Great Northern Railway Buildings
About this property
Four of these complexes were declared a discontiguous National Historic Landmark District in 1987, notable as the largest such concentration of Swiss chalet architecture in the country. In May 2000, the designation was amended to include the Belton Chalets, which differs from the other buildings in being located just outside the park. Glacier National Park was founded in 1910. Its creation received significant support from the Great Northern Railway, which passed just south of the park, and which stood to benefit from increased tourist traffic on its line, following similar railroad-related developments at Grand Canyon National Park and Yellowstone National Park. In order to present a unified yet flexible tourist experience, the railroad partnered with the National Park Service to provide infrastructure both inside and outside the park to serve a variety of tourist needs. The services the Great Northern sought to offer ranged from elegant hotel accommodations to a rustic and somewhat rough backcountry experience. Their buildings were unified by the use of a single architectural style, the Swiss chalet, which railroad president Louis W. Hill adopted from the European mountain experience. Granite Park Chalet and Sperry Chalet, built in 1914, are examples of backcountry accommodations built by the railroad. The Many Glacier Hotel, completed in 1915, was the centerpiece, a large and grand hotel with elegant amenities. The Two Medicine General Store is a surviving remnant of a mid-sized lakeside hotel built on the shores of Two Medicine Lake; one of its two rustic log chalet structures has been demolished, and the other now serves as a general store. The Great Northern also built service areas just outside the boundaries of the park. The Belton Chalets, built in 1910-11, were among the first buildings the company built for this effort, and were located at what was then the main station for accessing the park. The Glacier Park Lodge was built in 1913 to serve visitors approaching from the east. When the National Historic Landmark District was designated in 1987, it was restricted to properties located in the park bounds. The National Park Service at the time noted the significance of the Belton Chalets and the Glacier Park Lodge, recommending that they be analyzed for inclusion in the landmark designation, since they appeared to be eligible. As a result, the Belton Chalets were included in a 2000 amendment; the owners of the Glacier Park Lodge declined participation. National Register of Historic Places listings in Flathead County, Montana National Register of Historic Places listings in Glacier County, Montana
Location
Categories
Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).
Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Everything a full report reveals about Great Northern Railway Buildings
This page lists Great Northern Railway Buildings. A full Aubrey report for an address near it pulls together this listing alongside battlefield records, land patents, and every other historical record within a chosen radius:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Questions about this property
When was Great Northern Railway Buildings listed on the National Register?
Great Northern Railway Buildings was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on May 27, 1987.
What type of historic resource is Great Northern Railway Buildings?
Great Northern Railway Buildings is classified as a district in the National Register of Historic Places.
Is Great Northern Railway Buildings a National Historic Landmark?
Yes. Great Northern Railway Buildings has been designated a National Historic Landmark (NHL), the highest level of federal recognition for historic properties in the United States.
What is the period of significance for Great Northern Railway Buildings?
The period of significance for Great Northern Railway Buildings is recorded as the listed era.
Can I research the history near Great Northern Railway Buildings?
Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near Great Northern Railway Buildings will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
More in Flathead County
Historic places, battles, and census history across Flathead County.
Explore FlatheadCounty ›Research the history near this site
An Aubrey US report for an address near Great Northern Railway Buildings will include this listing alongside battlefield records and other historical sources within your chosen radius.