Virginia City in Madison County, Montana — The American West (Mountains)
Pfouts and Russel
(Rank’s Drug – Old Masonic Temple)
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, August 6, 2009
1. Pfouts and Russel [sic] Marker
Inscription.
Pfouts and Russel. (Rank’s Drug – Old Masonic Temple). Paris Pfouts, Vigilante president and Virginia City’s first mayor, was instrumental in laying out the town. He and his partner, Samuel Russell, built a log store on this site in summer, 1863. Local hell-raiser Jack Slade was arrested here on March 10, 1864 and, in an execution controversial even among the Vigilantes, hanged on the corral gatepost behind the building in 1865. Lime was not yet available for mortar, so the stone walls were secured with adobe mud. A loyal Mason, Pfouts gave the second floor to the Masonic Lodge. There, the Grand Lodge of Montana A.F. and A.M. was founded on January 24, 1866. W.W. Morris moved his drug store, established in the Hangman’s Building in 1864, to this location circa 1877. C.W. Rank bought the business in 1889. He and his wife ran it until 1946. Now housing the oldest continuously-operated business in Montana, the building has been little altered since the 1860s. This property contributes to the Virginia City Historic District . Listed in the National Register of Historic Places by the United States Department of the Interior . In cooperation with the Montana Historical Society
Paris Pfouts, Vigilante president and Virginia City’s first mayor, was instrumental in laying out the town. He and his partner, Samuel Russell, built a log store on this site in summer, 1863. Local hell-raiser Jack Slade was arrested here on March 10, 1864 and, in an execution controversial even among the Vigilantes, hanged on the corral gatepost behind the building in 1865. Lime was not yet available for mortar, so the stone walls were secured with adobe mud. A loyal Mason, Pfouts gave the second floor to the Masonic Lodge. There, the Grand Lodge of Montana A.F. & A.M. was founded on January 24, 1866. W.W. Morris moved his drug store, established in the Hangman’s Building in 1864, to this location circa 1877. C.W. Rank bought the business in 1889. He and his wife ran it until 1946. Now housing the oldest continuously-operated business in Montana, the building has been little altered since the 1860s.
This property contributes to the Virginia City Historic District • Listed in the National Register of Historic Places by the United States Department of the Interior • In cooperation with the Montana Historical Society
Location. 45° 17.611′ N, 111° 56.765′ W. Marker is in Virginia City, Montana, in Madison County. Marker is on Wallace Street. This marker is located on the north side of Wallace Street between Jackson and Van Buren Streets. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Virginia City MT 59755, United States of America. Touch for directions.
The Pfouts and Russel [sic] marker is located below the Rank's Drug Store sign.
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, August 6, 2009
4. Rank's Drug Store & Mercantile.
Credits. This page was last revised on July 25, 2018. It was originally submitted on November 13, 2011, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 635 times since then and 15 times this year. Photos:1. submitted on November 13, 2011, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. 2. submitted on October 9, 2015, by Trev Meed of Round Mountain, Nevada. 3, 4. submitted on November 13, 2011, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.
![Pfouts and Russel [sic] Marker image. Click for full size.](Photos1/180/Photo180790.jpg?1113201150700PM "Pfouts and Russel [sic] Marker. Click for full size.")
