Missoula in Missoula County, Montana — The American West (Mountains)
Beacom Residence
University Area Historic District
Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, August 7, 2022
1. Beacom Residence Marker
Inscription.
Beacom Residence. University Area Historic District. Bay windows and a two-story front porch dress up this home’s basic “four-square” pattern. Stately American Four-Squares, marked by their pyramidal roofs, overhanging eaves, and cubical shapes, were extremely popular with middle-class suburbanites in the early 1900s. William Beacom and his wife Jennie likely built this home between 1902 and 1905 in what was then an up-and-coming suburb. Fifth Street residents formed an early neighborhood improvement association to lobby for graded streets, cement sidewalks, and uniform landscaping. Cement sidewalks, many of which were installed in 1909, would have been of particular interest to William, as he made his living as a cement contractor. In 1922, he ran for mayor of Missoula, a post he held (with the exception of one term) until 1932. William died in 1939, at the age of seventy-eight. Jennie continued to live here, along with various nieces and nephews, until her death at age ninety-four in 1966.
Bay windows and a two-story front porch dress up this home’s basic “four-square” pattern. Stately American Four-Squares—marked by their pyramidal roofs, overhanging eaves, and cubical shapes—were extremely popular with middle-class suburbanites in the early 1900s. William Beacom and his wife Jennie likely built this home between 1902 and 1905 in what was then an up-and-coming suburb. Fifth Street residents formed an early neighborhood improvement association to lobby for graded streets, cement sidewalks, and uniform landscaping. Cement sidewalks—many of which were installed in 1909—would have been of particular interest to William, as he made his living as a cement contractor. In 1922, he ran for mayor of Missoula, a post he held (with the exception of one term) until 1932. William died in 1939, at the age of seventy-eight. Jennie continued to live here—along with various nieces and nephews—until her death at age ninety-four in 1966.
Location. 46° 52.056′ N, 113° 59.99′ W. Marker is in
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Missoula, Montana, in Missoula County. It is at the intersection of South 5th Street East and South Higgins Avenue, on the right when traveling west on South 5th Street East. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 103 South 5th Street East, 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.
Credits. This page was last revised on December 12, 2022. It was originally submitted on December 12, 2022, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 196 times since then and 22 times this year. Photos:1, 2, 3. submitted on December 12, 2022, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.
