ABOUT THE BUILDING

About the "Old Chamber Building" in Billings, MT


The “Old Chamber Building” 

Built with red brick and adorned with local Montana sandstone, West Law Firm's main office is housed in one of the most notable architectural buildings in downtown Billings. The Elk's Lodge or "old Chamber of Commerce" building is located at 301 N. 27th Street. The building has hosted U.S. presidents, generations of Billings's businesses, judges, and restaurants. 

Built to serve as the headquarters for the Billing's Elk's Lodge #394, the building's cornerstone was laid in 1909. It was designed by Glen Charles McAlister - one of the region's preeminent architects - in the Italian Renaissance Revival style. A sandstone foundation was sourced from the local Heffner Quarry and, for interior furnishing, Elks’s members traveled to the St. Louis Exposition in 1904 to purchase a wooden bar for the lodge. The lodge opened with a three-day celebration in 1910. However, it did not last long as the Elk's Lodge. The building was sold in 1918 to the Billings Midland-Club, which later became the Billings Chamber of Commerce (hence the nickname "Old Chamber Building"). 

The Chamber of Commerce moved out to a new location the 1960s. Attempts were made to demolish the building in favor of a parking garage multiple times in the 1970s. When demolition plans were renewed in the 1990s, a group of locals purchased and restored the building to its present condition. While auctions stripped the building of many of the internal furnishings and decorations much of the original woodwork, murals, and mother of pearl inlay remain.

Learn more about the Old Chamber building by visiting our offices today.

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