Filed Under Cascade

Charlie and Nancy Russell Honeymoon Cottage

The son of a wealthy St. Louis family, Charles M. “Charlie” Russell longed for western adventure. In 1880, at fifteen, he convinced his parents to let him visit Montana. He never looked back. For over ten years, he worked as a night herder during the summer and rode the grub line in the winter, all the while painting and sculpting western scenes. Russell met Ben Roberts in 1882. The two became friends, and after Roberts married Lela Gorham and moved to Lela’s hometown of Cascade, the cowboy artist often visited him in the off season. Roberts supported Russell’s artistic ambitions, and in 1890 he published Russell’s first book of illustrations. While visiting Cascade in October 1895, Russell met sixteen-year-old Nancy Cooper, who lived with, and worked for, the Roberts. Nancy and Charlie married a year later in the Roberts’ parlor. After the ceremony they moved into the small bunkhouse and studio behind the Roberts’ house where Russell always stayed when he visited the family. Russell spent $75 adding a lean-to kitchen and otherwise fixing up the place. “Our wedding trip,” Charlie remembered, “was a hundred yards to that one-room shack—and we walked.” Charlie’s marriage to Nancy marked a turning point in his career, and Nancy’s business acumen is often credited for his professional success. Her management started early, and within a year of their marriage the Russells had moved to Great Falls, where Nancy correctly felt there would be a larger market for Charlie’s work.

Images

Charles M. Russell Honeymoon House
Charles M. Russell Honeymoon House Charles M. Russell Honeymoon House. View of a small home with a car parked to the right, noted as the Charles M. Russell Honeymoon House. Front view of house, facing east. Source: Montana History Portal Creator: Unidentified photographer Date: Between 1945 and 1965
Charles and Nancy Russell Honeymoon Cottage
Charles and Nancy Russell Honeymoon Cottage Charles and Nancy Russell Honeymoon Cottage. Front view of the cottage house, facing east to southeast near Russell Drive South to present the changes to the structure in contrast to the early photograph. Notice the porch was removed, the siding was remodeled, and the skull placed above the entry. Source: Montana Historical Society Creator: Kirby Lambert Date: Sept. 2019

Location

20 Russell Drive South, Cascade, Montana | Private

Metadata

The Montana National Register Sign Program, “Charlie and Nancy Russell Honeymoon Cottage,” Historic Montana, accessed March 29, 2024, https://historicmt.org/items/show/173.