Carriage House Historic District facts for kids

The Carriage House Historic District in Miles City, Montana was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1991. This special area includes 54 important old buildings and 21 newer ones. They are located on the 900 to 1100 blocks of Pleasant and Palmer Avenues and on nearby cross streets. You can find signs at nine spots that tell you more about the history of these buildings.

Harmon House: A Grand Home from 1887

The 1887 Harmon House

This amazing home was built in 1887 for E. H. Johnson. He was an important person in Montana, serving as a state legislator and Miles City's very first mayor! The house was designed in a fancy style called Queen Anne, which often has unique shapes and details. It's believed that local architect Byron Vreeland designed it.

The house originally had a beautiful arched porch and a round bay window with a cone-shaped roof. In 1891, the second owner, rancher William Harmon, added the carriage house. Later, between 1903 and 1910, Senator Kenneth McLean owned the home. He updated it with popular Neo-classical details and a porch that wrapped all the way around the house. The Rivenes family bought this historic property in 1962.

Alderson House: A Pioneer Mom's Story

The Alderson House on Palmer Street

Nannie Alderson moved to Montana in 1883 with her husband, Walt. They ran a cattle ranch for ten years. In 1893, they moved to Miles City so their children could go to school. Sadly, Walt died in 1895 after a horse kicked him. Nannie was left with four young children, aged two to eleven.

To support her family, Nannie built this house. She worked hard, selling homemade bread and milk from their cow. She also cooked meals for others and took in people who needed a place to stay. In 1902, Nannie moved her family to Birney, Montana. Years later, she became famous for her book, "A Bride Goes West," published in 1942. It shared her memories as a pioneer.

Her charming wooden home still looks much like the old Greek Revival style houses that were once common in Miles City. This style is rarely seen today. Over time, the front porch was changed, and side entry covers were added around the 1910s. These changes show how building styles, like the bungalow style, became popular in the early 1900s.

Emmanuel Episcopal Church: A Mix of Styles

1886 Emanuel Episcopal Church

This church, built in 1886, is a cool mix of different building styles. It combines Romanesque, Gothic, and Queen Anne designs. Architect Byron Vreeland designed it, and this church is considered his most important work in Montana. He often blended these styles in his buildings.

Inside, the church has a curved wooden ceiling made from California redwood. There's also a large, beautiful Gothic-style stained glass rose window above the entrance. The brickwork on the outside has a special "mouse-toothed" pattern. The only big change to the church was removing its bell tower.

The church's altar is made from walnut wood. This wood came from a steamboat that sank near Miles City around 1880! This altar is a rare piece of steamboat history in Montana. It reminds us of the "Wooden City" time when many buildings in Miles City were made of wood. The Emmanuel Episcopal Church has served the community for over 100 years and is a truly special building.

Farnum House: A Rancher's City Home

Joseph E. Farnum came to Eastern Montana in 1883. He first lived near the Tongue River. After marrying Minnie Parmenter in 1885, he moved to a ranch on the Powder River. Like many ranchers back then, Farnum also had a home in Miles City.

Around 1883, he built a simple one-and-a-half-story house in the Greek Revival style. In 1893, Farnum moved his family to town for good. Soon after, he added a two-story section to the house in the Queen Anne style. He became a successful businessman, buying an insurance and real estate company in 1901. He also served as the City Clerk in 1912. Farnum was an important person in Miles City until he passed away in 1924.

Farnum built his home in Miles City's first wealthy neighborhood. He kept changing the house to show how the city was growing and becoming more important. In 1928, Anna Weber bought the property. She wisely turned the house into apartments. When she lost her money in the stock market crash of 1929, the rent from the apartments helped her survive. After Weber's death, her niece inherited the house. It's still in the family today and has been changed back into a single-family home.

Furstnow House: A Saddle Maker's Masterpiece

The Queen Anne style Furstnow House

Al Furstnow was born in Wisconsin and settled in Miles City in 1894. He became the most famous saddle maker in the Northwest! In 1895, Furstnow asked Byron Vreeland to design this Queen Anne style home. This was unusual because Vreeland usually designed buildings with bricks.

A year before, Furstnow had opened "Al Furstnow's Saddle Shop" on Main Street, also in a Vreeland-designed building. Furstnow was known for making the first saddles in Miles City with flower designs stamped into the leather. He even made saddles for important people like Lord Sidney Paget from Britain, Leigh Remington of Remington Arms, and for Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show when they performed in Paris!

