HomeMy WebLinkAboutHotelBaxter HP}+Fcrrr110860 OMB NO.1024-0018
43 E<2) Exp.10-31-a4
United States Department of the Interior G
National Park Service For NPS use only
National Register of Historic Places received
Inventory—Nomination Form date entered
See instructions in How to.Complete National Register Forms -7��
Type all entries—complete applicable sections �
1 . Dame
historic Hotel Baxter 6 $Lo iAl NO1/K
and/or common The Baxter
2. Location
street & number 10.5 W. Main a/-a not for publication
city, town Bozeman n/a vicinity of
state Montana code 30 county Gallatin code 031
3. Classification
Category Ownership Status Present Use
—district _ public X occupied _____agriculture —museum
X building(s) X private —unoccupied X_.commercial — park
—structure — both _ _ work in progress _educational private residence
site Public Acquisition Accessible —entertainment —religious
object In process X yes: restricted —government —scientific
being considered — yes:unrestricted industrial —transportation
n/a _no __ military _.—other:
4., owner of Property '
name The Baxter (company)
street& number 105 W. Main
city,town Bozeman n/a vicinity of state Montana.
5. Location of Legal Description
courthouse, registry of deeds,etc. Gallatin County Courthouse
street& number 305 W. Main
city, town Bozeman state Montana
6. Representation in Existing Surveys
title none has this property been determined eligible? --_yes %no
• date — federal —state _ county local
depository tot survey records
rlry Rrlw,l
7 Description
Condition Check one Check one
X excellent —deteriorated X unaltered ,x.original site
s good —ruins altered __ moved date
a- fair unexposed
Describe the present and original (it known) physical appearance '
`The Hotel Bdxter, a seven story brick structure located on the northwest corner of
Main Street and N. Willson Avenue, has served as the western anchor for the central
business district of Bozeman, Montana since 1929. The building is in excellent condition.
It has been renovated on -the lower floors and is undergoing rehabilitation currently
on the upper floors.
The building is set back 8' from the front lot lines to allow for a spacious entry
and planting argas in front of the lobby windows. There is a rear yard on the north
30' deep which was originally landscaped with a lily pond and is now a grass.-covered
patio. The structural framework of 'the structure is a reinforced concrete column,
beam and slab system. The building consists of two units: the seven story section
on the south that housed the hotel proper and a two story section on the north that
enclosed the kitchen, banquet rooms, and dining/ballroom.
The exterior brick walls are made from Lewistown (Montana) Brick and Tile Co. and are
light buff in color. A gray-green terra Gotta trim outlines three arches on the front
(south) facade that frame the semi-circular transom windows above the double entry
doors and the large flanking windows. Above this there is a terra Gotta belt- course
terminating at each end in a cartouehe. The six center windows of the top floor have
small iron balconies and are emphasized by a terra Gotta arcade of arches. Three windows
of lthe east facade of the dining room segment are also outlined by terra Gotta arches.
tThe building is topped,with a•receding terra Gotta coping. The side entry to the building
off N. Willson still features its original cast iron canopy. This entry leads to an
east-west corridor that` gives access to the dining room, lobby, etc. The windows of
the upper floors are double-hung 1/1 wood units.
The main lobby is two stories in height. The mezzanine , with its decorative metal
balustrade, opens into this space. There is a "false-beamed" ceiling of plaster painted
and stained to resemble heavy wood construction. A stairway, curved at its base and
upper portion, leads from the lobby to the mezzanine. A door opens from the lobby
to the present "Bacchus Pub", formerly the hotel coffee shop. Originally the west
half of the coffee shop housed a soda fountain. The former coffee shop/soda fountain
has a decor reputed to be a reproduction of a medieval winery in Munich. The design
was created by Willson as an original part of the hotel. At the ends of the beams
(again plaster resembling wood) are six different monks' heads, each representing one
of the monks who worked in the winery. They were carved by artist/craftsman Antone
Lange.
