Snowflake Tiara Research Trip

A couple of weeks ago I had the privilege of going onsite in Helena, Montana, with my husband, Jim, and my Snowflake Tiara co-author Angela.

We had several things in mind:

• Over-all vibe of the city
• Scouting for specific locations for specific scenes
• Seeking settings that existed in 1889 and still exist today

Helena became a city in 1864. The State Capitol was built between 1896-1902, a little too late for Angeia’s story. It’s an amazing building that demonstrates that Helena was an extremely wealthy city, having more millionaires per capita than anywhere else in the world. This makes it a great setting for a beauty pageant in 1889!

Here are two photos of the Capitol:

Here’s Jim in front of the second floor balcony, the dome’s rotunda behind him.

The Parrot Confectionary has been in business since the 1920s. It’s in the heart of downtown on the historic Last Chance Gulch (street), part of which is now a walking mall.

Angela and I enjoyed a tour of this business that makes their own candies and chocolates from scratch. Suddenly candy became part of both our story lines!

This 4000-square-foot mansion was built around the time of Angie’s story. The entire top floor was once a ball room! It looks like this home may become a major setting for both our novellas.

Now we’d love to see the inside and see if it matches our dreams for story setting. Hopefully we’ll get a chance to go back to Helena again this fall for more research. Stay tuned!