A beautiful piece of Flathead Lake real estate will stay in the hands of the community organization that has been caring for it over the past half-century, thanks to the generous donation of a local resident.
Photo by Jeremy Weber/Daily Inter Lake
As a result of the steady growth trends in the Rollins and Dayton area, the Upper West Shore Elementary School District recently made the difficult decision to sell the Rollins Schoolhouse to raise funds to accommodate the expanding student population.
The historic property, which sits above the east shore of Canal Bay on Flathead Lake, was built in 1911 and 1912 and has been leased by the Women of Rollins Club since it stopped serving as a schoolhouse in the early 1970s. The club supports the local community in a variety of ways, including making quilts for pediatric oncology patients, helping with highway cleanup, awarding two college scholarships, and supporting west shore organizations including the food bank, fire department, and other charities.
PureWest agent Sandy O’Connell represented local resident and philanthropist Jim Hollensteiner, who donated the money for the sale to the Women of Rollins Club. Mr. Hollensteiner’s roots in the Flathead go back to the 1880s, when his great-grandfather was a freight agent in Demersville, loading and unloading the boats that traveled up and down Flathead Lake.
“Jim is a longtime Montana resident with deep roots in the valley,” O’Connell said. “His summer home in Rollins has been in his family for generations and the Rollins community has deep meaning to him. When he found out that the school district was selling the Schoolhouse, he felt it was important to preserve that history.”
This sale is an example of the best of Montana, when community-minded people come forward and work together to support the history and ensure the future of one of our many historic buildings.
“I’m so honored to have been a part of keeping this historic property in the community,” O’Connell said. “This is what PureWest is all about—caring for our Montana neighbors and working to build and sustain our wonderful communities.”
Main photo credit: Jerry Winkley Collection
.webp)