Helena in Lewis and Clark County, Montana — The American West (Mountains)
Jose H.K. Toole Mansion
Helena Historic District
Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, July 16, 2021
1. Jose H.K. Toole Mansion Marker
Inscription.
Jose H.K. Toole Mansion. Helena Historic District. During his second term of office in 1903, Montanas first governor J. K. Toole commissioned Eugene Fisk to build this magnificent home of locally quarried red porphyry and brick. Fisk, who also designed the 1880s Unitarian Church (now Grandstreet Theatre), added exquisite interior finishings and an unusual simulated tile roof of galvanized sheet metal. The residence served as executive mansion during Governor Tooles third term from 1904 to 1908. The Toole family had been in residence a short time when the escape of a prisoner from the nearby jail precipitated a gun battle. The escapee tried to take refuge in the Tooles basement, but instead took his own life in the basement stairwell. The home was a private residence until the Catholic Diocese assumed ownership, housing scores of Cuban refugees here in the early 1960s, and, later, Carroll College students. Since 1979, the resident law firm has carefully refurbished and maintained this elegant corner landmark.
During his second term of office in 1903, Montanas first governor J. K. Toole commissioned Eugene Fisk to build this magnificent home of locally quarried red porphyry and brick. Fisk, who also designed the 1880s Unitarian Church (now Grandstreet Theatre), added exquisite interior finishings and an unusual simulated tile roof of galvanized sheet metal. The residence served as executive mansion during Governor Tooles third term from 1904 to 1908. The Toole family had been in residence a short time when the escape of a prisoner from the nearby jail precipitated a gun battle. The escapee tried to take refuge in the Tooles basement, but instead took his own life in the basement stairwell. The home was a private residence until the Catholic Diocese assumed ownership, housing scores of Cuban refugees here in the early 1960s, and, later, Carroll College students. Since 1979, the resident law firm has carefully refurbished and maintained this elegant corner landmark.
46° 35.224′ N, 112° 2.112′ W. Marker is in Helena, Montana, in Lewis and Clark County. It is at the intersection of North Ewing Street and East 5th Avenue, on the right when traveling north on North Ewing Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 203 North Ewing Street, Helena MT 59601, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in andspecifically entral Montana in Gold West 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 Ruperts Land and also the Louisiana Purchase.
Credits. This page was last revised on December 18, 2021. It was originally submitted on December 18, 2021, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 260 times since then and 12 times this year. Photos:1, 2, 3. submitted on December 18, 2021, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.
