{"id":102,"ordinal":0,"modified":"2026-04-17 19:40:34","content_modified":"2026-10-31 01:21:21","featured":1,"title":"Montana's Historic Jails","creator":"Julian Boughton","description":"<p>As railroads expanded west in the late 1800s, Montana’s population boomed and so did crime. Towns like Bozeman developed rapidly to serve new homesteaders; Gardiner grew as tourists traveled to Yellowstone National Park; and Butte exploded as people came to work in the mines. Saloons and brothels were ubiquitous and appealed to Montana’s main demographic: single, young men. While murders were rare, misdemeanors like drunkenness and disturbing the peace became common. The increase in crime spurred demands for order.\r\n\r\nDuring Montana’s territorial period, criminal justice efforts were extra-governmental; vigilantes executed accused criminals. Those who stood trial were transported long distances to the county seat. The Progressive Era, beginning in the late 1890s, brought widespread social and political reform, including policing, and many Montana communities built jails.\r\n\r\nMost towns constructed their first jails out of wood, building later facilities out of stone, which signified strength and permanence. Masonry jails also became representative of a community’s longevity. For example, Baker, in Fallon County, constructed its concrete jail to dissuade officials from choosing another town as county seat. Many second-generation jails featured iron cells with pulley-operated cell doors, made by the St. Louis-based Pauly Jail Building Company.\r\n\r\nSmall towns typically built unadorned, one-room jails. Some, like the Square Butte Jail, lacked basic utilities. In contrast, larger communities, like Bozeman and Helena, built jails that featured distinct architectural styles, such as Romanesque and Queen Anne. They often bore fortress-like details, such as crenelated (castle-like) cornices and arched entryways. Most were at least two stories, had a designated women’s cell, and a sheriff’s residence.\r\n\r\nUltimately, most early jails fell out of use as boomtowns shrank during hard economic times or as prosperous, growing communities replaced them with larger facilities. The Granite County Jail, built in 1896 and still in use, is a rare exception. Several former jails are now museums, housed in sturdy buildings whose architecture reflects past generations’ commitment to creating law-abiding communities.\r\n</p>","postscript_text":"","tour_img":"https://historicmt.org/files/fullsize/16a0fe1ae6cddfc3e27d6fabdaaa5aeb.jpg","items":[{"id":722,"title":"Lewis and Clark County Jail","latitude":46.58577559999999806450432515703141689300537109375,"longitude":-112.03559180000002015731297433376312255859375,"thumbnail":"https://historicmt.org/files/square_thumbnails/16a0fe1ae6cddfc3e27d6fabdaaa5aeb.jpg","fullsize":"https://historicmt.org/files/fullsize/16a0fe1ae6cddfc3e27d6fabdaaa5aeb.jpg","subtitle":"Helena Historic District","address":"15 North Ewing Street, Helena, Montana","custom":{"subtitle":null,"text":null}},{"id":642,"title":"Granite County Jail","latitude":46.33376888678100158358574844896793365478515625,"longitude":-113.2928932232799752455321140587329864501953125,"thumbnail":"https://historicmt.org/files/square_thumbnails/e9218e3a263a635aa743ec8cef0e7d8d.jpg","fullsize":"https://historicmt.org/files/fullsize/e9218e3a263a635aa743ec8cef0e7d8d.jpg","subtitle":null,"address":"220 North Sansome Street, Philipsburg, Montana","custom":{"subtitle":null,"text":null}},{"id":171,"title":"Belt Jail","latitude":47.38598707389299846681751660071313381195068359375,"longitude":-110.9286061426399783158558420836925506591796875,"thumbnail":"https://historicmt.org/files/square_thumbnails/0de0a321d81076e041684b4704e87ab5.jpg","fullsize":"https://historicmt.org/files/fullsize/0de0a321d81076e041684b4704e87ab5.jpg","subtitle":"Belt Commercial Historic District","address":"Castner Street, Belt, Montana","custom":{"subtitle":null,"text":null}},{"id":2781,"title":"Gardiner