(This post will probably have way too much information and photos for a town that, odds are, you have never been to and never will be in. It’s my blog and I can do what I want!)
I had the chance to work in Lewistown, MT for a week and took it. I was able to make some money and see a new place at the same time. Lewistown (not Lewiston like I kept wanting to call it) has about 6,000 residents and is the county seat of Fergus county (named after James Fergus whose picture is further down in the post). There are mountains around the town although I had a hard time seeing them due to the weather most of the week. Lewistown is right in the center of Montana. I had a good time seeing some buildings and eating at some restaurants. The hot tub at the hotel was pretty nice too!
- First Bank Building in downtown Lewistown, MT
- St Leo’s in Lewistown, MT
- A neat mural incorporating the window in Lewistown, MT. This is a crop insurance company.
- The Judith Theater in Downtown Lewistown, MT
All in all it was a pretty good time. Some of my favorite spots were the Rising Trout Cafe (for the cookies!) and Ruby’s 100% Montana Grill. It reminded me, in a way, of Culvers. I also ate at the local drive in, Little Big Men Pizza and The Mint bar. All were good meals.
Carnegie Library
I also spent some time in the library. Apparently it was a Carnegie library but the townsfolk and contractor went a little crazy with upgrades and had a money problem. How does that happen with a free library? See the picture of the info plaque for the story. The original library space is now a reading room and meeting room while the bulk of the operations is in the modern and expanded basement.
- Lewistown’s Carnegie library
- Original library space. Now a quiet reading room.
- Info plaque about the Carnegie Library in Lewistown
- Detail of woodwork
Culver Photo Studio
Another cool building was an old photo studio. I was originally drawn to it because of the Kodak ghost billboard on the side (Visible from the main drag). It was used in that capacity for almost 100 years. The wall of windows in the picture below was used for lighting in the studio. More info is in the photo of the plaque if you are interested.
- Culver Studio ghost billboard
- Culver Studio info plaque
- The Culver studio windows
So yeah. Lewistown is a pretty cool city. If you ever find yourself in central Montana with some time to kill pay it a visit.
- Moose Lodge. Cool neon sign.
- Entryway.
- Montana Tavern neon sign. There is a fish in the river part of the neon.
- Knerr & Tubb Building. Some people go subtle with their names but Knerr & Tubb weren’t most people.
- Lewistown is the Chokecherry capital of Montana. They have a festival annually.
- James Fergus, namesake of Fergus County