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HomeMy WebLinkAboutNomination Form SubmissionQ1: Your Name Emily Cope Q2: Your Email Address emily@downtownbozeman.org Q3: Phone Number 406-586-4008 Q4: Name of Nominee (Property, Project, Group, or Individual) Downtown Bozeman- Christmas Spiders Q5: Address/Location (if applicable) Downtown Bozeman Q6: Award Category Preservation Craft Q7: Statement of Merit - Why do you believe this nominee deserves a Historic Preservation Award? The restoration of Bozeman’s iconic “Christmas Spiders” deserves recognition through the Historic Preservation Award for its role in preserving a beloved community tradition dating back to the 1960s. These unique decorations, suspended over Main Street, have become an enduring symbol of Bozeman’s holiday spirit and civic identity. Their careful restoration, maintaining original design elements while upgrading materials for safety and sustainability, demonstrates a commitment to preserving historic streetscape character. This effort has involved decades of collaboration between Downtown Bozeman, Bozeman Fire, city employees and community members, reflecting strong civic stewardship and cultural continuity. By keeping the Christmas Spiders vibrant and central to public celebrations like the annual Christmas Stroll, Bozeman honors its past while strengthening community connections today. Q8: If a Project: Briefly describe the type of work completed. Please include relevant history of the structure (year built, original purpose, etc.) The following history of the Downtown Bozeman Holiday decorations was compiled through oral interviews with retired Bozeman Firefighters Geoff Hoell, Buck Hoell, Dave Miller, Dan Figgins, and Bruce Thompson. Day logs from the 1960’s and 1970’s were also consulted. Montana Crane also provided information on their involvement. The Downtown Bozeman Partnership contributed some of the more recent details. This history should be viewed with the Firefighter axiom of, “never let the facts get in the way of a good story!” in mind. Bozeman Firefighters have been involved with decorating the downtown for the Christmas holiday since the early 1960’s. The earliest involvement was maintaining and installing different holiday decorations which hung from the streetlight poles. They were described as Candy Canes and other holiday symbols. In approximately 1969 several downtown business people purchased an “Intersection Cascade” from Dijulio Displays in Washington State. The Green decoration was installed at Bozeman and Main Street with Henderson Construction installing the first Support Cables. It is unclear whether the Firefighters assisted with the first installation. Subsequent decorations were phased in, one per year with different fund-raising methods and donations. Red was purchased second, gold third, followed by White with Blue bulbs a few years later. It is unclear if the firefighters installed the subsequent cables. The decorations consist of a 24-foot-tall center pipe extending from a 6’ circle of steel at the base. There are approximately 12 lengths of chain that extend from the ring to the top of the pole. When set up it forms the familiar cone shape which has been interpreted as a bell, tree, or the body of a spider. This is wrapped with a spiral of garland which consists of a 1/8” steel cable with wires and light sockets (originally the sockets were for a full-size bulb base and in approximately 2004 they were switched to smaller more efficient bulbs). Then the 6” round garland is attached as well. Originally everything was held in place with metal hog rings (used in upholstery work) and metal twist ties. The poles are then topped by a star. Two of the trees had stars that slid into the top of the pipe. These stars were originally fiberglass and were replaced with metal frames covered in plastic in 2011. The remaining two have stars that clamp around the pipe. These are also metal frames wrapped in plastic. All the stars have two 75-Watt light bulbs in them. All stars were replaced in 2014 with steel stars with colored plexi glass windows stars were fabricated locally by Barton Fabrication. Each decoration has twelve cascades which start below the star and go in all directions of the intersection, North East, North Center, North West, etc. Each cascade is a specific length ranging from 43’ to 67’. The decorations were originally stored in the basement of the Stylon Building which was a former car dealership and had a large ramp entrance off the alley to the South. The firefighters would check and repair bulbs and wiring at Station One and later Station two. In the late 1990’s The Gallatin County fair Grounds began donating a building for the repair. In 2015 The fairgrounds stopped donating the space and repair was moved back to station one. 1000’s