Photo by Mystic Creek Studios - Patrick Booth
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One community treasure that is close to Everit Sliter’s heart is the Conrad Mansion. What many may not know is that is almost didn’t happen. Everit was on the City Council and was one of the first people Alicia Conrad Campbell spoke to when she inquired about donating the family mansion to the city in 1972. The Sliter’s were neighbors of the Campbell’s and when her husband passed away, Alicia felt like she couldn’t keep it any longer. The estate had to go through probate before any official transfer could happen, but in the meantime, the grounds were badly overgrown and furnishings were being pilfered and sold. The City Council assigned police to catch any trespassers and thieves. A bit of roof work was done to avoid further deterioration of the mansion. Surprisingly, an organized opposition rose up in the community . . . why was the City spending money on the Conrad Mansion when it should be fixing potholes instead? It was decided that it should be put to a vote, and sadly, the opposition got it voted down two-toone. Further, a lawsuit was filed on the City Council members for having spent city funds on private property that it didn’t even own yet. Things looked pretty bleak for the mansion.
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Enter Sam Bibler, who took it upon himself to begin promoting the Conrad Mansion as a
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valuable asset to the community. He pledged to raise funds to match the dollars previously spent by the city to go toward the restoration. Local grade school children started collecting pennies to give to the Mansion. The Historical Society got involved. Alicia had basically used the mansion for storage for years, trying to preserve as much of the family history as she could. When one room was filled with boxes of things, she moved on to another. The Campbell’s grandson, Chris Vick, spent about a year going through the home cleaning and cataloging everything of either monetary or historical value. An eventual agreement, signed in 1974, to transfer the property to the city included a decree that the mansion had to be selfsupporting – no further municipal funds could be expended to restore, operate or maintain the property.
Sam Bibler not only supervised the mansion restoration project, he restored and maintained the yard and gardens for 20 years. The Soroptimist# Club did a great deal of the restoration work. Many local contractors donated all or part of their services, and actually, many
still do to this day. The mansion opened the doors for $1 tours during the restoration work so people could see the progress being made. One of the restoration volunteers, Arvid Kristofferson, recalled working alone in the house one day – he was painting in one of the bedrooms when he heard footsteps. He went out to check and saw the original Mrs. Conrad, (who died in 1923) standing there. She nodded her approval, smiled, and was gone.
The Conrad Mansion and Museum opened for official tours in 1976. Tours and fundraisers help the Conrad Mansion stay completely selfsupporting to this day.
Everit still serves on the Conrad Mansion Foundation Board of Directors. His favorite room is the laundry in the attic, because of the innovative equipment that was in place at the time the Conrad’s lived there. Thanks to people like Everit Sliter and Sam Bibler, the city of Kalispell hosts a treasured piece of Montana.