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Home My WebLink About24 E Main St 2021 MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD For the Montana National Register of Historic Places Program and State Antiquities Database Montana State Historic Preservation Office Montana Historical Society PO Box 201202, 1410 8th Ave Helena, MT 59620-1202 Property Address: 24 E Main St Historic Address (if applicable): 26 E Main St City/Town: Bozeman Site Number: 197 Historic District Number (if applicable): 24GA0952 County: Gallatin Historic Name: Original Owner(s): Thomas B. Ellis Current Ownership Private Public Current Property Name: Ace Hardware Owner(s): 36 East Main LLC Owner Address: PO Box 1187, Bozeman, MT 59771-1187 Phone: Legal Location PM: Montana Township: 2S Range: 6E SW ¼ SE ¼ NW ¼ of Section: 7 Lot(s): Lots 7-8, E25' Lot 6 Block(s): Block A Addition: Bozeman Original Plat Year of Addition: 1870 USGS Quad Name: Bozeman Year: 1987 Historic Use: Commercial Current Use: Commercial Construction Date: 1889-90/1891 Estimated Actual Original Location Moved Date Moved: UTM Reference www.nris.mt.gov NAD 27 or NAD 83 (preferred) Zone: 12 N Easting: 497163 Northing: 5058381 National Register of Historic Places NRHP Listing Date: 1986 Historic District: Main Street Historic District NRHP Eligible: Yes No *Property does not meet the City of Bozeman's definition of an eligible property. Date of this document: 05/28/2021 Form Prepared by: S. Wells and E. Sakariassen, Metcalf Archaeological Consultants Inc. Address: PO Box 1526, Bozeman, MT 59771 Daytime Phone: (406) 219-3535 MT SHPO USE ONLY Eligible for NRHP: □ yes □ no Criteria: □ A □ B □ C □ D Date: Evaluator: Comments: Site is non-contributing within Main Street Historic District. MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 2 Architectural Description Property Name: 24 E Main St Site Number: 197 ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION Architectural Style: Art Deco-Moderne If Other, specify: Property Type: Commerce Specific Property Type: Ace Hardware store Architect: Unknown Architectural Firm/City/State: Unknown Builder/Contractor: Unknown Company/City/State: Unknown Source of Information: This site consists of one historical architectural feature: a two-story commercial building built between 1889 and 1891. This site is the west portion of the Owenhouse Hardware Store, the central and east portions are recorded as Property 201. This site was previously recorded in 1984 by James R. McDonald Architects and regarded as a "neutral element within a potential historic district." It was subsequently included in the Main Street Historic District (24GA0952) in 1986, listed as a non-contributing site within the district. McDonald described the structure as follows: "This attached two-story commercial structure has a rectangular plan with a two-storefront façade on the street level, both with entrances. One store has a soldier course above the store. The one-bay façade is asymmetrical and consists of two off-center front entrances with aluminum storefront windows at street level, and 1/1 double-hung windows in pairs on the upper level. The brick construction in running bond has vertical headers forming pilasters, and a coping of limestone and sandstone. The flat-built-up roof runs parallel to the street." Metcalf revisited the site on October 29, 2021 and noted some modifications. The building is directly associated with 36 E Main St. to the east, as they are connected internally as one large commercial spaces, however, externally they still appear as two separate commercial structures with a shared wall. The main entrance for Ace Hardware is at the 36 E Main St. address. The western storefront of this site was remodeled to be congruous with the eastern storefront design. Both entrances were also completely removed, and the ground floor is now just a bank of fixed of display windows in the style/design of the eastern storefront display windows from McDonald's 1984 report. No changes were noted of the second story from this previous recording. The site is in excellent condition. MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 3 History of Property Property Name: 24 E Main St Site Number: 197 HISTORY OF PROPERTY This site is a three-story brick commercial block, known as the Owenhouse Hardware building, built in 1899 and later remodeled, extensively. It was first recorded in 1984 by James R. McDaonld. In 1985 Matt Cohen added a revision to McDonald's report, which included a more thorough history of the property. The history of this property is as follows: "This simple Art Deco style façade, the west half of which spans an entire small building, and the east half of which spans only half of a larger commercial block, was constructed according to specifications provided by the F.W. Woolworth Co., probably in 1950. it is significant as one of the three architectural expressions of the three major, national department store chains to do business in the historic district in the first half of this century. (The others are J.C. Penny, 9 E. Main, and Montgomery Ward, 201 E. Main). The building is presently non-contributing due to age. The small building behind the west half of the façade was originally a simple, 3-bay brick structure with a corbelled cornice, and a plate glass storefront with a tall transom and central recessed entrance. It may have been built around 1891 by Thomas B. Ellis for his dry goods business (information from inventory form, no sources listed). A c. 1909 photograph of the building shows it with a bulb- studded sign projecting over the sidewalk that reads: "Shop of Bill the Nifty Tailor." Perhaps the next occupant was Byron's Cafe, which is listed here in the 1927 City Directory, and which according to Louis Spain remained until the expansion of the F.W. Woolworth Co. into the space from the adjacent building. The section of the larger, but only slightly more elaborate adjacent brick block that is now covered by the east half of the present façade, was vacant in 1927 (Sanborn Map). Probably in 1929, the