Gillette’s downtown has been added to the National Register of Historic Places after local efforts were made to preserve the historic buildings of Gillette Avenue between 1st Street and 7th Streets. The Gillette Downtown Historic District was officially added on January 3 of this year, with 30 buildings dating from the late 19th century to the 1960s included.
The Gillette Historic Preservation Commission was created in 2015 to protect and promote the history and historical properties in and around Gillette. Of the buildings that are listed, 30 are officially listed as part of the district with an additional other 25 as non-contributing ones. This status is dependent on whether a property retains its historical nature or if it’s been altered.
“Some are considered contributing if they are significant in our history, more than 50 years old, or at least 50 years old, and basically look like they did the day they were built, so not a lot of significant changes to the exterior, and some of them are non-contributing. Those would be the ones that are maybe a metal building, or even some of our buildings have a metal façade [or have been otherwise altered],” said Mary Kelley, chair of the Gillette Historic Preservation Commission.
The commission spent o several years documenting and photographing the buildings that are now part of the downtown district. They join the old post office and city hall buildings, both of which date from the mid-1930s, on the register. Due to modifications to some of the buildings over the years, there’s been a renewed interest in returning them to their original condition, which some business owners have expressed interest in.
“We would love for those building owners to take that metal façade off and get that building to look like it did the day it was built and then we can add it to our collection of buildings that was just put on the register,” Kelley said.
Some of the key buildings on the list include another old city hall building from 1898, the Montgomery Bar and Hotel from 1911, the former Bank of Gillette from 1920, and the Victorian-style Chasell House from 1906, named for Harry Chasell, who drafted legislation that created Campbell County.
The City of Gillette also received funding for work that was necessary to be added to the register from its status as a Certified Local Government (CLG), which are municipalities “that have demonstrated, through a certification process, a commitment to local preservation and saving the past for future generations,” according the National Park Service, who administers the register. Gillette achieved CLG status in 2015. Funding via grants provides assistance in documenting and researching historic properties in their application to be added to the list.
The register was authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, which is a national program “to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America's historic and archeological resources.”
The CLG grant required a match, either via cash one or an in-kind one. Since the Gillette Historic Preservation Commission didn’t have cash, they went for the in-kind option where volunteers researched the buildings for the Rosenberg’s. This included the history, newspaper articles, obituaries, and other information that was provided to help in having them become part of the register. Most of the buildings that are now included as part of the historic district didn’t have objections, though some had some concerns about what it might mean for their properties.
“This result is just an honorary title, it does not change ownership of the building, it doesn't change what you as the building owner can do to your building. It's strictly an honorary title,” Kelley said. “That makes it much more palatable for Wyoming building owners and probably building owners everywhere.”
A building at Cam-plex Park is under consideration for a future addition to the NRHP. There are also three archaeological sites that are also part of the register in Campbell County. Gillette joins Casper, Cheyenne, Cody, Evanston, Lander, Laramie, Rawlins, Rock Springs, Thermopolis, and Wheatland, which are all on the register. Douglas also had its downtown district added to the NRHP this year. There are a total of 577 Wyoming landmarks and historic sites listed on the register.
“We do hope to increase traffic on Gillette Avenue [for] visitors, there are people who travel for heritage tourism, to see the history of places, the culture, so we are hoping to drive a little more tourism business to Gillette Avenue,” Kelley said. “That should be a good thing for the businesses on Gillette Avenue.”
Signs will also be placed along Interstate 90 that indicate the designation.