Other doorways from the lobby give access to the dining room, now the "Rocky Mountain
Pasta Company" restaurant , and to the bar. The bar was not included in the original
design of the building which was constructed during the Prohibition era. Athough this
law was repealed in 1932, the bar was not put in until '1939. It was named "The Robin"
for one of the sons of manager Robert MacNab. The Art Deco design was also the work
of architect Willson who, incidentally, carried out numerous renovations and supervised
upkeep on the building until his death in 1956. Above Lhe bar (origi.nally :3emi-cureular,
now straight) Lhere in a co i 1.i ng of dark hNo trsi rror-wl 1�].trs:s ;ij)r 1 nk1(t,J w i th rsi,rsrn rst7t1
u rr•orsrnrrL moon. Thn, morsl. rArik I np, f'r:aLut c: of Llic: bar is tho uLalnod gla:utr f'r•unt wind9w;
OKt depicts a robin sipping from a champagne glann.
8. Significance
Period Areas of Significance Checkand justify below
prehistoric archeology-prehistoric _ community planning —landscape architecture_ religion
1400-1499 archeology-historic —__ conservation — law' — sciepce
1500-1599 agriculture —economics —literature —sculpture
1600-1699 _ architecture —_ education military —, social/
— 1700-1799 —art —engineering _ music Humanitarian
�. _1800-1899• -- commerce —explorationlsettlement philosophy —theater
X 1900- communications industry politics/government —transportation
invention —other(specify)
Specific dates 1929 Builder/Architect H.3. Hamill/Fred F. Willson
Statement of Significance (in one paragraph]
The Hotel Baxter has been a unique enterprise and a landmark in Bozeman, Montana since
its opening in' 1929. It was designed by Fred F. Willson, a local architect; who did much
to shape the appearance of the town .during his fifty years of practice. The Hotel Baxter
is an example of his work in the late 1920 's while the Robin Bar (which was installed
in 1939) typifies his Art Deco period. The building is straightforward in design and
_.. J planned to operate efficiently, both to serve the traveler and to serve the social
�t �ds of the people of Bozeman. The hotel was built with money raised by sale of stock
to local investors and for fifty years was operated as a community hotel.
In 1927, a group of sixteen business and professional men led by Eugene Graf met to plan
for a fashionable hotel for Bozeman. One of this group was local architect Fred F. Willson.
The Bozeman Community Hotel, Inc. organization was formed on September 21 , 1927. A goal
of $200 ,000 was set for constructing the planned hotel and stock was sold to the public
to raise the money. The prospectus for the proposed hotel stated:
. 1
It will be throughout a community project, financed through community effort, owned
by those who believe in the community, operated under community supervision, and
by community cooperation.
Fred Willson drew up the plans and a group specializing in fundraising for community hotels,
the Hockenberry System, was hired to raise funds by sale of stock to the citizens of Bozeman.
The Hockenberry staff was only able to raise half the amount needed and resigned. The
executive committee nevertheless voted to continue with the project and raise the rest
of the money themselves. A bank loan enabled them to let the bids and start construction.
Robert Baxter, a local rancher-entrepreneur, pledged the last $50,000 needed for the building,
and the Executive Committee named the hotel for him. Robert's son, George Baxter, and
his family made their home in an apartment on the top floor of the hotel for many years.
The grand opening of the hotel was held on March 16, 1929 with a dinner dance headlined
as the "Most Brilliant Social Affair Held in Bozeman." The attendees were the stockholders
in the association, together with their guests. Some four hundred invitations had been
sent out. A French cook was hired by the Roberts-MacNab Hotel Co. The Company, .itself,
would operate the hotel, saying that "Towns are judged by their hotels. . . and he believed
Bozeman would become better known through the Community Hotel, the Hotel Baxter. n,
Established not only as a lodging place for travelers, the Hotel Baxter was also as the
"in" place to hold numerous social functions, including those of the fraternities and
sororities of Montana State College (now Montana State University) .
s
lBgveman Da11y_-Qhr pnjgJe, March 17, 1929
9. . Major~Bibliographical References
Bozeman Daily Chronicle, March 17, 1929,pp. 1 ,6, 17
Bozeman Daily Chronicle, July 9, 1964
High Country News, July 15, 1981
Community Hotel. (Bozeman) Prospectus, " A Greater Bozeman" See •Font inuatioit
10. Geographical Data
Acreage of nominated property less than 1
Quadrangle name Bozeman Quadrangle scale l'62,500
UT M References
A W2j
4 19 4 10 0 J 15 10 15 18 12 12 15 1
Zone Easting Northing Zone Easting I Northing
C W I--�W i I i k I I I p WW W1-WLJ I i I I I IW
E W I LL-I.. I I I F I I L..�, 1 1 F W I I_ I I I I I -LjII
H
Verbal boundary description and justification
' operty bounded by W. Main Street, N. Willson Ave. and alleys on west and north.
