Frank Buttrey founded a small shop called "The Fair" in 1902, and after its First Street location was destroyed in the fire of 1904, he planned a 50 x 85 foot brick building at the corner of 2nd Street and 3rd Avenue that eventually became a three-story 150 x 140 foot structure. The store drew shoppers from across Montana and Canada and introduced several new technologies to Montana, including the state's first automatic fire sprinkler system. KFBB, Montana's first radio station and the nation's second, was aired from Buttrey's, and its call sign stood for Frank Buttrey Broadcast Inc., though Buttrey joked it meant "Keep Frank Buttrey Broke." A creative and ingenious businessman, Buttrey also offered free bus rides from Chinook to bring shoppers to the store, helping support not only his business but other Havre businesses as well. Buttrey grew into Montana's largest independent retail operation with 29 stores in the 1950's. In 1978, then-owner Don Vaupelle extensively remodeled the building by opening the centers of its three previously enclosed floors to create the open plan seen today, and the Atrium is now owned by David and Kris Shaw.