standard in 1891.

Promoted to managing editor of the Standard in 1904, he had already served a term in the Montana House of Representatives. Three years later he became editor of the Missoulian. Because of his outstanding accomplishments, he was named the first dean of the University of Montana School of Journalism in 1914. He borrowed four army squad tents to use as classrooms for his students. Later, an old wooden building on campus, “The Shack,” was home to hundreds of journalism students for many years.

He served as president of the Montana Press Association from 1919 to 1920, and with the help of only one other instructor taught up to 150 aspiring journalists each year. Many of his graduates who went on to highly successful careers spoke affectionately of “The Dean,” for that was the name by which he was known. A mountain southeast of Missoula bears his name: Mount Dean Stone.

In 1927 he was elected president of the Association of American Schools and Departments of Journalism. Ten years later, after many discouragements, his dream of many years came true: The new journalism building – one of the finest in the nation – was completed.

Stone retired from the faculty in 1942 and died March 19, 1945, after an extended illness. His book, “Following Old Trails,” captured the intensity of his devotion to Montana, and his life’s work demonstrated his interest in aspiring journalists.

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