F.W. Woolworth company moved into this space. Woolworth had previously occupied the ground floor of the Fechter Hotel (128-130 E. Main) from the time of its construction in 1918, and left when the J.C. Penney Co., which opened for business in Bozeman in 1929, moved into that impressive retail space. The F.W. Woolworth Co. expanded from its second location into the ground floor of the small building to the west, formerly occupied by Byron's Cafe, sometime before 1950. Around 1950, as a condition for the extension of their lease, the F.W. Woolworth Co. provided specifications for an extensive remodeling that the two landlords, Robert E. Dawes (east building) and a Mr. Sears (west building) were to undertake - this according to Charles Vandenhook, who arranged the loan for the work, which he said was quite expensive. Arrangements such as this were typical for large chain stores whose policy it was to invest in merchandise rather that real estate. The remodeling included much interior work, as well as the construction of the present façade, which visually unified the separately owned buildings. A fine woodworker from New York, Lester Newman, constructed the interior display cases (none of which survive). G. Davenport may also have been involved in this transaction, for he applied for a sewer permit on May 24, 1950 for this address, probably in connection with the remodeling. (According to Louis Spain, the east building was owned by Dawes and Davenport when first combined with the west building to allow the expansion of Woolworth's). After Woolworth's, the store was occupied for a relatively brief period by the Coast to Coast store until about 1980. The band of black screening across the upper edge of the eastern third of the former Woolworth façade is associated with yet another remodeling, this one in 1983, when Owenhouse Hardware (36 E. Main) attempted to architecturally unify the various components of their newly expanded business." Owenhouse Ace Hardware continues to occupy both this site and the building to the east at 36 E. Main St. According to Montana Cadastral records this structure underwent remodeling in 2018, however, nothing on the exterior of the façade suggests any modern materials or design so the renovations must have been in the interior. According to the Owenhouse Ace Hardware website "Locally-owned and operated, Owenhouse is one of Montana’s longest-run businesses. For more than a century, generations of loyal Bozeman families have formed the backbone of our business, and we’re committed to always giving back to the community that has given us so much (owenhouse.com). MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 4 Information Sources/Bibliography Property Name: 24 E Main St Site Number: 197 INFORMATION SOURCES/BIBLIOGRAPHY James R. McDonald Architects 1984-85 24 E Main St. Montana Historical and Architectural Inventory Form, Revision. Cohen, Matt, surveyor. Document on-file with the City of Bozeman. Bozeman, MT. Montana State Library. Montana Cadastral records online, http://svc.mt.gov/msl/mtcadastral, accessed 28 May 2021. Owenhouse Ace Hardware 2021 Website. https://www.owenhouse.com/, accessed 28 May 2021. MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 5 Statement of Significance Property Name: 24 E Main St Site Number: 197 NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES NRHP Listing Date: 1986 NRHP Eligibility: Yes No Individually Contributing to Historic District Noncontributing to Historic District NRHP Criteria: A B C D Area of Significance: Period of Significance: STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE This site is a simple Art Deco-Moderne building, built between 1889 and 1891, and then remodeled in the 1950s. The property at 24 East Main was previously recorded in 1984 by James R. McDonald Architects. Due to extensive changes to the façade in the 1950s, the site was considered non-contributing within the 1986 NRHP-listed Main Street Historic District (24GA0952). Today, the site is in excellent condition. Metcalf has re-assessed the site's integrity as the 1950s façade has now surpassed the 50-year threshold for consideration as historic in its own right. Due to some more recent alterations, however, Metcalf finds that this site does not retain sufficient integrity to convey historic character and is no longer a strong representative example of the Art Deco style of architecture in Bozeman. Sect. 38.700 of the Bozeman Municipal Code defines an eligible property as one that meets the criteria for inclusion in the NRHP or State Register either 1) individually or 2) as a contributing building to an existing or potential historic district. This site has been evaluated against the NRHP Criteria and has been determined to lack individual significance under Criterion A, B, C, and D. The site is located within the 1986 NRHP-listed Main Street Historic District boundary (24GA952), however, Metcalf recommends the site continue to be considered not eligible/non-contributing. MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 6 Integrity Property Name: 24 E Main St Site Number: 197 INTEGRITY (location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, association) The site is in excellent condition. The loss of the two storefronts and entrances of the Art Deco 1950s façade affect integrity of design, workmanship, materials, feeling, and, to some extent, association. The other aspects are retained. MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 7 Photographs Property Name: 24 E Main St Site Number: 197 Feature # 1 Facing: S Description: Property 201 (Left) & 197 (Right). Primary façade consists of two separate buildings, but which are connected on the interior (Image #1677, 10/29/2020. SLW). Feature # 1 Facing: NW Description: Property 201 & 197. Oblique view of rear south elevation, (Image #1685, 10/29/2020. SLW). MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 8 Site Map Property Name: 24 E Main St Site Number: 197 MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 9 Topographic Map Property Name: 24 E Main St Site Number: 197