The bay windows on the house have beautiful carved designs. These designs are also found inside the house. The home still has its original tall ceilings and fancy details. This includes a fan-shaped arch and four chandeliers made of brass and stained glass. One of these chandeliers even looks like a British Crown! In 1910, the house was updated with Craftsman style details. This made it look more modern and showed Miles City's wealth during a time when many people were moving to the area to start farms. The Furstnow family owned this home until the late 1980s.

Kennie-Howe House: A Changing Neighborhood

By the late 1880s, the north side of Miles City was growing. Big, expensive homes were built on large pieces of land. As land became harder to find, smaller plots were created from these big yards. Soon, working families lived next door to important residents.

This charming Queen Anne style cottage, built around 1901, shows this trend. It was built on land that used to be part of a larger property to the north. The house also shows how building styles were changing. Its balanced look hints at the newer Colonial Revival style, while its wide roof edges suggest the Prairie style. However, beautiful stained glass windows above the doors – a classic Queen Anne feature – are still a main part of the design.

Later, a Craftsman style garage was built to replace a barn. This shows another change in the neighborhood, as people started using cars instead of horses. Maud B. and Albert W. Kennie, who later owned the famous Olive Hotel for many years, sold the home to rancher John S. Howe in 1904. The Howe family likely used this house as a winter home so their children could go to the nearby Washington School.

McAusland House: A Smart Design for Safety

The McAusland House

This early wooden home is tucked among the grand Queen Anne style houses. It was built for John McAusland, an immigrant from Scotland. The house appears on an 1883 map of Miles City. It has a steeply sloped roof and a small dormer window on the front. The dormer probably once had a door that led to the roof of a long front porch.

The main part of the house has one and a half stories, but the kitchen is under a separate, one-story roof. This type of design was common in the 1800s. Having the kitchen under its own roof helped reduce the risk of fire. If a kitchen fire started, it was easier for people with buckets of water to reach a one-story roof. This might save the rest of the house! This design also allowed for good airflow, which was helpful during hot summers.

McAusland arrived in Miles City in 1882. In 1886, he was named postmaster, which was an important job that showed he had good political connections. This job paid $1,800 a year, which would be about $37,000 today! In later years, he worked as a clerk. He was still living in this house with his daughter in 1914.

Methodist Church: A Growing Community's Landmark

The 1910 Methodist Church replaced an 1883 building

In 1910, the Methodist community wanted a new, bigger church. They hired a company from New York to help them raise money. The growing church members raised $14,000. A neighbor, C. J. Wagenbreth, gave the rest of the money needed to finish the project. But he had one condition: no bell could be hung in the church tower! He didn't want to be woken up by bells. So, the church got a steeple, but no bells.

Designed by the architectural firm of Woodruff & McGulpin in 1912, the Methodist Church shows how Miles City was growing. It's also an important building in the neighborhood. The church combines different architectural styles. It has Romanesque Revival windows, Gothic-style battlements (like on a castle), and a shape similar to early Christian or Tudor buildings.

The round-arched Romanesque openings look great on the bell tower and are also used for the main windows. Each window has painted wooden dividers and curved shapes that form two arches with round openings surrounded by brick. This is the only building in Miles City designed by this firm. Its design is similar to the Presbyterian Church on Main Street, which was designed by Brynjulf Rivenes.

Ulmer House: Elegant Home of a Hardware King

The Neoclassical Ulmer House

This beautiful Neoclassical style mansion looks very grand. But its first owner, George H. Ulmer, came from humble beginnings. He was born in Pennsylvania, the son of a German immigrant. Ulmer arrived in Miles City in 1883. By 1889, his name was added to a hardware company owned by George Miles and Charles Strevell. It became the biggest hardware company in southeastern Montana!

Helena-based architect Charles S. Haire designed this home for Ulmer and his wife, Flora, in 1902. Haire was a very talented architect who designed many important buildings in Miles City. At that time, he was often in Miles City overseeing the design and building of the Carnegie Library and the Ursuline Convent. These buildings, along with the Ulmer residence, show how skilled Haire was in the Neoclassical style.

Haire's design for this house helped start a new trend in home building in Miles City. The house has a large, curved front porch, tall Ionic columns, special Palladian windows, and a central triangular roof section with a round window inside. These are all common features of the Neoclassical style. The house also has very fine details, like carved columns, a carved wreath above the main entrance, oak doors with panels, and windows with beveled glass.