of bulbs were replaced each year, either broken, burned out or because the coloring being worn off (darker colors wear faster). Both on and off duty firefighters participated in the maintenance. There are numerous stories of “bulb wars” which involved throwing bad bulbs towards your fellow firefighters for days on end. The carnage would be swept up at the end of the day and could often fill a 55-gallon trash can. The practice of bulb wars is no longer officially condoned due to the obvious safety hazard. The decorations were then stored at Merganthaler Transfer and Storage in Bozeman. They were stored in three large crates (approximately 8’x6’x6’) with the poles being stored in a semi trailer. Decorations are now stored in a regular storage unit. There are plywood boxes with open tops which each hold three garlands (four boxes per decoration) these are loaded on a flatbed trailer provided by a firefighter and hauled to Station One where the decorations are repaired in mid November. The decorations are then returned back to the storage unit the Monday prior to the Christmas Stroll when they are installed. The decorations were originally erected using the Bozeman Fire Department’s 1955 Pirsch Ladder Truck. The tree/bell would be lifted by the top and placed over the cable intersection in the approximate center of the intersection. A bucket truck would then clamp the circular base to the cables and then attach the four guy wires from the top of the pole to the intersection cables. A person at the top of the ladder truck would then hoist the garlands up and attach them to the top of the pole and plug each one in. The other end would then be clamped in its appropriate location in the intersection. Various companies and agencies have provided bucket trucks including Kelly Tree Service, Montana Power, Bozeman Arbor Care, and the City of Bozeman Forestry Department. In approximately 1996 it was decided that utilizing an emergency vehicle such as the ladder truck as a crane was not appropriate and Montana Crane was contracted to provide crane service. Greg Poncelet owner of Montana Crane has donated the service ever since. There has been only one break in this service due to scheduling conflicts and “300 rpm Ron” provided a small tracked crane which took too long to move from intersection to intersection. He was only used for one installation in approximately 2003. In 2011 the equipment used was one crane from Montana crane, two bucket trucks from city forestry, and 1 bucket truck from Bozeman Arbor Care. Originally Main Street was not shut down traffic would just drive around the ladder and bucket trucks. Currently all Main Street is closed, and traffic is diverted from Rouse to Grand. The lights are turned on from the alleys and from the beginning until approximately 2000 the Bozeman Police would turn them on and off manually. As call volume increased it became difficult for them to turn them on and off in a routine manner. Automatic timers were installed in approximately 2001. In 2018 the Downtown Business Improvement District replaced all the bulbs with LED versions for energy conservation and longevity. The Green spider was rebuilt for the 2022 holiday season after it fell due to high winds at the 2021 Christmas Stroll. In 2023, BID Board voted to replace the tinsel on the other three spiders over the next several years, the Red spider in 2023, the Gold spider in 2024 and the white and FINAL spider in 2025! The lights are lit during the Bozeman Christmas Stroll by Santa Claus who magically lights them with a firework after singing a Christmas song. Q9: If an Individual or Organization : Provide a summary of contributions to local history and how they promote cultural heritage. Downtown Business Improvement District- pays for the restoration of the spiders. Bozeman Fire contributes time. Q10: Upload photos or supporting documents Spider Historic Photo- Gallatin History Museum photo by Arthur Bartosch.jpg Q11: Upload photos or supporting documents Spider down at Bozeman & Main!.jpg Q12: Upload photos or supporting documents 2023_DTNBZN_CHRISTMAS_STROLL-084.jpg Q13: Upload photos or supporting documents Spider Install (5).jpg Q14: Upload photos or supporting documents Spider Install (8).jpg Q15: Photo Use Permissions I grant permission for the City of Bozeman to use submitted photos in print and digital publications Q16: If you are submitting on behalf of someone else or a property owner, are they aware of the nomination? No Q17: If yes, please provide their contact information (email and/or phone number) Skipped Q18: Are there other people or organizations affiliated with this nomination that you would like to acknowledge? Yes Q19: If yes, please provide their contact information. Bozeman Fire Department Attn: Tim O'Tool, totool@bozeman.net, 406-581-0976