Missoula in Missoula County, Montana — The American West (Mountains)

Frank A. Roberts Home

University Area Historic District

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, August 20, 2019

1. Frank A. Roberts Home Marker

Inscription. The Craftsman style evolved as the architectural expression of simplicity and domestic harmony, merging nature with the built environment. Its popularity in the early 1900s eased the transition from Victorian fussiness to the modern era. This one-and-one-half-story Craftsman style home was built circa 1913 for Frank A. and Eva Roberts. Stylistic elements include the full-width porch spanning the front which, according to the Craftsman style dictum, provided a necessary link between outdoors and indoors. A railed balustrade and three floor to ceiling columns highlight the façade. Roberts was a prominent Missoula attorney whose untimely death in 1919 occurred at the peak of his career. At his funeral the Reverend J. N. MacLean, father of noted author Norman MacLean, eulogized Roberts as a “friend of the Friend of men.” Eva Roberts sold the home in 1920 to realtor M. R. Ruthorford. Throughout the decades occupants included Missoulian Publishing Company partner George C. Rice (1920), Reverend John R. Hahn of the University Congregational Church (1930), M. R. Rutherford (1936), and photographer Ace Woods (1940-1945).

Erected by Montana

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National Register Sign Program.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Agriculture. In addition, it is included in the Montana National Register Sign Program series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1913.

Location. 46° 51.733′ N, 113° 59.536′ W. Marker is in Missoula, Montana, in Missoula County. It is on Connell Avenue near Hilda Avenue, on the right when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 400 Connell Avenue, Missoula MT 59801, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Western Montana

and in Glacier Country.

It is also in the American Mountain West

and in the Lewis & Clark Corridor.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Rocky Mountains,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once Rupert’s Land

and also the Louisiana Purchase.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: 415 Connell Avenue (within shouting distance of this marker); 425 Connell (within shouting distance of this marker);

Frank A. Roberts Home and Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, August 20, 2019

2. Frank A. Roberts Home and Marker

The marker is on the porch.

439 Connell Avenue (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); John J. Lucy Home (about 300 feet away); 315 Daly (about 600 feet away); 302 South Sixth Street East (approx. 0.2 miles away); Charles C. Brothers Residence (approx. 0.2 miles away); John M. Keith House (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Missoula.

Frank A. Roberts Home image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, August 20, 2019

3. Frank A. Roberts Home

Credits. This page was last revised on January 10, 2025. It was originally submitted on January 8, 2020, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 266 times since then and 23 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on January 8, 2020, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.