Young middle-class professional families flocked to the North Elevation neighborhood after 1905 in search of modern homes in a quiet suburban setting. Rows of welcoming Craftsman bungalows with wide front porches and simple decorative details like knee braces and exposed rafter tails in the eaves became the dominant neighborhood style. Railway mail service clerk Harold Madson and his wife Winnifred, a former librarian, lived here between 1909 and 1922. By 1930, bridge engineer Frank Robbins and wife Gladys, a stenographer, lived here with their two boys and a teenage maid. A third boy was born in 1934. Frank lost an arm in a bridge construction accident in 1925, but he continued to work for the Montana Highway Commission for many years. In her spare time, Gladys organized study groups on liberal arts topics for the local Delphian Society’s Delta chapter, a national organization that promoted the education of women. Through many owners, the home has retained its original character and remains a fine example of the Craftsman style.
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