Former Montana Executive Mansion - Helena, MT
Posted by: T0SHEA
N 46° 35.266 W 112° 02.093
12T E 420719 N 5159876
For Forty Six years the home of the governor of the State of Montana, in 1959 this mansion was replaced by a new mansion much nearer the capitol building.
Waymark Code: WMWHN1
Location: Montana, United States
Date Posted: 09/07/2017
Views: 2
This elegant Queen Anne style structure began life in 1885 as a private residence, remaining so until its purchase by the State of Montana in 1913 to become the governor's mansion. It seems strange that the state chose to purchase this house for use as the governor's mansion, as the capitol, built in 1899, was a long ten blocks away. When the new governor's mansion was built adjacent to the capitol building, this structure was first used for offices, then became vacant for a while before being restored and becoming the Original Governor’s Mansion Museum. The museum, open year round with restricted hours through the winter, offers a Virtual Tour of the mansion.
ORIGINAL GOVERNOR’S MANSION
Montana’s Original Governor’s Mansion was built as a private residence for the William Chessman family in 1888, and was home to the Peter Larson family and the Harfield Conrad family before the state purchased it (along with much of the Conrads’ furnishings) in 1913. Until 1959, it served as the official residence of Montana’s governors, their families, and service staffs. Over the following decade it sometimes sat empty and sometimes held state offices, its interior subdivided with temporary walls. A citizen group initiated restoration in 1969, and returned the building to state control in 1980. Today it appears much as it did in 1913, when Governor Samuel V. Stewart, his wife, and three young daughters moved in. Architects of the Lewis and Clark County Courthouse and many Helena homes, Hodgson, Stem and Welter designed this Queen Anne style structure, which is characterized by a fanciful, irregular outline filled with gables, turrets chimneys, balconies, and dormers. The style is one of several romantic, nostalgic modes popular at the time America moved into industrialization and mass production. Although its ground floor rooms served the public at official functions, the upper floors were very much a family home. As Governor Stewart’s executive secretary wrote, “It is a home of democracy … an American home—a plain American home, if you please—like thousands of homes in this country.”
From the NRHP plaque at the building
Street address: 304 North Ewing Street Helena, MT United States 59701
County / Borough / Parish: Lewis and Clark
Year listed: 1970
Historic (Areas of) Significance: Architecture
Periods of significance: 1900-1924, 1875-1899
Historic function: Domestic - Secondary Structure, Single Dwelling
Current function: Recreation And Culture - Museum
Privately owned?: no
Primary Web Site: [Web Link]
Secondary Website 1: [Web Link]
Secondary Website 2: [Web Link]
Season start / Season finish: Not listed
Hours of operation: Not listed
National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed
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Visit Instructions: Please give the date and brief account of your visit. Include any additional observations or information that you may have, particularly about the current condition of the site. Additional photos are highly encouraged, but not mandatory.
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