News you can use
News you can use
By Emily Mayer
Christmas was on its way and activity was increasing in Hill County 100 years ago. Three churches were getting ready to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ in brand-new churches — the Episcopalians, the Methodists and the Catholics — and lengthy announcements of the various Christmas services, including one being sponsored by the local Salvation Army, were found in both Havre newspapers.
The Havre Plaindealer, in its Dec. 15, 1915, issue, had a very interesting article pertaining to one of Hill County’s most anticipated buildings. The Courthouse was nearing completion, and here is the article in its entirety:
NEW COURTHOUSE IS
WELL APPOINTED
Differs Widely from Buildings of Like Character
When the county court house is completed and turned over to the commissioners, the people of Hill county can take a just and pardonable pride in that structure, which is unique in buildings of this class. Unlike practically all other similar buildings, the Hill county court house is constructed along the lines of the modern office building and is utterly devoid of “gingerbread” ornamentation, towers, and other unnecessary adjuncts.
Architect Frank Bossout and Commissioner Jos. Berthelote for the county have given close personal attention to planning and construction work, with the object in view of designing and constructing a court house strictly adapted to the needs of the workers employed by a county for the transaction of its business. The furniture and counters with which the building will be fitted, the former of oak and the latter of steel, were selected with the idea of best meeting the requirements of the particular office in which it was to be used, and to assist in promoting the efficiency of the officer in charge.
Construction of the building throughout is of the most durable character, the walls, floors and roof being of concrete and steel built upon what is known as the “mushroom” system. The only wood used in the entire building is found in the doors, door frames and base boards. The windows, of plate glass set in metal frames, ware large and plentiful, and the ventilating system is the latest type, making it possible to ventilate every room in the building by air intakes and outlets entirely independent of the windows. No brooms will be used in cleaning the rooms and stirring up the germ-laden dust for the occupants to breathe, for the hallways and each room is connected with a vacuum cleaning system that carries the dirt and dust to the furnace room underneath the jail, where it will be burned.
The interior finish is of the best terra cotta, a glazed material not affected by weather conditions, water, acids, not any other thing likely to come in contact with it. Save for the accumulation of dust, which can be readily removed by the application of water whenever deemed necessary, the building will present as good an appearance fifty years hence as it does today.
The interior finish consists of Kesota stone wainscoting and flooring in the rotunda, corridors and lavatories, and decorative plaster mouldings and ornaments in the rotunda, corridors and court room. All the office rooms are finished in appropriate tints in flat wall paints. Floors in the hall ways and court room are covered with a thick heavy linoleum.
The elevator to be installed is of the latest design, electrically driven and “boyless” — in other words, operated by the party using it. The heating plant is located under the jail building, where gas burning steam boilers are located, and where Havre natural gas is used-and at a cost far below that which would be necessary for coal. These boilers are practically self-operating and are as nearly fool proof as it is possible to make anything of the kind.
The interior decorating, which is being done under the direct of T. E. Ronne of Chinook, is being pushed as rapidly as possible, and the commissioners hope to be in the new building not later than the first of February.
There are a lot of items to dissect in this one article, too many for the space given for this column. However, a few items of interest include the fact that 100 years ago, the oldest courthouses in Montana were constructed during the previous Victorian generation and reflected the tastes of the era. The author of the article, no doubt, was pointing to the Chouteau County Courthouse in Fort Benton as an example of the deplored “gingerbread” trimmings and overall architectural style to be avoided in favor of our courthouse’s Beaux Arts style.
Of note is that the courthouse has many of the chairs and some tables from that first purchase of furnishings, and they are still in use today, testament to the idea of building something to last. The “mushroom” system was best seen during the complete gutting and reconfiguration of the lower level of the courthouse of 2008-2009. The columns are still doing their job holding up the building, also a testament to Frank Bossout’s talents of creating a building to last. Holes for the vacuum system can be seen if you look for them in various places in the courthouse.
The terra cotta cited more than likely was on the exterior of the building rather than the interior. Some of the Kesota stone is still found throughout the interior of the courthouse, though we lost some of it along with the old court room and its fixtures in the ’70s. The Clack museum has a couple of the decorative plaster mouldings in their collection, and they are very elaborate. Among the decorations T. E. Ronne was responsible for included murals. Most were painted over when the interior of the Courthouse was repainted by Arvid Kristofferson in the 1960s at the request of the Commissioners. He painted new murals, with the exception of one, that being a covered wagon scene. In an interview, Kristofferson said that the other murals were very worn with the exception of the covered wagon scene which he simply “touched up” It is believed to still be somewhere on the second floor. Ronne also painted murals in “Shorty” Young’s 4th Avenue home a short distance from the courthouse, as well as other places in Havre and Montana.
Also in the Plaindealer was a breakdown of the payments for the courthouse in the Commissioners’ Proceedings:
Olson and Johnson Co., Contract part payment-$12,800.00
Havre Elect. Const. Co., Contract part payment-600.00
Roman Catholic Bishop, Balance due on lots-6,100.00
Winslow Bros. Co., Mdse.-125.00
J. P. Grady Co., Contract, part payment-2,000.00
T. E. Ronne, Do. Decorator-1550.00
F. F. Bossout, Architect fees-900.00.
Reader Comments(0)