Downtown Historic Walking Tour Self-Guided

“History can never be covered up,” said Chinese Prime Minister Zhu Rongji, and those words could never truer than in Downtown Missoula. Take the time to look up as you tour the many and varied historical landmarks listed below, and remnants of the past will appear to you in tucked-away corners. Count the historic billboards of long-forgotten place like the Atlantic Hotel and the Diner Café and you will see the many layers of history like layers of an onion in the story of Missoula. To follow along the self-guided walking tour, refer to the map as seen here.

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1. Wilma Building  •  131 S. Higgins
   Previously known as the Smead-Simons Building, this eight-story Sullivanesque-style building was commonly referred to as the “Showplace of Montana” after it was constructed in 1921. It was built by William “Billy” Simons, an early western entrepreneur, who produced Wild West shows and built several theaters in Oregon, Idaho and Alaska during the Gold Rush. The theater became a living memorial to his wife, Edna Wilma, a famous light opera star. The historic interior of the Wilma building was most recently remodeled in 2015 with state of the art sound and lighting systems, and restoring much of the original decor making it one of the top music venues of its size in the United States. The Wilma is Missoula’s first modern steel-framed “skyscraper.”
2. Florence Hotel  •  111 N. Higgins
   Constructed in 1941, the Florence Building occupies the same site as two earlier Florence Hotels, both of which burned down. Much like the east section of the Palace Hotel (Broadway & Ryman), this hotel was built to accommodate the increasing number of automobile travelers, and included an interior, multi-level parking garage. Today this excellent example of Art Moderne architecture has been converted to an office complex with retail businesses occupying the main floor. The Governor’s Room, located on the second floor, is still used as a ballroom/banquet room for special events. The Lobby was recently refurbished to its original state and is available for special events as well.
3. Headquarters Building/Daily Annex •  113-119 W. Front
   Advertised as “An Ornament to the Street,” when constructed in 1888 as a men’s social club and saloon, this building and its 1916 partner to the west, the Daily Company Annex, were remodeled over the years, with wide metal panels and modern windows dominating the front facade. In 1892 the building witnessed a major fire and the mysterious murder of Maurice Higgins, son of a Missoula founder. The Headquarters’ 1990s restoration captures the feel of Missoula’s “red-light” district of the 1880s, while the Daily Annex addresses the reform movement to shut down the district. Recognized with both local and state preservation awards, the Headquarters Building/Daily Annex contains a nice display of artifacts and project progress on the second floor. Today the building is home to Bella Sauvage and Laurel Creek Clothing & Gifts.
4. Gleim II Building  •  255 & 257 W. Front
   The Gleim II was a brothel owned and operated by Mary Gleim, whose splashy career included conviction for attempted murder of a rival and a prison term in Deer Lodge. Built around 1893, after two major fires swept the downtown, this red brick, sage-green building was restored by David Paoli in 1995 and captured the Historic Preservation Award for that effort. This building was one of eight owned by Gleim during the peak years of Missoula’s “Red Light District.” “ Mother Gleim” retained title to this two-story vernacular commercial style brick building until her death in 1914.
5. Gleim Building  •  265 W. Front
   This classically-styled brick building served as the headquarters for Mary Gleim’s bordello businesses along Front Street from the early 1890s to approximately 1914. Original arches were uncovered by James Hoffmann in a 1980s renovation. Listed in the National Register of Historic Places, this building is an excellent example of Romanesque Revival architecture with its arched windows, brick pilasters, checkerboard banding and granite sills. Through its lifetime, businesses located here included the Pullman Pool Hall (1929), Carroll Nash Cigars (1932), and the Hawthorne Club, a 1940s jazz club.
6. Studebaker Building  •  216 W. Main
   As the automobile gained popularity in the 1910s, stables and garages existed side by side. The succession of businesses at this address documents the transition that must have been hard on the old timers. By 1921, the Main Street Motor Company advertised repairs and rental space for 70 vehicles here. Louis Nybo sold Studebakers, the choice of the Missoula police force until the 1950s. Recently restored by Historical Architect James McDonald, the building is home to Cedar Creek Salon & Day Spa and Dye & Moe Law Firm.
7. Palace Hotel  •  147 W. Broadway
   First opened as the Savoy Hotel in 1909, this building is one of the few remaining symbols of the prosperous period of time when the expansion of the railroad through Missoula enhanced the growth of the lumber and manufacturing industries. The original structure and a 1941 annex formed Missoula’s largest single hotel. As time passed, the hotel’s upper floors became an empty, decaying shell, but a 1995 rehabilitation project created 60 upper-floor housing units. Today the Palace Apartments beautifully illustrate how preservation can help rejuvenate a city center.
