Henry Dion built this brick building circa 1894 to expand his mercantile business. In 1908, he sold it to his two eldest sons, Harry N. and Fred. The brothers enlarged the original one-story building in 1910, adding a second story with apartments and a new façade. The four original shops were converted to one large general merchandise store that catered to the homesteaders then pouring into Dawson County. The business included an International Harvester farm equipment outlet across the street. The brothers, who themselves had a ranch on Belle Prairie, stocked everything imaginable from a spool of thread to a team of horses. Smaller purchases, wrapped with paper and tied with string, had to be secure enough to be carried many miles on horseback. Miles City architect Brynjulf Rivenes designed the stunning Neoclassical style façade, which features extensive brick and sandstone detailing. Note the “Dion Bros.” inscription and decorative lions’ heads, perhaps a reminder that the French-Canadian name, Dion, was Americanized to rhyme with lion.
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