{"id":623,"featured":0,"modified":"2026-04-17 19:40:08","latitude":46.334026641033602800234802998602390289306640625,"longitude":-113.29586771095813446663669310510158538818359375,"title":"First Presbyterian Church, Philipsburg","subtitle":"Philipsburg Historic Disctrict","fullsize":"https://mail.historicmt.org/files/fullsize/77a438247a94f27694dc821ecbc3ae5c.jpg","address":"208 West Kearney Street, Philipsburg, Montana","all_locations":[],"zoom":17,"creator":["Montana National Register Sign Program"],"description":"Reverend Milton Cook organized Philipsburg’s first Presbyterian congregation in 1877 and Reverend George Edwards came from Missoula to preach once a month. But it was not until 1891 that Reverend Samuel Wishard established a permanent Presbyterian congregation in Philipsburg. Services and Sunday school were held in the schoolhouse until summer 1893 when the present building welcomed its first worshippers. An early cold snap, however, forced the congregation to move services to the Methodist Church until heating stoves could be installed. The building’s unusual hexagonal copper dome and intricate scrollwork make its steeple the most distinctive among Philipsburg’s churches. A Gothic window with tracery, lancet openings, and a round window embellish the simple frame façade. Fondly known as the &quot;White Church,&quot; the building takes its place along “church row” on the north side of Broadway. The local watering holes are all on the opposite side of the street, maintaining the historic separation of secular and spiritual. Presbyterians held services here until 1990 when they joined with the Methodists to share their facility.","sponsor":null,"accessinfo":"Private","lede":"","website":"","related_resources":["<a href=\"https://npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/GetAsset/6d67f5f6-60b5-43ca-81d2-c1ca4972ee02\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Read about the Philipsburg Historic District</a>","<a href=\"https://npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/GetAsset/df9ccd24-a7c0-4ecc-9c6b-ea13416853f0/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">See photos of the Philipsburg Historic District</a>"],"factoids":[],"files":{"https://mail.historicmt.org/files/fullsize/77a438247a94f27694dc821ecbc3ae5c.jpg":{"id":1116,"mime-type":"image/jpeg","title":"First Presbyterian Church","description":"First Presbyterian Church, facing south on West Kearney Street, front view of the façade, digital photograph. | Montana Historical Society | June 2019 | Michael Connolly","thumbnail":"https://mail.historicmt.org/files/square_thumbnails/77a438247a94f27694dc821ecbc3ae5c.jpg"},"https://mail.historicmt.org/files/fullsize/0bf14195296f48680daa22c9c089e968.jpg":{"id":1117,"mime-type":"image/jpeg","title":"First Presbyterian Church","description":"First Presbyterian Church, facing southeast on West Kearney Street, front/side view of the building, digital photograph. | Montana Historical Society | June 2019 | Michael Connolly","thumbnail":"https://mail.historicmt.org/files/square_thumbnails/0bf14195296f48680daa22c9c089e968.jpg"},"https://mail.historicmt.org/files/fullsize/6eaa25e1346a4338755d914ac27c9cf6.jpg":{"id":3484,"mime-type":"image/jpeg","title":"First Presbyterian Church, Philipsburg","description":"First Presbyterian Church, Philipsburg. Facing south on West Kearney Street, front view of the façade. B&amp;W. | Montana State Historic Preservation Office from the Photograph Archives at the Montana Historical Society | 1980-1984 | Photographer unidentified","thumbnail":"https://mail.historicmt.org/files/square_thumbnails/6eaa25e1346a4338755d914ac27c9cf6.jpg"}}}