Longtime Flathead County Clerk of Court Retires After Three Decades

When Flathead County Clerk of Court Peg Allison ran for office in 1992 at age 39, she told her young daughters that if they helped her with some door-to-door campaigning, she’d reward them with $100 each.

Since her daughters received those payments more than 30 years ago, Allison has stood at the helm of the Flathead County Clerk of Court office, overseeing everything from district court documents to marriage licenses to jury selection. In her years with the department, she’s seen it grow from two district court judges to five while her own office has grown from six clerks to 12.

Originally from Glendive, Allison moved to the Flathead Valley in 1976 with her then-husband Sid Bitney after graduating from Eastern Montana College, now known as Montana State University Billings. She began working as a deputy clerk in 1985 and when she learned her boss was retiring in 1992, she ran against her supervisor and won the seat.

“I loved the work,” Allison said. “I had been here in the office and clerking in the courtroom with [Judge] Micheal Keedy for about that entire seven years. I just loved the business. I loved the judiciary. I loved working with attorneys. I just thought it was a dream job.”

The first thing Allison did when she took office in 1993 was install computers at every deputy clerk station – a step toward efficiency after the staff had historically recorded every filing in 20-by-23-inch leatherbound books. The transition took a year for her department to become accustomed to the new management system, but it brought the county office into a new era.

“My focus was technology,” Allison said.

That same year, Allison worked with the IT department to transfer child support payments, which had been documented on 3-by-5-inch index cards, to software. Because of this system, she was able to make records of bounced checks and prevent the costly procedure of re-issuing checks.

Other technological advances included the installation of QuickBooks software for criminal restitution payments along with the first jury software program in the state before the new millennium. In 2002, Flathead County implemented the first online marriage application process, which remains the only one in the state besides Missoula.  

Allison spearheaded a slew of updated software programs during the decades she spent as the clerk, which she describes as her proudest accomplishments that have been a model for other county clerk of court offices. By 2019, the system was almost entirely electronic, and her staff cleaned out the “paper vault” last year.

While Allison oversaw the tech boom of the 1990s, she also watched the county’s population grow dramatically over the years, prompting the need for five district court judges while bringing her own department to 16 staff.

Allison has worked closely with each district court judge, and she’s adapted to the changing rules that result from each legislative session. She’s also sat on several different Montana Supreme Court committees, most of which were related to technology and software.

“In my world, it’s all about making things faster, easier and more efficient and technology – in this business – can solve those problems for me,” Allison said. “I tell the county commissioners and the IT department all the time how critically important technology is.”

Standing at nearly 6 feet tall, Allison grew poised in her leadership role as she navigated the male-dominated judicial system through the three decades she spent as the clerk of court.  

“It’s been interesting all these decades running an office and being an elected official as a female because it is still to this day, sad to say in my humble opinion – very much a male-dominated society,” Allison said. “So, it’s had its challenges for sure. You have to be very confident and assertive – and careful.”

During her door-to-door campaign at age 39, she received a few raised eyebrows from some Flathead County residents who wondered how she could possibly be running for office. She’ll never forget one encounter with an older gentleman who seemed surprised by her career motives.

“He looked me square in the eye and said, ‘Are you old enough to run for office?’” Allison said.

Now at age 69, Allison is closing the chapter on nearly four decades of work in the Flathead County Clerk of Court’s office. But she will likely continue her clerk work as a consultant and she plans to contract with the Montana Supreme Court to help roll out a new jury software program.

After earning a forestry management certificate last summer, Allison plans to fire up her chainsaw more often next year to use her new skills to thin the vegetation on her property west of town.

“I’ve been doing some thinning and burning to improve my tiny piece of the world – which is kind of the way I looked at this office,” Allison said. “I’ve been improving everything for the judiciary in my little piece of the world right here.”

Allison will also continue playing the piano at her church, a skill she’s honed since she was a kid in Glendive, while also spending more time with her husband and golden retriever while nurturing her friendships.

Reflecting on her career, Allison feels fortunate to have served the public in a job that she has never grown tired of.

“It’s working with the public, it’s customer service – it’s the people,” Allison said. “I love helping people navigate the system.”

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