Filed Under Hardin

Schneider Harness and Confectionery

Hardin Commercial Historic District

Charles and Rushann Schneider built this two-story brick business block in 1910. Anticipating the arrival of electricity by four years, the Schneiders had their building wired during its construction. The exterior's relative simplicity reflects the styles of the day. Simple brick bands adorn the building's façade, whose main decoration is a denticulated cornice. (The term "denticulated" comes from the Latin word dentil, meaning teeth.) In 1910, the Schneiders lived upstairs. The first floor housed both Charles' harness shop and Rushann's confectionery. The popular Hardin couple celebrated their tenth wedding anniversary in 1913 by inviting all their friends to the store for refreshments. The confectionery, which boasted a soda fountain, proved the more successful and longer lasting of the two businesses. In 1918, only four years after expanding the building, Charles closed his harness shop to help Rushann with the confectionery. Perhaps the growing popularity of tractors and automobiles influenced his decision. Charles died in 1945. The next year, Rushann moved to her daughter's home in Forsyth, closing the successful thirty-six-year business.

Images

The Pruitt Building
The Pruitt Building West-facing still image capture of the Pruitt Building (Schneider Harness and Confectionery), Hardin, Montana. Image information drawn from print verso. b&w print. Source: Official records of the Montana State Historic Preservation Office, Helena, Montana Creator: Fredric L. Quivik, RTI Date: July, 1984

Location

206 North Center Avenue, Hardin, Montana | Private

Metadata

The Montana National Register Sign Program, “Schneider Harness and Confectionery,” Historic Montana, accessed April 19, 2024, https://historicmt.org/items/show/91.