Brush Lake State Park in northeastern Montana surrounds much of a spring-fed, highly alkaline lake long valued for its clear, deep water. In the early twentieth century, nearby residents gathered there, and after Hans Christian Hansen filed homesteading papers in 1914, he developed a summer resort on the shore. A bar and cafe were in place by 1920, and a dance hall followed in the 1940s, reflecting the lake’s growth into a local social center. In 2004, Montana acquired 450 acres around the lake’s northern half for the state park. Today it supports varied recreation, although the lake’s mineral-rich water cannot sustain fish.