Readers of this blog know that Big Timber is one of my favorite Yellowstone Valley towns. It still has that classic Northern Pacific Railroad town plan with a long commercial artery extending south from the railroad tracks that then turns into a quite captivating residential neighborhood.
The restoration of the Grand Hotel in the 1990s really helped the commercial area turn a corner.
I have spent nights at the hotel and had a couple of meals there, always thought it would be a mainstay for years. The pandemic alas hurt a lot of small town businesses everywhere and Big Timber’s Grand Hotel struggled. When I was there in July 2025 it was closed but promised a reopening.
But there had been another quite jarring— the read brick was gone and everything was painted black, like the place was in mourning.
Then I noticed a second shock, the classic Rustic style Timber Bar (one of my favs for 40 years) also was covered in black.
I always tell folks—don’t sweat the paint colors on a historic building. It can always change. But black in Big Timber, it just didn’t seem right.
But please don’t paint over Edna and Mel’s Gooseys place. What a jewel!
And leave the town plain in place. Here is a western town always worth a stop. Change is ok but please respect the classic.
Montana's Historic Landscapes 
I totally agree with you on the black paint! I don’t understand the trend of taking away the character of the historical buildings. It’s boring and takes away the fun of recognizing and celebrating our history. Now, it’s difficult to recognize history…with the original brick, we knew it was a historical building and could connect with previous generations and how that building looked when they were here.