Jail","latitude":45.0317900000000008731149137020111083984375,"longitude":-110.705896917070361951118684373795986175537109375,"thumbnail":"https://historicmt.org/files/square_thumbnails/6b5779bf4394aaf353b163181f1e3ec0.jpg","fullsize":"https://historicmt.org/files/fullsize/6b5779bf4394aaf353b163181f1e3ec0.jpg","subtitle":null,"address":"2nd Street, Gardiner, Montana","custom":{"subtitle":null,"text":null}},{"id":1851,"title":"Sanders County Jail","latitude":47.5946992999999878293237998150289058685302734375,"longitude":-115.35142430000001922962837852537631988525390625,"thumbnail":"https://historicmt.org/files/square_thumbnails/2ee06113bd7329a6f1e0b18f78ffffbd.jpg","fullsize":"https://historicmt.org/files/fullsize/2ee06113bd7329a6f1e0b18f78ffffbd.jpg","subtitle":null,"address":"109 South Madison Street, Thompson Falls, Montana","custom":{"subtitle":null,"text":null}},{"id":246,"title":"Ismay Jail","latitude":46.496698670317499590964871458709239959716796875,"longitude":-104.7938643714163617914891801774501800537109375,"thumbnail":"https://historicmt.org/files/square_thumbnails/a1362d31bdb333b759113a88ea6142cc.jpg","fullsize":"https://historicmt.org/files/fullsize/a1362d31bdb333b759113a88ea6142cc.jpg","subtitle":null,"address":"Jailhouse Road, Ismay, Montana","custom":{"subtitle":null,"text":null}},{"id":1860,"title":"Silver Bow County Jail","latitude":46.01503670000000312256815959699451923370361328125,"longitude":-112.53824389999999766587279736995697021484375,"thumbnail":"https://historicmt.org/files/square_thumbnails/e118397462cfe1c01bb1df4913fea965.jpg","fullsize":"https://historicmt.org/files/fullsize/e118397462cfe1c01bb1df4913fea965.jpg","subtitle":"Butte National Historic Landmark District","address":"225 North Alaska Street, Butte, Montana","custom":{"subtitle":null,"text":null}},{"id":3375,"title":"Gallatin County Jail","latitude":45.67966949921339647744389367289841175079345703125,"longitude":-111.04220330715179443359375,"thumbnail":"https://historicmt.org/files/square_thumbnails/73425f2b637490bdfb0243cd7071b19e.jpg","fullsize":"https://historicmt.org/files/fullsize/73425f2b637490bdfb0243cd7071b19e.jpg","subtitle":null,"address":"317 West Main Street, Bozeman, MT","custom":{"subtitle":null,"text":null}},{"id":528,"title":"Belgrade City Hall and Jail","latitude":45.77674979999999749225025880150496959686279296875,"longitude":-111.17621339999999463543645106256008148193359375,"thumbnail":"https://historicmt.org/files/square_thumbnails/13cc0ec75e4a0651a9f7c4b0e549cea1.jpg","fullsize":"https://historicmt.org/files/fullsize/13cc0ec75e4a0651a9f7c4b0e549cea1.jpg","subtitle":null,"address":"88 North Broadway Street, Belgrade, Montana","custom":{"subtitle":null,"text":null}},{"id":339,"title":"Fallon County Jail","latitude":46.36020719999999784022293169982731342315673828125,"longitude":-104.27571119999998927596607245504856109619140625,"thumbnail":"https://historicmt.org/files/square_thumbnails/c310585db79797c19469b0e1fa83772d.jpg","fullsize":"https://historicmt.org/files/fullsize/c310585db79797c19469b0e1fa83772d.jpg","subtitle":null,"address":"723 South Main Street, Baker, Montana","custom":{"subtitle":null,"text":null}},{"id":243,"title":"Square Butte Jail","latitude":47.515368588016002604490495286881923675537109375,"longitude":-110.1980273039999929096666164696216583251953125,"thumbnail":"https://historicmt.org/files/square_thumbnails/c858f73f03e5174e94a1aa849fd3b0c1.jpg","fullsize":"https://historicmt.org/files/fullsize/c858f73f03e5174e94a1aa849fd3b0c1.jpg","subtitle":null,"address":"Main Street, Square Butte, Montana","custom":{"subtitle":null,"text":null}},{"id":842,"title":"Troy Jail","latitude":48.46281701299873390098582603968679904937744140625,"longitude":-115.8897811171196963186957873404026031494140625,"thumbnail":"https://historicmt.org/files/square_thumbnails/4b3cae6f904d2a69e302b6b34ad59eba.jpg","fullsize":"https://historicmt.org/files/fullsize/4b3cae6f904d2a69e302b6b34ad59eba.jpg","subtitle":null,"address":"316 East Yaak Avenue, Troy, Montana","custom":{"subtitle":null,"text":null}}]}