This style of house was very common after the end of World War I (1919 -- 1920). With the price of wheat and wool falling drastically after the war, many of the original Montana homesteaders went broke and left their 160 acres and simple homes never to return. Those who were able to stay on the prairie moved the vacant buildings by horse and skid to their homestead. The two great advantages to this were that the homes were doubled in size and they gained a sheltered porch, which provided these rustics with a nice place to relax for a few hours a month.