Helena in Lewis and Clark County, Montana — The American West (Mountains)
20 South Rodney Street
Helena South-Central Historic District
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, July 16, 2021
1. 20 South Rodney Street Marker
Inscription.
20 South Rodney Street. Helena South-Central Historic District. A small L-shaped dwelling with a full-length front porch stood on this lot by 1875 according to an early bird’s-eye map of Helena. German Catholic rancher Herman Rosenbaum and his wife Mary purchased the house in 1879. The neighborhood was perfect for the Rosenbaums. Two Catholic schools, a convent, a Catholic hospital, and Helena’s first cathedral later replaced by St. Helena’s made for a thriving Catholic presence just north and west of Rodney Street. The proximity of St. Vincent’s Academy for Girls, Montana’s first boarding school, which stood where the St. John’s building is now, likely appealed to the Rosenbaums, whose daughters attended the academy. Herman arrived in the Helena valley in the 1860s, where he found success supplying beef and farm products to Montana’s booming mining towns. Like many successful ranchers, the Rosenbaums lived in town part of the year, allowing their children to attend school. Herman died in 1889, but the family remained in residence until 1903. The family built a rear addition before 1890 and others further expanded the original L-shaped structure.
A small L-shaped dwelling with a full-length front porch stood on this lot by 1875 according to an early bird’s-eye map of Helena. German Catholic rancher Herman Rosenbaum and his wife Mary purchased the house in 1879. The neighborhood was perfect for the Rosenbaums. Two Catholic schools, a convent, a Catholic hospital, and Helena’s first cathedral later replaced by St. Helena’s made for a thriving Catholic presence just north and west of Rodney Street. The proximity of St. Vincent’s Academy for Girls—Montana’s first boarding school, which stood where the St. John’s building is now— likely appealed to the Rosenbaums, whose daughters attended the academy. Herman arrived in the Helena valley in the 1860s, where he found success supplying beef and farm products to Montana’s booming mining towns. Like many successful ranchers, the Rosenbaums lived in town part of the year, allowing their children to attend school. Herman died in 1889, but the family remained in residence until 1903. The family built a rear addition before 1890 and others further expanded the original L-shaped structure.
Location. 46° 35.074′ N, 112° 2.156′ W. Marker is in Helena, Montana, in Lewis and Clark County. Marker is on South Rodney Street near East Broadway Street, on the left when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 20 South Rodney Street, Helena MT 59601, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Credits. This page was last revised on December 13, 2021. It was originally submitted on December 13, 2021, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 231 times since then and 41 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on December 13, 2021, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.
