The Montana Club Building is one of the finest commercial facades on Last Chance Gulch, a four-story Romanesque Revival structure from the early 1890s that was built as the home of the Montana Club — the exclusive private dining and social club where Helena's gold-rush millionaires entertained each other and their guests from the East. The stonework is confident and heavily detailed: rounded arches, banded columns, carved ornament that doesn't repeat itself. As statements of civic ambition go, it's among the most assured on the street.
The Club itself closed long ago, and the building has passed through various commercial uses since. The interior has been modified, but the exterior remains intact and well-preserved. Walking Last Chance Gulch from north to south, you'll pass it without quite realizing it's there until you look up from street level — the upper floors carry the weight of the original design while the ground floor has been adapted for modern retail. Look for the building's name carved in the stonework above the second floor. It's a good reminder that Helena once had the concentrated wealth to build things like this without a second thought.