Filed Under Helena

William M. Bishop House

Helena Historic District (Boundary Increase II)

This early gable-front-and-wing residence was constructed in 1878 by postal clerk William F. Bishop for $2,000. Mrs. Margaret Bishop ran a dressmaking business from the home and took in boarders in the late 1880s. Cottage industries and boardinghouses were a common thread in this neighborhood. By 1899, Fred W. Hill and his wife, Clara, had moved into the residence. Hill came to Montana in the mid-1870s and served an enlistment as a scout under General George Custer. He eventually settled in Helena, where he engaged in the wholesale and retail cigar and tobacco business. In 1910, the Hills had a live-in servant and two boarders, one of whom worked at Hill’s Grand Central Cigar Store on North Main Street. The Hills owned the home until Fred’s death in 1937. Despite addition of a half story and new siding, early design features remain including turned porch posts and fancy spindlework below the roof.

Images

William M. Bishop House
William M. Bishop House William M. Bishop House (PAc 91-51 South Central Helena Roll06 F14). Front to side view of the house, facing north on East Broadway Street. B&W. Source: Montana State Historic Preservation Office from the Photograph Archives at the Montana Historical Society Creator: Photographer unidentified Date: 1981
William M. Bishop House
William M. Bishop House William M. Bishop House. Front to side view of the house, facing east to northeast on East Broadway Street. Digital photograph. Source: Montana Historical Society Creator: Joe Furshong Date: June-Aug. 2019
William M. Bishop House
William M. Bishop House William M. Bishop House. Front view of the house, facing north to northeast on East Broadway Street. Digital photograph. Source: Montana Historical Society Creator: Joe Furshong Date: June-Aug. 2019

Location

412 East Broadway Street, Helena, Montana | Private

Metadata

The Montana National Register Sign Program, “William M. Bishop House,” Historic Montana, accessed March 29, 2024, https://historicmt.org/items/show/686.