Colors of the Western Mining Frontier Painted Finishes in Virginia City
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
COLORS OF THE WESTERN MINING FRONTIER PAINTED FINISHES IN VIRGINIA CITY, MONTANA by KATHRYN GERAGHTY A THESIS Presented to the Interdisciplinary Studies Program: Historic Preservation and the Graduate School of the University of Oregon in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science June 2017 THESIS APPROVAL PAGE Student: Kathryn Geraghty Title: Colors of the Western Mining Frontier: Painted Finishes in Virginia City, Montana This thesis has been accepted and approved in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Science degree in the Interdisciplinary Studies Program: Historic Preservation by: Kingston Heath Chair Shannon Sardell Member Carin Carlson Member and Scott L. Pratt Dean of the Graduate School Original approval signatures are on file with the University of Oregon Graduate School. Degree awarded June 2017. ii © 2017 Kathryn Geraghty iii THESIS ABSTRACT Kathryn Geraghty Master of Science Interdisciplinary Studies Program: Historic Preservation June 2017 Title: Colors of the Western Mining Frontier: Painted Finishes in Virginia City, Montana Virginia City once exemplified the cutting edge of culture and taste in the Rocky Mountain mining frontier. Weathering economic downturns, mining booms and busts, and the loss of the territorial capital to Helena, Virginia City survives today as a heritage tourism site with a substantial building stock from its period of significance, 1863-1875. However, the poor physical condition and interpretation of the town offers tourists an inauthentic experience. Without paint analysis, the Montana Heritage Commission, state- appointed caretakers of Virginia City cannot engage in rehabilitation. As of 2017, no published architectural finishes research exists that provides comparative case studies for the Anglo-American settlement of the American West between 1840-1880, for American industrial landscapes, or for vernacular architecture in Montana. This thesis offers a case study of five buildings to add to the body of scholarly architectural finishes research, provide rehabilitation recommendations, and provide a published, baseline study for future research. iv CURRICULUM VITAE NAME OF AUTHOR: Kathryn Geraghty GRADUATE AND UNDERGRADUATE SCHOOLS ATTENDED: University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts DEGREES AWARDED: Master of Science, Historic Preservation, 2017, University of Oregon Bachelor of Arts, Archaeology, 2009, Boston University Bachelor of Arts, Classical Studies, 2009, Boston University AREAS OF SPECIAL INTEREST: Vernacular Architecture and Landscapes Mining History in the American West Industrial Landscapes Industrial Archaeology PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: Graduate Employee, Historic Preservation, Eugene, Oregon, 2017 Cultural Landscapes Intern, Mount Rainier National Park, Washington, 2016 Archaeological Technician, Death Valley National Park, California, 2013-2015 Archaeological Technician, Sierra National Forest, California, 2012 Archaeological Technician, Death Valley National Park, California, 2010-2012 Archaeological Technician, Stanislaus National Forest, California, 2009 GRANTS, AWARDS, AND HONORS: Vernacular Architecture Forum Ambassador Award, Vernacular Architecture Forum, 2017 Heritage Research Fund Travel Award, Heritage Research Associates, 2016 v PUBLICATIONS Geraghty, Kathryn. “On the Construction and Rehabilitation of the Southern Pacific Train Depot in Springfield, Oregon.” Associated Students for Historic Preservation Journal (Portland: ASHP, 2017) vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to express my gratitude to my thesis advisors – Kingston Heath, Shannon Sardell, and Carin Carlson—for your patience, interest, training, generous commitment of time, and unfailing support as I complete this thesis. Your incredible skills and knowledge leave me ever in awe, and I am forever your student. I would also like to express my gratitude to the Montana Heritage Commission, particularly Don Steeley, who graciously helped me tour Virginia City, select buildings, explain preservation practices, lent me ladders, and introduced me to members of his organization and to the Virginia City public. My time learning from you was well-spent and I hope this thesis helps you and the MHC. I sincerely thank the Heritage Research Associates and Rick Minor for their generous Heritage Research Fund Travel Award. This travel grant helped further my research by financially allowing me on-site visits to Virginia City, archives visits to Montana Historical Society in Helena, and purchasing necessary equipment such as the microscope and microscope camera used for this thesis. Grants like these are critical to produce meaningful research projects. I wish to express my personal appreciation for all the librarians who helped me hunt down archival sources, taught me about using the photo archives, use the Munsell books, checked out rooms for me to work in, and at times were more excited than I was about completing research: Karen Bankole, Paula Seager, Sara DeWaay, and Ed Teague at the University of Oregon Architecture and Allied Arts Library, Kate Steeley and Marge Antolik at the McFarland Curatorial Center, and Zoe Ann Stoltz and her staff at vii the Montana Historical Society. You inspired me to keep going, and I am so grateful for your help and enthusiasm. Finally I wish to personally thank several people who have read so many drafts of this thesis, supported me through set-backs and frustrations, listened to me make terrible, terrible paint puns, fed me, groused with me, made sure I slept, and made sure I woke up on time for important things: my dog Ethel, my incredibly patient fiancé Drew Kaiser, my roommates Avery and Arin Underwood, my cohort members Charlotte Helmer, Amanda Tully, Hayli Reff, Morgan Albertson, William Chang, Corey Lentz, Rodney Bohner, Sabrina Ferry, and Heather Butler, the Champagne Train trivia team, my dear friends Elan and Stephanie Matlovsky, and Meredith Levine, who convinced me with one photograph that paint was fun. You are all amazing. Thank you for your support. viii DEDICATION “A student I am… a wizard I am not.” – Victoria Lee, AAD, 2017 To all the students who are expected to be wizards… ix TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Page I. INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................... 1 Problem Statement .................................................................................................. 2 Case Study: Virginia City, Montana ..................................................................... 6 II. HISTORICAL CONTEXT ...................................................................................... 9 General Overview .................................................................................................. 9 Prehistory ......................................................................................................... 9 Fur Trapping: 1804-1862 ................................................................................. 11 Mining And Territory-hood: 1862-1875.......................................................... 12 Virginia City: 1863-present ............................................................................. 13 Building Histories .................................................................................................. 22 Kraemer Store (1863) ...................................................................................... 24 McGovern-Goldberg Store (1863)................................................................... 27 Weston Hotel (1863) ........................................................................................ 33 Strasburger Colorado Store (1863) And Cigar Store (1863) ........................... 33 Green Fronts (1868, 1878) ............................................................................... 39 Methodist Church (1874) ................................................................................. 43 Broader Contexts .................................................................................................... 47 A Brief History Of Paint In The United States ................................................ 47 Getting To Town .............................................................................................. 53 Painting Virginia City ...................................................................................... 57 x Chapter Page III. LITERATURE REVIEW ....................................................................................... 66 Overview Of Paint Analysis As A Field................................................................ 66 Shortcomings Of Paint Analysis ............................................................................ 70 Comparable Paint Analyses ................................................................................... 74 Missing The Mark: Architectural Studies In Virginia City.................................... 77 IV. METHODOLOGY ................................................................................................. 81 Site Selection.......................................................................................................... 81 Fieldwork Methodology ......................................................................................... 86 Laboratory Methodology ........................................................................................ 91 V. RESULTS ...............................................................................................................