8. Missoula County Courthouse  •  200 W. Broadway
   The Neo-classical style sandstone Courthouse was designed by prominent local architect, A.J. Gibson, and completed in 1910. Features of the building include the impressive clock tower which houses a two-ton bell, massive Ionic support columns, copper-faced entry doors and vertical panels of beveled glass. Eight murals created by well-known western artist, Edgar S. Paxson, hang in the building’s entryway and document the valley’s early history.
9. Simons Block  •  314 N. Higgins
   Built in 1899, the Simons Building is one of Downtown Missoula’s newest additions to the National Register of Historic Places, earning honors in 2000. Named after Missoula businessman Louis N. Simons, the building was originally an art store that evolved into a general hardware store in the 1920s. It was also home to one of the city’s last bordellos. The second floor was vacant for close to 30 years before Dick Clemow began renovation.
10. Higgins Block  •  202 N. Higgins
    The Higgins Block, commissioned by Missoula co-founder C.P. Higgins in 1889, is Missoula’s finest example of Queen Anne commercial architecture. Higgins was one of Missoula County’s original county commissioners and a member of Montana’s first Territorial Legislature. The Higgins Block includes the gray granite, copper-domed corner building and the red polychromed brick structures to the north and east. This National Register building was restored in the early 1980s. The Higgins Block is home to countless businesses today, including Opportunity Bank, Doc’s Gourmet Sandwich Shop, and Butterfly Herbs.
11. Masonic Temple  •  120-136 E. Broadway
    Built in 1909, the Masonic Temple is the only Beaux Arts Style building in Missoula’s central business district. Particularly notable for its arched bays and elaborate terra cotta cornice and frieze work, and its elevator, the building still serves as home to the Masons in addition to numerous office and retail businesses.
12. U.S. Post Office & Federal Building  •  200 E. Broadway
    Designed in the Italian Renaissance revival style and constructed of Indiana limestone and granite, this building was formerly called the Federal Building. The original building was erected between 1911-1913, and the east addition was built in 1929. The north addition was erected in 1937. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the building has housed the U.S. Federal District Court from 1929 to the mid 1990’s, and continues to be the home to Region 1 of the US Forest Service.
13. Carnegie Library/Missoula Art Museum  •  335 N. Pattee
    Designed by A.J. Gibson and built in 1902-03, the Carnegie Library presents itself as a temple of learning in the style of Carnegie libraries across the country. Gibson’s windows add a noticeable design aspect through their lighter-colored stone surrounds capped by keystones, which stand in high contrast to the dark brick walls. The second story, designed by Gibson’s assistant, Ole Bakke, was added in 1913. The building currently houses the Missoula Art Museum. The modern addition to the south was added in 2006, and increased the usable area in the Museum by almost fifty percent.
14. Northern Pacific Railroad Depot  •  Railroad & N. Higgins
    When the track of the Northern Pacific reached Missoula in 1883, it was possibly the most significant event in the town’s history. Reliable transportation created a major economic and commercial distribution hub for Western Montana. This third depot building was designed by Reed & Stem, a celebrated architectural firm from St. Paul, Minn., that designed over 100 depots in America, including New York City’s Grand Central Station. Built in 1901, this National Register building is an architecturally significant example of simplified Renaissance Revival architecture, which represents the historic importance of rail transportation to this city.
15. St. Francis Xavier Church  •  420 W. Pine
    Constructed between 1891 and 1892, this church is a major religious, architectural and artistic landmark in Missoula. Its 144-foot-high polygonal tent roof spire continues to be a landmark of the Missoula skyline. The interior of this National Register church contains murals painted around 1900 by Brother J. Carignano, who also painted the mural in the St. Ignatius Mission.
16. Lewis and Clark Interpretive Site  •  Caras Park
    If you wish to learn more about the Lewis & Clark Expedition’s journey through the Missoula Valley in 1805 and 1806, the British Explorer David Thompson’s brief visit in 1812, and the French-Canadian’s and Salish Indian’s unique names for the area, there are four large and detailed local history interpretive signs located at Caras Park along the Clark Fork Riverfront Trail in Downtown Missoula (next to the Brennan’s Wave Overlook).