Great Falls founder Paris Gibson was drawn to the power of the Missouri River falls, where he vowed to found an industrial center of unsurpassed beauty. Backed by railroad magnate James J. Hill, Gibson hired H. P. Rolfe to plat the townsite in 1883. Industry harnessed the river’s power, and the arrival of the railroad in 1887 assured the town a future. The Northside District, part of the original townsite, was planned as a neighborhood removed from industrial activity but still convenient to it. By the 1890s, doctors, lawyers, politicians, businessmen, and smelter officials had begun to settle there. More than 200 preserved homes and buildings span the period from 1885 to 1945 and include Queen Anne, Colonial Revival, Craftsman Bungalow, Prairie, and Moderne styles. The work of architect George Shanley, a Northside resident, strongly shaped the district, with the Classical Revival Sacred Heart Convent and the Romanesque Revival Cascade County Jail showcasing his talents. Paris Gibson, the first mayor of Great Falls, also built a Northside home. Gibson believed beautiful surroundings molded a diverse population into a contented community. Gibson Park, which skirts the district, and the double-lined boulevards shaded by huge trees planted between 1888 and 1913 are central to his legacy. Today the Northside’s residential streets, churches, and public buildings reflect the economic, social, and political flowering of Gibson’s vision.