Lots 1,2, and 3 east 18 feet of lot .4, Block B, Tracy Addition to Bozeman
List all states and counties for properties overlapping state or county boundaries
state , n/a code county code
state code county code
11 . Form Pr6pared By
name/title John N. Dellaas, Jr. , Architect
organization date September 30, 1983
street&number 1021 S. Tracy telephone (406) 586-2276 .
city or town Bozeman state Montana
12.• State Historic Preservation officer certification
The evaluated significance of this property within the state is:
national state local
As the designated State Historic Preservation Officer for the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966(Public Law 89�-
665), 1 hereby nominate this property for inclusion in the National Register and certify that it has been evaluated
according to the criteria and procedures set forth by the National Park Service.
State Historic Preservation Officer signature
title date
For NPS use only '
hereby certify that this property is included In the National Register
date w
Keeper of the t ationai Register
Attest: date
Chief of Regislralion
NPS Form 10.400•• OMB No.1024-0018
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United States Department of the Interior
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!' Continuation sheet Item number 7 Rage OOl
The dining room was originally two stories in height with a balcony at mezzanine level
on the south and east sides. A small dining room was located -on the, west side at mezzanine
level with french doors opening to give a view of the two story ballroom/dining space.
A long stairway from the south balcony led to the ballroom level below. In 19511 a
need for more dining space caused the open space to be closed over, giving a dining
room only one story in height and a second dining/ballroom `space on the mezzanine.
This is the most significant change that has been made in the building.
The hotel was designed with seventy-six rooms. Several apartments were included on
the top floor for permanent residents. Space for two commercial stores was allowed
on the main floor. One of these housed the Chamber of Commerce in early years and
later became the Robin Bar. The other was a pharmacy acquired in 1931 by Mr. and Mrs. Heber
Porter who operated the business for many decades. while living in an upstairs apartment.
This space now is used by a travel agency.
The basement included space for a barber shop, beauty parlor, kitchen storage and storage
for the shops on the main floor.
j
The building no longer serves the traveling public but is still a vital part of downtown
Bozeman. Rennovation of the upper floors into condominium apartments began in 1981 .
The second floor (above the mezzanine) will become condominium office space in' the
future. In 1981 , the lobby and mezzanine floors underwent extensive facelifting but
not remodeling. The original mica and wrought iron lights were carefully cleaned.,
The lobby fountain was rebuilt so that water again flows through it. Walls were repainted
using the same paint type and original colors as originally used and the plaster ceiling
"beams" with stenciled-on designs were cleaned and touched up where necessary. The
Robin Bar, Bacchus Pub, Rocky Mountain Pasta Company restaurant, and the ballroom and
meeting rooms on the second floor are all centers of Bozeman's social life, now as
in the past.
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Continuation sheet Item number 8 Page 001
The Community Hotel Association was long--lasting. The first major change in its executive
committee occured in 1960 when one of the first organizers, Eugene Graf, resigned as president
after 33 years of service. The Roberts-MacNab Hotel Co. managed the hotel until 1947
when the lease was terminated and a new lease was given to Robert B. (Robin) MacNab, Jr, and
his brother John. The Association was finally dissolved in 1980 when the building was
purchased by the present owner.
Even though the hotel opened just prior to the national economic depression of the 193013,
it was a success from the beginning. Occupancy levels remained high, with some peop]r•
returning yonr rift.or year, to :illors<I t:hr� lr :surntnor:s Jr, 1,hn flaMILln vallny, .tn additionL1,
Lho morn usual tourst i and busine:rs traveler. The public spaces of the hotel also have
been consistently used by the community.
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Item number 9 Page 001
Dorothy May (Mrs. Heber) Porter, Personal interview
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