Located
on the northwest corner of Montana Ave. and 11th, The service
station of the Capital Auto Court opened in November of 1937.
The adjacent motel opened in spring of 1938. There was also
a coffee shop.
Every cabin had a decorative cowboy silhouette above the door.
The name changed to Capitol Motel in the 1950s.
The motel operated
until 1971 under various owners, lastly by the Utick family. It was demolished in 1972. The service station closed in 1984. The lot was cleared of all structures in 2006 for the construction of Walgreen's. |
1953 View of the Service Station
1958 Sanborn Map Overlay on Google Maps
Listed in The Negro Travelers' Green Book Guide 1956-1963
The Negro Motorist Green Book (later known as The Negro Travelers’ Green Book and The Travelers’ Green Book) was a travel guide created to help Black Americans navigate safely during the Jim Crow era of legal segregation. There were two other Helena establishments listed: the Placer Hotel, and Mrs. M. Sitt's Tourist Home at 204 S. Park Ave. |
The
Site Today
COURTESY
OF KERRY BROWN
