Power Mercantile Co. - Lewistown Central Business Historic District - Lewistown, MT
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member T0SHEA
N 47° 03.931 W 109° 25.564
12T E 619511 N 5213646
This sandstone block building was for many years the home of the largest mercantile, or department, store in Fergus County.
Waymark Code: WMXWAZ
Location: Montana, United States
Date Posted: 03/07/2018
Published By:Groundspeak Regular Member Math Teacher
Views: 0
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The first section of the Power Mercantile Company was built on the northwest corner of West Main and Third in 1901, 18 years after its establishment in Lewistown. In about 1908 a matching stone warehouse was built behind the store and, in 1913 another 75 feet was added to the west end of the store, this section designed by the well known establishment of Link & Haire, of Butte and Billings. When the store was connected across the alley to the warehouse behind, the entire complex was a block deep and half a block in width, far and away the largest mercantile in the county, then or now.

On both the Main Street and the Third Avenue sides of the building the slight difference in color of the sandstone denotes the separations among the 1901, the 1908 and the 1913 sections of the building.
Power Mercantile Power Mercantile Co. was established in Lewistown in 1883 after Francis Janeaux, who conducted a merchandising establishment in the small settlement, became indebted to his supplier, T. C. Power & Bros, of Fort Benton. Janeaux, who platted a portion of his homestead for the original townsite, lost his buildings, merchandise and some lots to cover the $5096 debt.

N. M. Erickson was dispatched to "Big Spring Creek" to take over the operation for the Power Bros. He "arrived on the hurricane deck of a cayuse" in July of 1883 and began work to petition for a Post Office designation for Lewistown and abandonment of Reedsfort, a nearby opposition settlement. Erickson was successful in this effort and was named Lewistown's first Postmaster on March 10, 1884. Erickson was managing partner of Power Mercantile in Lewistown until his death in 1894.

In 1901, the well established Power Mercantile Co. moved to their large new stone facility. The building, typical of the early permanent masonry structures in Lewistown, is hand cut coursed sandstone. The availability of good building stone encouraged many stonemasons to settle in the Lewistown area, and their skills were put to good use in building a permanent city.

By 1908, Power Mercantile, growing with the community, expanded with a stone warehouse building facing Broadway Street in the same block. In 1913, Link & Haire designed a two-story, 75' x 100' addition to match the main building. The addition, designed to eventually carry a four-story superstructure, gave the Mercantile the entire block on Third Avenue, closing the alley and connecting with the Broadway street warehouse.

A two-story cut stone commercial structure with a flat roof that occupies nearly one half block. Although this large footprint was not built as a single undertaking, the detailing, joining, and use of materials was executed with enough care so as to make the various additions appear as a cohesive whole and the architectural description will treat it as a single building. The exception to this is a wing to the southwest which is separately described below. The Main Street elevation is all cut sandstone on the second floor with dressed stone string courses at the roof line and above display windows. The words "PMCo - 1901" are carved in dressed stone in the parapet. A sandstone coping caps the parapet. The northeast and northwest elevations are similar to Main Street except a dressed stone cornice with dentils below is incorporated at the upper string course height. A portion of the sandstone walls on Main Street has been treated at some time, producing two distinct sandstone colors.
From the NRHP Nomination Form, site #151
POWER MERCANTILE

Possibly one of the first architect-designed stone buildings along Main Street, the Power Mercantile Building is the most visible example of Lewistown’s stone architecture. Merchant Francis Janeaux became indebted to supplier T. C. Power and lost his buildings, merchandise, and some lots to cover his $5,096 debt. The Power Brothers established the Power Mercantile Company in 1883 and dispatched N. M. Erickson to run the operation. Erickson petitioned for a post office designation for Lewistown and became the city’s first postmaster on March 10, 1884. Erickson remained managing partner of Power Mercantile until his death in 1894. W. D. Symmes filled Erickson’s vacant post and ultimately became sole proprietor of the mercantile. Active in Lewistown’s development, Symmes served two non-consecutive terms as mayor. The well-established business moved into this larger stone facility in 1901. The mercantile continued to flourish, expanding with a matching addition in 1913. The addition connected the store on Main Street with the warehouse on Broadway. Eventually Power Mercantile occupied most of the 300 block of Main Street.
From the NRHP plaque at the building
Name of Historic District (as listed on the NRHP): Lewistown Central Business Historic District

Link to nationalregisterofhistoricplaces.com page with the Historic District: [Web Link]

NRHP Historic District Waymark (Optional): [Web Link]

Address:
302-308 West Main Street Lewistown, MT 59457

How did you determine the building to be a contributing structure?: Plaque on building (Photo in gallery)

Optional link to narrative or database: [Web Link]
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