Butte had over eighty working mines and a teeming population by 1890. The resulting flurry of industrial and commercial activity initiated a building boom, prompting Mayor Henry Mueller to oversee the construction of this handsome three-story . . . — — Map (db m183684) HM
Self-made multimillionaire William Clark spent an estimated $260,000 on the construction of this splendid thirty-two-room residence between 1884 and 1888. Though an astounding sum, that figure represented only a half-day’s earnings out of Clark’s . . . — — Map (db m184663) HM
The Classical Revival style is grandly expressed in this exemplary residence of high-fired tan brick, built between 1916 and 1920. A symmetrical façade with central porch, double entry doors, square brick columns, and a central gable over an . . . — — Map (db m185968) HM
Cast-iron pilasters, a metal cornice, interior hardwood paneling and a pressed metal ceiling are reminders of the varied remodelings of this early commercial building, constructed before 1884. In 1895, architect H. M. Patterson remodeled the . . . — — Map (db m184122) HM
Like its immediate neighbors, this is one of Butte’s earliest substantial buildings. Dating before 1884, it documents various periods of use through a distinct sequence of visible alterations. The ground floor commercial space was originally . . . — — Map (db m184127) HM
A row of small one-story dwellings occupied the west half of this block in 1884. By 1900, the James McBride family was in residence. Like most of his immediate neighbors, James was a miner born in Ireland. He and his wife Margaret—a native of Kerry, . . . — — Map (db m184903) HM
When this five-storefront corner business was built between 1918 and 1923 for Montana Leather Company owner MacPherson, it stood on the very fringe of respectability. The “female boarding house” that was then immediately next door on Mercury Street . . . — — Map (db m185546) HM
The stone foundation and masonry fabric of this early 1880s commercial building reflect the change to fireproof building materials after 1879, when a catastrophic fire destroyed most of Main Street. In 1884, the two-story building, like many of its . . . — — Map (db m183858) HM
A private ground-floor residence with rooms for rent upstairs was the original function of this 1880s two-story building. Its history provides a fascinating glimpse of life in early-day Butte. Maps of 1888 and 1890 show that a frame open-air porch . . . — — Map (db m183690) HM
Interesting window placement is a hallmark of prominent Butte architect Charles M. Prentice and his own modified Italianate style residence, built circa 1898, provides an eye-catching example. Prentice alternated panels of full and half windows, . . . — — Map (db m185694) HM
Historic maps reveal that this magnificent Renaissance Revival style building had rather humble beginnings. From 1888 to 1900, a one-story frame dwelling with a simple open-air porch spanning the front occupied this site. By 1916 the residence had . . . — — Map (db m185238) HM
Butte School District #1 constructed this attractive four-story building between 1918 and 1920 to house the high school’s Manual Training Department. The United States Army Recruiting Center was located here during World War II and, later, from 1954 . . . — — Map (db m185470) HM
Among the oldest survivors in the neighborhood, this four-room shotgun house was built between 1888 and 1890. That year, Butte boasted almost 11,000 people and over eighty operating mines. Mining refuse dumps separated the home from the Gagnon . . . — — Map (db m184977) HM
“Next to mining and smelting, litigation is the chief industry of Butte, and highly profitable to the lawyers,” reported a writer in 1901. One of Butte’s many lawyers, Frank T. McBride arrived in Montana in 1879. He and his wife, Rose, and son, . . . — — Map (db m184315) HM
In 1890, a wooden shotgun house stood at 412 West Broadway, while a substantial brick residence stood to the east. When wholesale produce merchant H. E. Morier and his wife, Teresa, decided to build this two-story home in 1907, they discovered that . . . — — Map (db m185480) HM
Butte’s architectural diversity is legendary, and this Mission style home adds to that reputation. The Mission style traces its roots to Hispanic California and in Montana, it most frequently appears in civic, rather than residential, buildings. . . . — — Map (db m184479) HM
Contractor Fergus Kelley spent $4,000 building this handsome two-apartment residence in September 1900. He and wife Katherine, a well-known Butte vocalist and music teacher, lived at number 423 and rented the other half to tenants. In the early . . . — — Map (db m185637) HM
A round turreted entry with an elaborate porch is the focal point of this Queen Anne style home. Built circa 1890, its prefabricated decorative features were designed to add individuality and elegance to the homes of Butte’s working class. Turned . . . — — Map (db m185636) HM
William Mosby, proprietor of the King and Mosby Saloon, acquired this property in 1889. By 1890, a one-story residence with a square corner bay occupied the lot. Mosby and his wife, Eliza, sold the house for $2,000 to Jeremiah and Kate Mullins in . . . — — Map (db m185477) HM
Copper king William A. Clark and other prominent businessmen platted the Warren and Kingsbury Addition in 1878 just above Clark’s Original Mine. In 1888, a small wooden dwelling occupied this lot. This one-story duplex, with a rubble stone . . . — — Map (db m184980) HM
