Naegele Printing Company
Later Specializing in Office Equipment

Five generations of Helena's Naegele family were involved in the printing and publication business, and later in the office equipment business.

German-born newspaperman and printer Lambert Naegele (1833-1905) came to Helena from Minnesota in 1886, and began publishing the Montana Staats Zeitung, Montana's longest-running German language newspaper, in 1888..


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The Staats Zeitung ceased publication in 1917, during World War I, a period of jingoistic animosity toward German-Americans. It was a shameful time, when the lives of many Americans were disrupted or ruined because of their ethnic heritage and/or politcal beliefs. Free speech was sharply curtailed for many.

The Naegele Printing Company erected the building seen above at 121-123 N. Jackson in 1912. Newspaper mentions of the building end in 1973, during Urban Renweal, which is when the Naegele office supply and office furniture business changed locations. The 1912 building was demolished soon therafter, probably in late 1973.

 

Roofing the New Naegele Building, 1912
Illustration from a 1919 billhead of Helena roofer Wm. Groseclose


KENNON BAIRD COLLECTION

 


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A sign advertising the Montana Staats Zeitung is seen on the side of the Neagele building on Jackson St.. This photo, which appeared in the Independent Record in 1985, is dated "about 1925", but the Zeitung ceased publication in 1917.

 

Naegele's Site on N. Jackson 2021

 


A Night View of Naegele's Roof, 1970
Building Demolished in 1973


PHOTO BY KENNON BAIRD

 

Gradual Shift to Office Equipment

in 1989, Naegele's Office Supply, then located at 1518 Prospect Ave., was purchased by Office Mart, Inc. of Helena.