Founded in 1885 in Helena, Montana Territory by fifty male attorneys, bankers, mining, livestock and timber magnates, politicians, transportation titans, wholesalers and self-described capitalists, the Montana Club was the longest-continuously open private club between Minneapolis and Seattle until it reorganized as a co-operative association and opened to the public in June 2018 for à la carte dining, private dining, weddings, celebrations and business meetings. Designed by St Paul/New York City architect Cass Gilbert to replace the original private club destroyed in a fire, the Montana Club in downtown Helena is one of the state's most significant architectural and cultural landmarks. For nearly 140 years, the Club has offered authentic Montana hospitality in a variety of settings: from the majestic second floor dining room to the intimate wood-paneled Russell Room to the cozy Rathskeller and the Banquet Hall with panoramic views of downtown and Mount Helena. For more information on the Club’s history, please see the Society of Architectural Historians’ Archipedia entry https://sah-archipedia.org/buildings/MT-01-049-0054

Montana Club’s first clubhouse by Paulsen & LaValle, 1893-1903

Montana Club in ruins after fire, April 28, 1903

Club after remaining granite walls dismantled, May 1903

Montana Club annual dinner in Banquet Hall, Dec 30, 1911

1905-06-xx est. Rm 107 Main Hall PAC 88-39 F1 copy.png

1905-06-xx est. Rm 004 Rathskellar-1 PAc 88-39 F1-1 copy.png

1905-06-xx est. Rm 203 Library PAc 88-39 F1 copy.png

1905-06-xx est. Rm 303 Hall PAc 88-39 F1 copy.png

1905-06-xx est. Rm 306 Conversation Room PAc 88-39 F1 copy.png

1905-06-xx est. Rm 412 Card Room PAc 2007-57 copy.png

1905-06-xx est. Rm 412 Card Room PAc 88-39 F1 copy.png

1905-06-xx est.Bedroom with rocker PAc 2007-57 copy.png

1905-06-xx est. Sitting Room PAC 88-39 F1 copy.png

1905-06-xx est. Rm 711 Ladies_ Retiring Room PAc 88-39 F1 copy.png

1905-06-xx est. Rm 713 Dining Room PAc 88-39 F1 copy.png

The Club’s building materials are local with the bricks manufactured at the Western Clay Mfg. Co. (Kessler) brickyard and granite quarried near Baxendale, both sites west of downtown.

The Banquet Hall's twenty-five windows designed by Mitchel & Halbach of Chicago depict an early 20th century perspective of Montana history.

Originally designated as the "stranger's room" where visitors to the private club awaited their member/host to fetch them, the cozy wood-paneled Russell Room now offers discrete dining for up to eight guests. Reproductions of paintings and illustrat… — Originally designated as the "stranger's room" where visitors to the private club awaited their member/host to fetch them, the cozy wood-paneled Russell Room now offers discrete dining for up to eight guests. Reproductions of paintings and illustrated letters by cowboy artist Charlie Russell decorate the room.

The sunny Classical Revival style Oval Room on the Clubhouse's sixth floor offers private dining with stunning views of downtown Helena.

The second floor Dining Room is a majestic setting for regular dining and large celebrations and events. A replica of cowboy artist Charlie Russell’s “When the Land Belonged to God” commissioned by the Club in 1913 hangs above the fireplace.

The Clubhouse is perhaps no more splendid than during the holiday season.

For nearly 120 years, the Club's sixth floor Banquet Hall has offered authentic Montana hospitality with its custom-designed Jacobean-Tudor fireplace, light fixtures and 25 stained glass windows offering panoramic views of the Cathedral of St Helena… — For nearly 120 years, the Club's sixth floor Banquet Hall has offered authentic Montana hospitality with its custom-designed Jacobean-Tudor fireplace, light fixtures and 25 stained glass windows offering panoramic views of the Cathedral of St Helena, downtown and Mount Helena. A flexible setting, the Banquet Hall is a favored spot for celebrations, cocktail parties, weddings, business meetings and luncheons.

The subterranean Rathskeller is one of the Club’s most popular rooms for live music, Halloween parties, beer-tastings, and trivia nights. It retains most of its original light fixtures, faux leather wall covering, Kessler brick fireplace and nooks w… — The subterranean Rathskeller is one of the Club’s most popular rooms for live music, Halloween parties, beer-tastings, and trivia nights. It retains most of its original light fixtures, faux leather wall covering, Kessler brick fireplace and nooks with leaded glass ceilings.

Perhaps no figure is more closely identified with the Montana Club than Julian Anderson who served as its premier mixologist for sixty years through financial panics, a pandemic and Prohibition, the Depression, and two World Wars. See https://punch… — Perhaps no figure is more closely identified with the Montana Club than Julian Anderson who served as its premier mixologist for sixty years through financial panics, a pandemic and Prohibition, the Depression, and two World Wars. See https://punchdrink.com/articles/montanas-great-lost-barman-julian-anderson/ for an appreciation of “Montana’s Great Lost Barman.”