McLeod, Charles Herbert, 1859-1946

Charles Herbert McLeod was born in 1859 and came to Missoula, Montana, from New Brunswick, Canada, in 1880 to work for local businessman Andrew Hammond. McLeod had been sent by Hammond’s sister, Mrs. George Fenwick of New Brunswick, after Hammond asked relatives and friends in New Brunswick for enterprising young men who would like to come west. Hammond was principal owner of a firm that had begun in Missoula in 1867 as Bonner and Welch, with E. L. Bonner as one of the principals. The name was changed to E. L. Bonner and Co. in 1871 with a change of owners.

Andrew Hammond had arrived in Montana in 1867, settled in Hell Gate in 1870, then moved to Missoula in late 1871. He soon became a clerk in the store for Richard Eddy. Hammond became a partner in the store in 1876 and the business was renamed Eddy, Hammond, and Co. In 1877, the store constructed its building at the intersection of Front Street and Higgins Avenue, on the Mullan military road, in Missoula. In 1881, the firm was awarded the contract to clear the right of way and provide the lumber for the construction of the Northern Pacific Railway. When the Northern Pacific was completed at Gold Creek, Montana, in 1883, business expanded considerably. The Montana Improvement Company, formed in 1882, took over this portion of the Eddy, Hammond, and Company business.

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