The mansion can be easily spotted if traveling down the North Fork Highway towards Yellowstone National Park, due to its towering, dark and intimidating architectural style.

It left large amounts of timber unclaimed, and Smith decided to use this to build what he described as "A tribute to the North Fork Mountains".

[3] Lee broke ground in mid-1971, intending to build a family home for his wife and expected children.

In the early 1980s, Smith's wife Linda Smith-Mills divorced him, citing his continued obsession with building his mansion.

In October 2009, Paul and Sunny Larsen created the Smith Mansion Preservation Project, a charity website that sees to regular clean-ups and maintenance.