Palace and Savoy Hotels

Standing kitty corner to the Missoula County Courthouse are the historic Palace and Savoy hotels. Unlike most turn-of-the-century hotels in Missoula that were built within a few blocks of the railroad, the impressive, five-story 1909 Palace Hotel settled instead on West Broadway, a main artery through downtown Missoula. The Palace was originally built to accommodate railway workers and passengers from both the Northern Pacific and Milwaukee railroads. Despite the depressed economic climate of the late 1930s, a six-story annex, later called the Savoy, was added to the Palace to accommodate increased automobile traffic into Missoula. It was completed in 1941. The hotels offered guests a more elegant atmosphere than competitors on Railroad Street, with large dining areas and a classy bar on the first floor.

While the hotels are considered a composite building since the Savoy was built as an addition, the two are architecturally distinct, each representing the era in which it was built. The Palace has a high granite base, multi-colored brick surface, and a Romanesque-arched entryway. The Savoy, on the other hand, employs the art deco themes of the day, including a cornice with terra-cotta thunderbird design, an emphasis on the vertical, and corrugated metal panels.

Both buildings faced demolition in the 1990s, but thanks to private funding and tax incentives, the buildings were refurbished. In fact, in 2013, the Missoula Housing Authority completed a multi-million dollar renovation of the Palace. Currently, the buildings house a variety of popular bars and restaurants, and apartments on the upper floors.