Anaconda Historic District, Durston Building, Main Street & East Park Avenue, Anaconda, Deer Lodge County, MT

Significance: This stately three-story brick building was erected by J.H. Durston, prominent editor of the Anaconda Standard. The eastern annex, known as the "Baby Durston," was added in 1902. The storefronts on both East Park Avenue and Main Street retain some original cast iron columns, although much of the street level facades have been altered. Following completion, the Durston Block offered prestigious second floor office space to numerous professionals, including architects, lawyers, physicians, dentists and collection agents. Furnished rooms were also rented on the third story. The first floor contained several retail establishments, including a dry goods and clothing store, in addition to a cigar, candy, and news store. Space at 202 Main Street was also leased to the U.S. Post Office beginning in 1898. Today this building houses a barber hop on East Park Avenue and a retail store on Main Street. The second floor space is unoccupied. J.H. Durston, a learned philologist and former professor of Syracuse University, arrived in Montana in 1887. At the request of Marcus Daly, manager of the Anaconda Copper Mining Company, Durston launched the Anaconda Standard newspaper in 1889 and continued to serve as the paper's chief editor until 1912. Within this period, Durston's organizational and editorial abilities earned a prominent position for the Anaconda Standard in the journalism world. Carrying national, state, and local news, the Standard reached a daily circulation in excess of 20,000 and became the most widely distributed news publication in Montana before 1910.
Survey number: HABS MT-53-M
Building/structure dates: 1898 Initial Construction
Building/structure dates: 1902 Subsequent Work