Still Old School
Dude Rancher Lodge
Walk on the investors. Their brands are in the carpet.
The Story
Downtown Billings motor lodge built in 1950 with ranching money behind it. Still renting rooms, still serving breakfast at the Stirrup Cafe.
Dude Rancher Lodge went up in 1950 on North 29th Street, paid for by a group of Billings businessmen and women that included ranchers and stockmen. The Goan family, led by original owners Annabel and Percival Goan, ran it until 1992, when Virginia Leuprecht bought it. It’s one of the few owner-operated hotels left in Billings.
The details are the reason to stay. The brick came from the original St. Vincent Hospital. The carpet carries the brands of the ranching families behind the build, so you are, in a sense, walking on the investors. There’s Will James artwork on the walls. In 2010 the lodge went on the nation’s official list of historic places.
The Stirrup Cafe serves breakfast and lunch and is open to the public. The lodge takes pets, too.
Not staying the night? Get breakfast at the Stirrup and read the carpet on your way out.
Why It's Still Old School
Brick from the old St. Vincent Hospital, carpet marked with the brands of the ranch families who backed it, and the same corner of 29th Street since 1950.
Photos
Coming soon. Know something that belongs here?
Still There.
- Address
- 415 N. 29th St., Billings, MT, 59101
- Phone
- 406-259-5561
Sources
Got a Story About This Place?
You're Old School Montana if... you watched the Mustangs from the old wooden stands at Cobb Field and felt every board
You're Old School Montana if... you went to Rimrock Mall on Saturday because that's where everybody was
You're Old School Montana if... you learned to drive in a high school parking lot in January, mostly sideways
What do you say?
While You're Here
Back When · Billings · '80s
Billings in the '80s: The Mall Went West. Downtown Noticed.
Rimrock Mall pulled Billings west, JCPenney left downtown in 1982, and the Mustangs played on old wood at Cobb Field. A few '80s markers to get you started.
Gone, Not Forgotten · Billings · '80s
Remember This? Hart-Albin, Where Billings Wore Decent Shoes
Before Rimrock Mall settled the matter, Hart-Albin on Broadway was the downtown department store Billings put on decent shoes to visit.
Somehow Still Here
Village Inn Pizza
A teardown, a move, and the pizza came back anyway.
Still Kicking
Red Lodge Mountain
Snow does what it wants. The hill goes along.
Been Here Awhile
The Pollard Hotel
Still renting rooms by the night instead of going condo.