Filed Under Butte

1200 West Steel Street

Butte National Historic Landmark District

Copper was a primary component in warships, ammunition casing, and tanks. No wonder Butte’s economy boomed during World War I. The city’s population more than doubled between 1910 and 1918, and real estate developers scrambled to meet the demand for housing, building over 700 residences between 1915 and 1918. Not all of Butte’s new residents were miners, and among the middle-class enclaves that grew up during the war was the Corona Addition, surveyed by James King in 1915. Most of the new homes were Craftsman style bungalows, but there were exceptions, including this grand Colonial Revival house, prominently situated on a corner lot. The singular gambrel-roofed residence features shuttered windows, two shed dormers, and a welcoming gable-roofed entryway. Attorney Joseph Griffin lived here in 1918, but from 1926 through 1944, the distinctive residence was home to Lee and Myrtle Smith, their three children, and a live-in housekeeper. A prominent ear, nose, and throat doctor, and vice president of Murray Hospital, Dr. Smith was also an “ardent sportsman,” a “scattergun artist,” and devoted member of the Butte Trap and Skeet Club.

Images

1200 West Steel Street
1200 West Steel Street 1200 West Steel Street (PAc 91-51 B2 RollLB12 F28). Front view of the house, facing south on West Steel Street. B&W. Source: Montana State Historic Preservation Office from the Photograph Archives at the Montana Historical Society Creator: Linda Bell Date: 1984

Location

1200 Steele Street, Butte, Montana | Private

Metadata

The Montana National Register Sign Program, “1200 West Steel Street,” Historic Montana, accessed March 29, 2024, https://historicmt.org/items/show/2416.