Filed Under Virginia City

Montana Post

Virginia City National Historic Landmark District

This building, constructed of logs by D. W. Tilton in the fall of 1863, housed Montana’s first newspaper, founded in 1864. The stone print shop at the rear was completed in January 1865, and the following year a new Gothic style façade was applied over the log section. Editor Thomas J. Dimsdale first published his Vigilantes of Montana in serial form in the Post in 1865-1866. It became the first book published in Montana, also printed here. A fire in 1937 destroyed the wooden sections of the building. The Historic Landmark Society of Montana, with donations from Charles Bovey, repaired the stone walls and faithfully reconstructed the original log structure in 1946.

Images

Montana Post building
Montana Post building View of the Montana Post office (left) and Virginia City Hotel next door. The Post appears to have been a bar in this photo. Source: National Historic Landmark Nomination form for Virginia City, Montana. On file at the Montana State Historic Preservation Office and at the National Archives and Records Administration in Washington, D.C. Creator: W.R. Rankin, photographer Date: Sept 1937
Montana post building
Montana post building Side view of Montana post printing rooms Source: National Historic Landmark nomination form for Virginia City, Montana. On file at the Montana State Historic Preservation Office and at the National Archives and Records Administration in Washington, D. C. Creator: W.R. Rankin, photographer Date: Sept 1937
Montana Post
Montana Post Montana Post. Real photo postcard with a view of the reconstructed Montana Post building, done by Bovey Restorations. Source: Montana History Portal Creator: Unidentified photographer Date: ca. 1950
Montana Post Building, Virginia City, Montana.
Montana Post Building, Virginia City, Montana. View of a single story, wood frame building with an ornate roof. Montana Post building in Virginia City, Montana, the Tilton Home visible to the left and the Virginia Hotel on the right. Source: PAc 956-276. Montana Historical Society Research Center Photograph Archives, Helena, MT. Creator: Unknown photographer Date: ca. 1920-1935
Montana Post, Virginia City
Montana Post, Virginia City View looking north at building facade Source: Courtesy of Montana Heritage Commission Creator: Kate Steeley, Montana Heritage Commission Date: Oct 2019

Location

221 West Wallace Street, Virginia City, Montana | Public

Metadata

The Montana National Register Sign Program, “Montana Post,” Historic Montana, accessed March 28, 2024, https://historicmt.org/items/show/886.