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Bannack, Montana Photo Gallery

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Courthouse and Hotel Meade in Bannack, Montana

Historic Courthouse and Hotel Meade

Courthouse/Hotel Meade today, July, 2008, Kathy Weiser.

Bannack was named the County Seat of Beaverhead County in 1864, and the county offices were first held in two log cabins near the site of where the new courthouse would be built. The impressive two-story brick structure was built in 1875 at a cost of some $14,000. But, the building's role in government would be short. By 1880, mining in the area had declined dramatically and Bannack had become more of an agricultural community. In the meantime, the town of Dillon, some 25 miles to the east, had become an important shipping and economic center after the Utah and Northern Railroad established a terminus there. Dillon townsfolk soon lobbied the Territorial Legislature to move the County Seat to their town. Though the Bannack's citizens fought hard to keep the title, but a special election was held in February, 1881 which officially moved the county seat to Dillon.

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The building than sat empty until about 1890 when it was sold to Dr. John Christian Meade for $1,250. Meade soon began to remodel the building into a hotel, adding an "L" shaped addition to the rear, that held a large kitchen, dining room, and living quarters. The new Meade Hotel quickly became the social center of the community as its dining room featured linen tablecloths and fine china. The Meade Hotel operated sporadically over the years until it closed for the last time in the 1940s.

© Kathy Weiser/Legends of America, updated September, 2008

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