Goodkind
Building
Sixth and Main, Since 1884
Built for Charles
A. Broadwater and Shirley
C. Ashby, Sr.
Designed by Architect Francis
Dickson Lee (1826-1885)
Who Was Also a Developer
of Confederate Torpedo
Boats and Spar Torpedos During the Civil War
The
Goodkind Building, 1885
COURTESY
OF THE DAVID POOR COLLECTION • CLICK
ON IMAGE TO OPEN A BIG VERSION IN A NEW WINDOW
|
The 1884
Goodkind Building still stands on the southeast corner of
Sixth and Main. It was designed by St. Louis architect Francis
Dickson Lee for Colonel Charles A. Broadwater and Shirley
C. Ashby, Sr., and is the oldest standing commercial building
north of Broadway. It cost $25,000 (in 1884 dollars) to build.
It was occupied for several decades by the Wise & Goodkind
/ Goodkind Brothers wholesale wine, liquor and cigar business,
hence its name today.
|
Bach, Cory & Co. Wholesale Grocers, 1885
| The wholesale
grocery firm of Bach, Cory & Co. occupied the new building
for about five years. The early tenancy timeline is a bit unclear,
but newspaper ads show Wise & Goodkind in the building in
1891. Bach, Cory & Co. were down the street at 314 North
Main in 1896. Both concerns may have occupied the building for
a time. |
Edmund William Bach Obituary
|
|
David
Abner Cory Obituary
|
About
the Goodkind Business
|
From
Northwest Digital Archives:
Brothers Abraham L. and Edward I. Goodkind, and Meyer and
Charles Wise operated a wholesale wine, liquor, and cigar
business [Wise & Goodkind} in Helena, Montana, from 1890
or 1891 until 1896 when the Wise brothers left the business.
The Goodkind
brothers continued their operation until Edward died on May
11, 1916. Abraham continued the operation with Edward's widow,
Margaret L., until 1918. Abraham and Margaret then went into
the loan business until 1922, when Margaret moved to Los Angeles.
Subsequently,
Arthur Ward joined Goodkind in the loans and securities business.
Goodkind moved to Chicago in the 1930s. His business changed
to the rental of, primarily, commercial property.
The company's
name was Goodkind Estate for at least the years 1950 to 1953,
and Goodkind Associates from 1954 to at least 1969. Arthur
Ward acted as Goodkind's agent in Helena until 1958. Goodkind
Associates rented property in Helena, Billings, Butte, Forsyth,
Helena, Miles City, and other towns in Montana.
|
CLICK
ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE IN A NEW WINDOW
Goodkind Building, 1890s
COURTESY
OF THE DAVID POOR COLLECTION • CLICK
ON IMAGE TO OPEN A BIG VERSION IN A NEW WINDOW
Goodkind Building, 1890s -- Detail, Sixth Avenue
|
"Old
Maturity" Bourbon (and presumably the cigars of the same
name) was distributed by Hasterlik Bros., Chicago, Illinois.
Goodkind Bros. did quite a bit of cooperative advertising
in Helena with the brand.
General
Arthur Cigars
In
the 19th century, cigar smoking was common, while cigarettes
were still comparatively rare. "General Arthur"
Cigars, made in New York City, were heavily advertised across
the nation, as seen painted on the side of the Goodkind Building
in the photo above. Helena has a wonderful "General Arthur"
ghost
sign still visible today on the east side of 106 Broadway.
|
Goodkind
Building, 1890s -- Detail, Main Street Entrance
Gallon
and Half-gallon Goodkind Bros. Stoneware Jugs
COURTESY
OF DAVID POOR
Goodkind
Bros. / Metropole Whiskey Advertising Shoe Brush
COURTESY
OF DAVID POOR
| Metropole
Whiskey was produced by the Theodore Gier Wine Company of Oakland,
California. |
Goodkind Bros. Storefront, Early 1900s
Prohibition
Kills Legal Liquor Sales
| Following
the death of Edward Goodkind in 1916, Abraham continued the operation
with Edward's widow, Margaret L., until 1918. The enactment of
Alcohol Prohibition (the Volstead
Act, 1920) was on the horizon; Abraham and Margaret went into
the loan business until 1922, when Margaret moved to Los Angeles.
Abraham moved to Chicago in 1924, where he died in 1937... |
Gans
& Klein Department Store Leases the Goodkind Building, 1920
Moves from Main at Broadway • Goodkind Storefront Modernized
Gans
& Klein Bankrupt, 1926
Montgomery
Ward & Co. Leases Goodkind Building, 1928
Photo Taken 1937
COLLECTION
OF TED KIRKMEYER, COURTESY OF TOM
MULVANEY •
CLICK ON IMAGE FOR A BIG VERSION IN A NEW WINDOW
Comparison
of Street-level Fenestration, Original 1884 and 1920 Gans & Klein
Remodeling
|
Montgomery Ward & Co.
moved from the Goodkind Building in May of 1961, to 335 North
Main, in the next block north.
|
State
Nursery & Seed Co. Retail Store, 1964
1964 HELENA HIGH SCHOOL VIGILANTE YEARBOOK
Threatened
by Urban Renewal, 1970s
| In 1971,
in the midst of Helena's 'Urban Renewal' program, cutbacks in
federal funding for historic preservation caused local officials
to consider demolishing the Goodkind Building because, as Urban
Renewal Director Jack Greer put it, it had "...no historical
significance": |
Developer
Wanted Goodkind Building Gone
Building
Eventually Spared
Cassidy-Grand
Interiors, 1974
Cassidy-Grand,
Inc. operated in the Goodkind Building until at least 1980.
Goodkind
Building, 1992
COURTESY
OF PETER BROWN, MONTANA STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICE
| If anyone
has more information/photos to share about the Goodkind Bros.,
Gans & Klein, Montgomery Ward, Cassidy-Grand or subsequent
Goodkind tenants, please contact
me. |
Go
back to STORES, OFFICES, ETC.
|
