Methodist Episcopal Church (Bozeman, Montana)

The Methodist Episcopal Church, at 121 S. Willson in Bozeman, Montana, was built in 1873. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987.[1]

Methodist Episcopal Church
Photo shows historic steeple behind disappointing 1950s red brickwork which subtracts from the historic noteworthiness of the site overall
Location121 S. Willson, Bozeman, Montana
Coordinates45°40′41″N 111°02′19″W
Arealess than one acre
Built1873
Architectural styleGothic Revival
MPSBozeman MRA
NRHP reference No.87001839[1]
Added to NRHPOctober 23, 1987

Its original Gothic Revival section was started in 1883 during a brief 1882-83 period of prosperity of Bozeman, and was completed in 1884, making it the oldest existing Methodist Church in the state of Montana.[2]

The church was organized by A.M. Hough of Virginia City, Montana in 1866. Before that there had been a Sunday school in a log house on Bozeman's Main Street in 1865. The church then built, in 1866, was the first frame building in town, and was 24 by 36 feet (7.3 m × 11.0 m) in plan, and had a sawdust floor. In 1869 it acquired the first bell in town.[2]

Bricks were manufactured by W.H. Tracy. There was a freestanding bell tower behind the church. In 1905 a three-story square belltower with a pyramidal roof surmounted by a decorative finial was added. In 1905-06 a two-story flat-roofed addition was added. A further addition of a one-story flat-roofed brick section for offices was added much later, probably during remodelling in the 1950s, which also covered the original brick building with stucco.[2]

Presumably it belongs to the Methodist Episcopal Church denomination.

References
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
  2. James R. McDonald; Matthew Cohen; Patricia Bick (1987). "Montana Historical/Architectural Inventory: Methodist Episcopal Church". National Park Service. Retrieved August 29, 2019. With accompanying photo from 1987
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