The sloping roof of this one-and-one-half-story house once shaded an open porch. The curved roofline and shed dormer add Craftsman style elegance to the home, constructed on a double lot after 1907. The interior also reflected Craftsman ideals with space-saving built-in bookshelves and a living room fireplace, a symbolic focal point for domestic life. Dentist Elmer McDowell and his wife lived in the side-gabled residence by 1912. Both Mr. and Mrs. McDowell enthusiastically participated in Red Lodge's genteel society. He was a member of the Masons and contributed money for the new Elks Lodge. She was an officer in the Eastern Star and took an active role in the Red Lodge Woman's Club. That organization helped establish the public library and encouraged the study of literature and music. Members took turns holding the weekly club meetings in their homes, and Mrs. McDowell hosted an “interesting and instructive” program for the club's musical department here in February 1914.