{"id":2156,"featured":0,"modified":"2026-10-12 21:34:54","latitude":45.78477620000000314348653773777186870574951171875,"longitude":-108.5061087000000270563759841024875640869140625,"title":"Billings Chamber of Commerce Building","subtitle":"","fullsize":"https://mail.historicmt.org/files/fullsize/3730d12c29d3c7bfc22e28d10be5b732.jpg","address":"303 North 27th Street, Billings, Montana","all_locations":[],"zoom":17,"creator":["Montana National Register Sign Program"],"description":"J. Collins West, Exalted Ruler of Lodge 394 of the Elks Club, planned this turn-of-the-century Italian Renaissance Revival style building as a lodge hall. Billings Elks members attending the St. Louis Exposition in 1904 purchased a bar for their proposed facility. Inlaid with bands of ebony and mother-of-pearl, the bar featured leaded, stained glass windows, beer steins, and walnut paneling. Murals, a thousand dollar tapestry, hanging lamps, and doorknobs embossed with the head of an elk complemented the fine interior furnishings. The foundation features sandstone excavated from the Heffner quarry. A round stone arch on a stone pedestal highlights the entryway. Giant order scrolled columns, the Renaissance roof cornice, and bowed iron balconies dominate the front façade. A three-day dedication celebration trumpeted the completion of the building in 1910, complete with a formal lodge dedication, gala balls, a reception, and street decorations. Financial difficulties immediately began to plague the group and in 1918 the Elks sold the building to the Billings-Midland Club, precursor to the Chamber of Commerce, who occupied the space until the 1960s. In 1971, a group of local businessmen announced that the structure would be razed and a parking lot built on the site. Two auctions occurred as a result, and many of the original interior decorations were sold. A group of concerned citizens, organized as the Save-the-Chamber-Committee, rescued the building from demolition. Demolition plans again surfaced in the early 1990s but investors opted to renovate the landmark and preserve the building.","sponsor":null,"accessinfo":"Private","lede":"","website":"","related_resources":["<a href=\"https://npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/GetAsset/51879f50-d73b-4298-9491-c27f575a5ba2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Read about the Billings Chamber of Commerce Building</a>","<a href=\"https://npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/GetAsset/5b09afe9-5a4f-4e94-8b7d-4951164f6c0f/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">See photos of the Billings Chamber of Commerce Building</a>"],"factoids":[],"files":{"https://mail.historicmt.org/files/fullsize/3730d12c29d3c7bfc22e28d10be5b732.jpg":{"id":6879,"mime-type":"image/jpeg","title":"Billings Chamber of Commerce Building","description":"Front to side view of building, facing north on the corner of North 27th Street and 3rd Avenue North.  | Montana Historical Society | September 2026 | Arizona Duff","alt":"alt=&quot;&quot;","thumbnail":"https://mail.historicmt.org/files/square_thumbnails/3730d12c29d3c7bfc22e28d10be5b732.jpg"},"https://mail.historicmt.org/files/fullsize/0084faab50790dca57913d907aac44d6.jpg":{"id":6878,"mime-type":"image/jpeg","title":"Billings Chamber of Commerce Building","description":"View of facade, facing northwest on 3rd Avenue North.  | Montana Historical Society | September 2026 | Arizona Duff","alt":"alt=&quot;&quot;","thumbnail":"https://mail.historicmt.org/files/square_thumbnails/0084faab50790dca57913d907aac44d6.jpg"},"https://mail.historicmt.org/files/fullsize/e342cd1d46bf5478d287738adbb7f1d3.jpg":{"id":4412,"mime-type":"image/jpeg","title":"Billings Chamber of Commerce Building","description":"Front view of the building.  | The Billings Gazette, Montana State Historic Preservation Office | Apr. 1986 | James Woodcock","alt":"alt=&quot;&quot;","thumbnail":"https://mail.historicmt.org/files/square_thumbnails/e342cd1d46bf5478d287738adbb7f1d3.jpg"}}}