{"id":3220,"featured":0,"modified":"2026-04-17 19:40:15","latitude":46.5934832806921548353784601204097270965576171875,"longitude":-112.0431554317474365234375,"title":"Bernier House","subtitle":"Helena Historic District","fullsize":"https://mail.historicmt.org/files/fullsize/5f93337723d09aea09f950679121e046.jpg","address":"620 Dearborn, Helena, MT","all_locations":[],"zoom":18,"creator":["Historic Montana"],"description":"Charles and Frances Bernier had this Minimal Traditional English cottage style home built in 1940. Contractor Bob James likely built the home, and mason Lewis Reid laid the arched white-marble doorway surround. Reid’s distinctive stonework decorates the entrances, fireplaces, and entire façades of many Helena homes. He always used a Celtic bond, a reflection of his Scottish heritage. The Minimal Traditional style grew out of the Federal Housing Administration’s (FHA) Great Depression-era loan program, created in 1934, to finance small homes the average working American could afford. In addition to offering insured, low-interest mortgages, the FHA published house-plan catalogs that promoted modest homes with minimal decoration. Private house-plan publishers followed suit, and by 1949 more than seven million Minimal Traditional style homes were built across the United States. The Berniers lived here for twenty years. Charles was a superintendent at the Montana Power Company until 1946 and a Masonic Lodge member. He also devoted countless hours to promoting Red Cross blood donations and teaching first-aid classes. Frances was a retired teacher and an involved member of the Eastern Star, Helena Women’s Club, and the PEO Sisterhood.","sponsor":null,"accessinfo":"private","lede":"","website":"","related_resources":["Read more about the Helena Historic District"],"factoids":[],"files":{"https://mail.historicmt.org/files/fullsize/5f93337723d09aea09f950679121e046.jpg":{"id":4867,"mime-type":"image/jpeg","title":"Bernier House, 620 Dearborn, Helena, MT","description":"View looking north at facade | June 2020 | Owner photo","thumbnail":"https://mail.historicmt.org/files/square_thumbnails/5f93337723d09aea09f950679121e046.jpg"}}}