H. E. and Lillian Kirkemo papers, 1883-1998

Henry Elmer “Kirk” Kirkemo was born in 1894. Kirkemo was hired by Missoula, Montana, architect Ole Bakke as a draftsman in 1920 and he became a licensed architect in 1924. After Bakke retired, Kirkemo continued the architectural firm under his own name. Formally trained, Kirkemo created innovative designs using modern architectural theory and materials. He was a pioneer in the field of ‘Lift Slab Construction.’ Kirkemo designed hundreds of public and private buildings throughout Western Montana and Idaho. The Wilma building and St. Patrick’s Hospital are two of the most noteworthy Kirkemo projects, but he also designed many area schools in western Montana and buildings in Wallace, Idaho.

Lillian Fellows was born on September 6, 1898 and spent her early years in Vermillion, South Dakota. She moved to Missoula on November 1, 1920 and married H. E. Kirkemo on July 30, 1921.When H. E. Kirkemo retired in the early 1960s, his son, James W. Kirkemo, took over the business.