Inscription
Deed records indicate that a Knights of Labor Hall stood here by 1887. Open to both skilled and unskilled workers, the Knights helped found the 1886 Silver Bow Trades and Labor Assembly. The influential organization advocated for an eight-hour day; it also organized against Chinese immigration and businesses that employed Chinese workers.
A one-story brick building replaced the earlier structure sometime between 1888 and 1890. By 1897, that brick building had become home to carpenter George Selfridge and his wife Elvira. The Selfridges shared their home with their children, including son Bert (a machinist) and daughter Gertie (a seamstress).
Both children contributed to the family economy by paying room and board. Sometime before 1916 owners added a small rear addition and a second story with a large front porch tucked underneath. By 1920, Irish-born Dan Holland had purchased the enlarged residence. A time keeper for various mines before becoming chief deputy county clerk and recorder, Holland lived here with his wife, Bridget, their four children, and two widowed roomers, both of whom worked as clerks at the nearby Depot News Stand.
Location
Sources
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