South Side in Billings in Yellowstone County, Montana — The American West (Mountains)

Garfield School

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, September 16, 2020

1. Garfield School Marker

Inscription. Built in 1901, Billings’ fourth school had six classrooms and an auditorium. A third-floor gymnasium, the first in the city, was added a year later. By 1906, 340 children attended Garfield School. The homesteading boom, the growth of sugar manufacturing, and the first oil boom brought more people to Billings’ south side, and more students to Garfield. The 1920 addition, designed by Billings architect Chandler Cohagen, doubled the school’s size. Constructed at a cost of over $65,000, the two-story brick addition displays classical details. Strong horizontal lines define its symmetrical façade. Decorative terra cotta ornaments the central stepped parapet, and terra cotta scrollwork accents the entrances. Between 1923 and 1925, the Great Western Sugar Company paid half the expenses for the school’s special migrant workers program. The program offered classes specifically for migrant workers’ children during the weeks the children were not working in the fields. In 1934, the Works Progress Administration provided funds to further expand Garfield School. The Cohagen firm designed two wings for the 1921 addition, tripling the

Paid Advertisement

Click or scan to see
this page online

school’s size. While adding the wings, the district also removed the original third-floor gymnasium after deeming it structurally unsound. In 1948, the school district constructed a final two-story brick addition to accommodate 900 students in grades one through nine. Demolition of the original 1901 building occurred in 1981, but the 1920, 1934, and 1948 additions still look much as they did in 1950. Yellowstone Boys and Girls Ranch purchased the building in 2007 from School District #2.

Erected by Montana Historical Society.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Education. A significant historical year for this entry is 1901.

Location. 45° 46.586′ N, 108° 30.514′ W. Marker is in Billings, Montana, in Yellowstone County. It is in the South Side. It can be reached from 1st Avenue South near South 33rd Street, on the left when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 3212 1st Avenue South, Billings MT 59101, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Yellowstone Country.

It is also in the American Mountain West

and

The rear entrance to Garfield School and Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, September 16, 2020

2. The rear entrance to Garfield School and Marker

in the Lewis & Clark Corridor.

Globally, it is in North America,

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: Fire House No. 2 (approx. 0.2 miles away); Pouder Furniture Building (approx. ¼ mile away); The Railroad Arrives (approx. 0.3 miles away); Billings — A Tale of Two Cities (approx. 0.3 miles away); The Western Heritage Center (approx. 0.3 miles away); Indigenous Homeland (approx. 0.3 miles away); The Parmly Billings Library Building (approx. 0.3 miles away); Frederick Billings (approx. 0.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Billings.

More about this marker. Despite the 1st Avenue South address, Garfield School mainly borders South 33rd Street. The marker is located at backside of the building at what would be the rear entrance.

Garfield School image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, September 16, 2020

3. Garfield School

Credits. This page was last revised on December 27, 2024. It was originally submitted on February 11, 2021, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 585 times since then and 68 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on February 11, 2021, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.