Dr. Don L. Byam Residence

Dr. Don L. Byam Residence (HM27DE)

Location: Virginia City, MT 59755 Madison County
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Country: United States of America
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N 45° 18.409', W 111° 58.039'

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Inscription
Light timber framing with board-and-batten walls characterizes this early home original to the Nevada City townsite. Inside, the original, well-preserved, muslin-covered walls are a rare example of a frontier decorating technique. The cabin's first occupants were Dr. Don Byam and his family, who came to Alder Gulch in 1863 after someone jumped their claim near Bannack. Elected judge of the miner's court, Dr. Byam presided over the murder trial of George Ives, held on Nevada City's main street in December 1863. Ives, convicted and hanged, was incarcerated during the trial in the small cabin behind the house. The trial was the catalyst for forming the Vigilantes. During the Civil War in Confederate-dominated Alder Gulch, Dr. Byam was a member of the anti-Confederate Union League of America. Clandestine meetings were held in the Byam attic. The Byams moved on and Samuel B. Wonderly next owned the house. He removed the original false front and added the gable as camp phase architecture gave way to the settlement period. Lawrence Fenner and his wife Amanda moved into the house in 1875. They remained in Nevada City long after almost everyone else had moved away. Fenner, a Union League activist and self-styled Vigilante like Dr. Byam, was a civil engineer and inventor. He obtained the US Mineral Patent on the Nevada City townsite in 1878



and was the first to dredge in the area using a method he invented. After Fenner died in 1915, Amanda stayed on and died here in 1930 at 84.


This property contributes to the Virginia City Historic District · Listed in the National Register of Historic Places by the United States Department of the Interior · In cooperation with the Montana Historical Society
Details
HM NumberHM27DE
Tags
Placed ByMontana Historical Society
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Saturday, May 5th, 2018 at 1:02pm PDT -07:00
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Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)12T E 424168 N 5017489
Decimal Degrees45.30681667, -111.96731667
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 45° 18.409', W 111° 58.039'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds45° 18' 24.54" N, 111° 58' 2.3400000000001" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)406
Which side of the road?Marker is on the right when traveling North
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 1576 MT-287, Virginia City MT 59755, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

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