“The three Longley cottages in the eastern part of the city have been completed and are ready for occupancy,” announced the Forsyth Times in November 1901. Two of those cottages were almost certainly this hipped-roof residence and its twin next door, both owned by M. Longley. The homes are typical of Forsyth’s turn-of-the-century masonry residences, most of which have since been covered with stucco. Mass production of decorative details allowed even modest houses to partake of architectural fashion. In the case of these two homes, the fish scale shingles ornamenting their front gable ends and the turned wooden posts supporting the gabled porch roofs visually reference the popular Queen Anne style. In 1914, real estate salesman Arthur Bland lived here with his wife, Maude, and their daughter, Marvel. The public administrator for Rosebud County from 1913 to 1928, Bland had to scramble to make a living after the homestead boom dried up; by 1920, he was working for the railroad as a brakeman. In 1928, the Blands moved to Billings, where Arthur once again sold real estate.
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