Scobey in Daniels County, Montana — The American West (Mountains)
Daniels County Courthouse
The settlement of Old Scobey relocated here from the Poplar River flats to greet the approaching Great Northern Railway branch line in 1913. By the time the first train arrived on Thanksgiving Day, the two-story Commercial Hotel—today the south half of the courthouse—was the new townsite's largest building. It served passengers and visitors until 1915 when Minnie "One-Eyed Molly" Wakefield arrived from Kansas City to purchase the building. Molly expanded the hotel to include gambling and live entertainment. She and her sons kept pit bulls for fighting staked between her hotel and the Tallman Hotel next door. In addition to drinking, gambling, and dog fighting, women were a main attraction. Much of the hotel's first floor was devoted to this pursuit while a large sleeping room upstairs accommodated legitimate overnight guests. Molly left town in 1917 when Prohibition and federal closure of red-light establishments put a damper on her business. In 1920, voters chose Scobey 964 to 358 over Madoc as the seat of newly designated Daniels County. County officials purchased the hotel and remodeled the interior. In 1927, an addition on the north doubled the space, preserving and extending the original false front. The Western False Front architectural style, once common across Montana, gave young communities like Scobey the look of instant prosperity. The upper porch was long used as a speaking platform for governors, senators, and visiting dignitaries. Painted a crisp white, the building is Montana's last functioning false-front frame courthouse and perhaps the West's only bordello converted to government use.
Erected by Montana Historical Society.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Industry & Commerce • Notable Buildings • Railroads & Streetcars. In addition, it is included in the Montana National Register Sign Program series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1913.
Location. 48° 47.453′ N, 105° 25.223′ W. Marker is in Scobey, Montana, in Daniels County. Marker is on Main Street (State Highway 13) just south of 2nd Avenue, on the right when traveling south. Marker is located along the sidewalk, just to the left of the courthouse entrance. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 213 Main Street, Scobey MT 59263, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 1 other marker is within 4 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Wood Mountain Trail (approx. 3.8 miles away).
Regarding Daniels County Courthouse. National Register of Historic Places #95000535.
Also see . . .
1. Daniels County Courthouse. Wikipedia entry:
The building was erected in 1913, the same year Scobey was relocated to a site on the Great Northern Railway, and originally functioned as a hotel. Over the next seven years, the hotel passed through several hands; it became known as "One-eyed Molly's House of Pleasure" after its most notorious proprietor, a glass-eyed woman who supposedly ran a brothel from the hotel.(Submitted on July 28, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
2. Daniels County Courthouse. Historical Montana website entry (Submitted on July 28, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
Credits. This page was last revised on July 28, 2022. It was originally submitted on July 28, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 91 times since then and 13 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on July 28, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. 2. submitted on July 28, 2022, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York. 3, 4, 5. submitted on July 28, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.