Anaconda in Deer Lodge County, Montana — The American West (Mountains)

Anaconda

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, July 11, 2021

1. Anaconda Marker

Inscription.
Copper king Marcus Daly selected a site for a smelter and town along Warm Springs Creek in 1883. Daly began construction of an immense smelter complex on the hill shortly before his death in 1900. Completed in 1902, the Washoe Smelter processed 15,000 tons of ore a day at its peak production during World War II. Smoke from the complex was dispersed through the smoke stack that still dominates the hill. At 585-feet the stack was the tallest in the world when completed in 1918. The plant made history in the science of copper smelting and was famous throughout the mining and metallurgical world.

The smelter drew hundreds of workers and their families from all over the world to Anaconda. They mingled in its many watering holes, fraternal halls, theaters and couches, creating a vibrant cosmopolitan city. The city's commercial district centered around Daly's showy and elegant Montana Hotel. Anaconda still retains the aggressive spirit of its pioneer days, a spirit that refused to die even when the smelter closed in 1980.

The city is part of the Butte-Anaconda National Historic Landmark (NHL) in recognition for its contribution

Paid Advertisement

Click or scan to see
this page online

to the history of American industry and labor.

Erected by Montana Department of Transportation.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Landmarks • Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical year for this entry is 1883.

Location. 46° 5.523′ N, 112° 48.435′ W. Marker is in Anaconda, Montana, in Deer Lodge County. It can be reached from Pintler Vetrans Memorial Scenic Highway (State Highway 1) near Interstate 90 Frontage Road, on the right when traveling east. The marker is located at the Montana Department of Transportation Highway 1 Rest Area. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Anaconda MT 59711, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in andspecifically outhwest Montana, in Gold West Country, in Mining Country. It is also in the American Mountain West

and in the Lewis & Clark Corridor.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Rocky Mountains,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once Rupert’s Land

and also the Louisiana Purchase.

Other nearby markers. At

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, July 11, 2021

2. Anaconda Marker

least 8 other markers are within 7 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Silver Bow Creek Remediation and Restoration (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); The Anaconda-Pintler and Flint Creek Mountains (about 300 feet away); Smelting the Ore (approx. 6.3 miles away); Contributions of the Washoe Smelter (approx. 6.3 miles away); Organized Labor (approx. 6.3 miles away); Goosetown Historic District (approx. 6.3 miles away); Washoe Stack Facts (approx. 6.3 miles away); Marcus Daly - An Irishman with Vision (approx. 6.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Anaconda.

The Stack and the City: Anaconda image. Click for more information.

via Montana's Historic Landscapes, unknown

3. The Stack and the City: Anaconda

Montana's Historic Landscapes website entry
Click for more information.

Washoe Smelter Smoke Stack image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, July 11, 2021

4. Washoe Smelter Smoke Stack

Washoe Smelter, Anaconda, Montana image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Vintage Postcard posted on eBay

5. Washoe Smelter, Anaconda, Montana

Credits. This page was last revised on February 14, 2026. It was originally submitted on October 12, 2021, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 4,358 times since then and 386 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on October 12, 2021, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. 3. submitted on November 1, 2021, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York. 4, 5. submitted on October 12, 2021, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.