Mission style buildings a rare jewel on the Hi-Line

The next few articles will be describing an architecture form not commonly found in Montana, but prevalent in California and the Southwest: Spanish style architecture.

There are three forms of Spanish style architecture Mission, Spanish and Moorish.

The Mission style of architecture has several distinguishable characteristics. The most recognizable are the curvaceous parapets or walls that rise above the roof line. These parapets contain decorative elements such as a quatrefoil, or four-leaf clover. Some function as a bell tower if the structure is a church. Roofs are constructed generally of...