Peterson House
As Bozeman made its bid for state capital, the construction of fashionable homes and buildings contributed to the town’s promotional efforts. Economic depression in 1893 and designation of Helena as state capital in 1894 tempered the boomtown enthusiasm of the previous decade. Few homes and buildings were constructed during this period of economic difficulty. One exception is this modest cottage built circa 1895 for laborer James Peterson. A native of Denmark, Peterson came to the United States in 1876, settled in Bozeman in 1882 and married at the age of 42. He brought his bride, Katie, to this house where the couple lived until they moved to Grant’s Pass, Oregon, circa 1902. Lafayette Fuller and his wife, the former Mrs. Grace Winters, then purchased the residence. The couple made their home here until Fuller’s death in 1934.The enterprising Fuller worked his way from employment as a teamster with S. C. Kenyon in 1902 to proprietor of the Bozeman Transfer Company by 1916. During Prohibition, the Fullers operated the O.K. Pastime, a soft drink establishment on Main Street. The Queen Anne style cottage is typical of modest workers’ housing built during the Victorian era. The original L-shape had been modified by 1912, filling in the “L, ” expanding the rear, and adding a back corner porch. Diamond-cut shingles in the gables, irregular front entries, squared porch posts with decorative support brackets, and arched windows are characteristic of the Queen Anne style.
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