HomeMy WebLinkAbout24-28 W Main 1985 'wiONTANA HISTORICAL AND
ARCHITECTURAL INVENTORY [siteN '_F_ _�;
Legal Description:_ Story's Lots Portion,; of R, 15. 16 and 17/Rlk A � " 14 l �
Address 24-28 West Main �—
Ownership: name: L. R. D. Conivanv
= b-'ate cobl'c address: P.O. Box 1073 Roll# 7 7 Frame# 22
—
- =- M&Wlb It)rill LA-:
I f b1�'1UD GA ALL — Y - T --- Historic Name: Unknown
—"- -�I� Common Name: Unknown _
❑ estimated
Date of Construction* 191 2—1 927 M documented
Architect: Unknown]
T T T` i Builder Unknown
t
r Original Owner: Unknown
Original Use: hardwareloffice
Present Use: Commercial Structure
Research Sources:
❑ abstract of title city directories
1 ❑' plat records/maps ® sewer/water permits
1
W 1 ❑ tax cards obituaries
_ .� — _ -1 ❑ building permit ❑ biographies
A7 T-- T Z I - T IR Sanborn maps-dates- 1927
LL ; Bibliography:
Q Department of Sanitation
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Describe present appearance of structurelsite,then contrast and compare that with it's original appearance,
noting additions,alterations,and changes in materials.Discuss significant architectural features.
This attached two-story commerical structure in the Victorian Commercial style
has a rectangular plan with several storefronts protected by a rounded metal
awning. The one-bay facade is asymmetrical and consists of two offset front
entrancesdecorated with 1" mosaic tile and large fixed windows at storefront level .
The second story features 1/1 double-hung windows in groupings. The bearing wall
construction is finished in brick and the 6-8 courses above the storefront are
corbeled out in the same plane. There are M-shaped corbels below the pressed tin
cornice and a corbeled window frieze. The roof is flat, and lies parallel to the
street.
t HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Justify how the persons,important events,and/or historical patterns associa'.ed Nra�t-_
and surrounding area lend the property significance.
Research in the sources consulted in this survey has not yielded any I
significant historical information concerning persons or events
associated with this property.
ThIs structure qualifies as a contributing element within a potential historic
district due to its association with the commercial aspect of the Progressive
Phase of Bozeman 's historic/architectural development.
INTEGRITY: Assess the degree to which the structurelsite,and surrounding area accurately convey the historical associations of the
property.
The historic Integrity of this property has been retained due to the survival
of original design and materials and continuity of use, setting and location.
INFORMATION VALUE: Explain how the extant structure/site may demonstrate or yield information about its historic use or construc-
tion.
None.
FORM PREPARED BY: GEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION:
Name
DAMES R. RTDONALD ARCHITECTS P.(:_ Acreage:
Address:
P. C. COX' 8163 uses Quad:
Cate:
f-i:ISSOULA, NIONTANA 59807 UTM's: I
1S34 REVISED
k� Matthew A. Cohen
B07ernnn, Montnnn
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24-?o W. Main
1985 revision
Matt Cohen, surveyor
The Owenhouse Building, typical of the several commercial blocks that filled in the
district in the early 20th century, is of a unique, eclectic design. The broad,
5-bay building forms a large segment of this almost perfectly contiguous section of the
district (both sides of Main St. between Willsoniand Tracy AvesJ. Particularly
notable are the raised patterns in the brickwork, and the very widely projecting
cornice, which has a paneled, pressed metal soffit. The door to the second floor
at the far west, has a transom that retains the original gold painted words "The
Owenhouse Building" . The storefront forthest to the west, now the Country
Bookshelf, has been recently remodeled.
The block was built by a Mr. Owenhouse, who, according to Mrs. Jack Lovelace,
ran a hardware store here and lived on S. Willson Ave. , but probably was not E.
J. Owenhouse of Owenhouse Hardware (36 E. Main) . The building appears on the
Sanborn Map of 1927, but not 1912. In 1918, The Weekly Courier noted that: "Fred
Willson, the local architect, has moved his offices from the Gallatin Block (40-42
E. Main) to the Owenhouse Block. . .The move was made necessary in order to give Mr.
Willson more room for his rapidly increasing business. (Weekly Courier, March 6,
1918) . Willson may have moved into a newly completed building.
Both the 1927 and 1933 City Directories show the Oliver Stout Implement Co.
hardware store in the ground floor, and the 1927 Sanborn Map shows a considerable
area at the rear in use for "implement storage. " Louis Spain and others clearly
remember an auto dealership near this building in the 1930' s, with large doors
leading to a showroom at the back. That show room must have been in tnis
building, if in fact it was on this block at all .
Bibliography
I
Louis Spain, interview, 9/4/85
The Weekly Courier, March 6-, 1918
Sanborn Maps, 1912, 1927
Bozeman City Directories, 1927, p. 182; 1933, p. 164.
Mrs. Jack Lovelace, interview, 9/3/85