Distinctly Montana Magazine

d i s t i n c t ly m o n ta n a • s U m m E R 2 0 1 4 92 In keeping with the code of the West, Shorty spoke little of his past and no one asked. Young came from Buffalo, New York, where he was born in April of 1872. His parents were Doctor Christopher W. Young and Sara Elliott-Young. His father graduated with a degree in medicine from Edinburgh University in 1851 and immediately migrated to the United States. At the age of thirteen Shorty went to Canada. He was employed by a friend of the family who perhaps acted as a guardian. The benefactor was in the insurance business and also owned a racetrack. Here Shorty learned to handle racing horses. For whatever reason, Young left New York in his early twenties and landed in Duluth, Minne- sota. Shorty said he only made enough money in Duluth to go farther west. His next stop was Fargo, North Dakota. Fargo had several combination liquor and entertainment establishments. They featured all-night vaudeville acts and girlie shows such as Shorty's future Honky-Tonk. By the time he reached Havre, he was an expert in all games of chance. Shorty probably would have always remained just a colorful saloon dealer except for one thing: He introduced a new game to Havre called Chuck- a-Luck (or Hazard). The new toy took Havre by storm and Shorty cleaned up. With his newly found wealth, he soon bought the Havre Beer Hall from his old boss Mayor Eugene Shelton. In connection with the bar, Shorty opened an Oyster and Chop House. In 1898 the building, which brought notori- ety to Shorty, rose to prominence in the open, swampy, and empty west end of Havre's First Street. The three-story frame building, the largest in northern Montana, was officially named The Montana European Hotel and Grill. But it was known as the Montana Concert Hall or just plain Honky-Tonk. It employed 28 people not including the girls. The three-story building sat on the southeast corner of the property and faced First Street. The main floor of the Honky-Tonk contained a raised stage on one end with about 30 tables in front of it. An open space between the stage and tables was used for any musical accompaniment. On stage vaudeville acts performed nightly for the audience while girls circulated in gaudy low-cut evening dresses and hawked drinks. Patrons could help the girls deposit their percentage tickets in their stockings. A special red ticket was for tips. A beer sold for 20 cents in the Honky-Tonk, $1.00 on crib row, and $3.00 in the Parlour House. Above and to either side of the stage were heav- ily draped boxes. Patrons at these tables could see down on the stage performances, but no one could easily see them. The third floor contained a dance and gambling hall and the apartment hotel rooms. Nine gambling games included Craps, Black Jack, Five Card Draw and Stud Poker, Roulette, Chuck-a-Luck, and the Chinese game of Fan-tan. Shorty spent much of his time at the Honky- Tonk, at least in the early years. He walked, or rather paced, with his arms folded behind him. If any trouble developed, he walked swiftly to his office. Once the bouncers had quieted the distur- bance, he reappeared. Shorty built his own set of tunnels that ran among only his own buildings. He also had an es- cape tunnel that began under the stage and went several hundred yards to the west, surfacing in a dumping ground. Soon after the Honky-Tonk opened, Shorty built another bar in the Pepin-Broadwater block. He called it the Mint. It was strictly first class: a bar with woodwork of mahogany, marble-topped tables, and inch-thick linoleum. The basement housed a restaurant. It had private booths with fancy opaque glass windows in the doors. The drinks were served in genuine cut glass. Around the bar on a shelf just below the ceiling were mounted animal trophies of all types, including mountain sheep, eagles, and alligators. With his saloon businesses booming, Shorty soon became a very rich man. He bought property in downtown Havre at the east end. Among his holdings was a 6,000-acre ranch on the hill west of town. The ranch had 600 head of livestock and a large coal mine. Shorty Young not only became well known for his business enterprises, but also for his determination to prevent law and order from interfering with them. Whether local, state, or federal government, Shorty fought them all— and usually won. But the price came high for Shorty and the town.

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