Carpenter Lewis Morris built this Queen Anne style cottage in 1898 for approximately $300 during Butte’s second building boom. Lap siding, turned porch supports, and decorative glass ornament the home’s basic form, while a hundred-year-old . . . — — Map (db m185696) HM
Prominently situated on a corner lot, this Queen Anne style residence is a neighborhood showpiece. Band leader Sam Treloar had the brick-veneered house constructed in 1901, possibly as an investment property. The Cornish bandmaster is best known as . . . — — Map (db m184625) HM
The Queen Anne style is beautifully expressed in this fashionable “gay nineties” residence of Arthur H. Mueller, longtime president of the Centennial Brewing Company. Built in 1895, it was also home to Mueller’s in-laws, police court judge James C. . . . — — Map (db m185769) HM
Architect J. Roy McGlauflin designed this Queen Anne style home in 1898 during Butte’s second building boom. Ornamental brackets beneath wide gable trim draw attention to the gable end, decorated with fish-scale shingles. McGlauflin placed the . . . — — Map (db m184597) HM
Butte boomed as copper production doubled in the 1890s. The city issued 1,684 building permits between 1897 and 1898 as carpenters worked furiously to keep up with the demand for housing. The availability of mass-produced decoration allowed builders . . . — — Map (db m184596) HM
Beautiful brickwork crowns this grand bay-fronted flat, built in 1904. Architectural highlights include a two-story polygonal bay, transomed entries, and arched windows trimmed in rough-faced granite. Originally built as a duplex, Queen Anne style . . . — — Map (db m186049) HM
In 1890, the sound of hammers echoed throughout Butte’s West Side, a result of the community’s phenomenal growth as it converted from a silver town to a copper metropolis. Butte grew over two hundred percent during the 1880s, and this home was one . . . — — Map (db m184524) HM
Tucked snugly between its neighbors, this modified Queen Anne style home began as a one-story cottage designed by architect William White and built in July of 1897. Albert Elliot, an electrician for the Montana Electric Company, was an early . . . — — Map (db m185768) HM
James H. Lynch was a man of many hats. Lumber, livery, mine development, hotel management, and wholesale liquor are but a few of his successful business ventures. A founder of the Silver Bow National Bank, Lynch also owned substantial Butte real . . . — — Map (db m185728) HM
The gables, porches, and elegant detailing of the Victorian-era homes along this picturesque block compose a neighborhood streetscape reminiscent of San Francisco. This distinguished example, built circa 1893, was once the exact twin of its next . . . — — Map (db m185725) HM
Emerson B. Weirick purchased the land to build this home in 1897 for a total of thirty dollars. Construction of the residence began that same year. Preeminent Butte architect W. A. O’Brien designed the home and Fergus Kelley served as contractor. . . . — — Map (db m185724) HM
The Queen Anne style is beautifully interpreted in this Victorian-era showpiece built circa 1891. The T-shaped residence features unusual elements including mock brick quoins at the corners and a large front window with an arched upper light of . . . — — Map (db m184523) HM
“Jennie Tallant, a founding member of the Montana Society Daughters of the American Revolution, and her husband Walter were early residents of this home. Named first regent of the Silver Bow DAR chapter in 1897, Jennie became the third state . . . — — Map (db m145675) HM
Butte architect H. M. Patterson designed this brick home for attorney John Colter in the 1890s. Semicircular windows in the gables, stone lintels, a prominent portico supported by Tuscan columns, and an inviting front porch ornament the residence. . . . — — Map (db m184483) HM
As its population tripled in the 1890s, Butte began its transformation from a mining camp to a small city. The percentage of married men grew by 10 percent, and local builders worked busily to fulfill the increasing demand for single-family homes. . . . — — Map (db m184482) HM
In 1896, W. Mead Hanson departed Utah for Butte with his wife, Nellie, and their children. Leaving his job as mail clerk for a short-gauge railroad, the thirty-two-year-old Mead opened a cigar store in the Lewishon Building in the heart of Uptown. . . . — — Map (db m186048) HM
Copper Is King
Future Copper King Marcus Daly acquired his first property in the area in 1880, a silver mine near the top of Butte Hill called Anaconda. Although the Anaconda was purchased as a silver mine, Daly soon discovered rich veins . . . — — Map (db m185047) HM
The builder of this residence was the second of three Butte men of the same name. The elder A. J. Davis (1819-1890) was said to have been Butte’s first millionaire and founded the predecessor to the First National Bank of Butte in 1877. His nephew . . . — — Map (db m184520) HM
Butte’s ethnic diversity is well represented in this beautiful synagogue, dedicated in 1904. After the Jewish community split into one reform and two orthodox groups, this temple was built for use by the reform congregation. The three-story masonry . . . — — Map (db m185471) HM
Butte as melting pot is well-chronicled in this Queen Anne style mix of high gables and multi-paned windows. Its appearance is typically English, as is the interior décor, yet it was built by a French native and occupied for much of its life by . . . — — Map (db m185774) HM
Long known as the "Richest Hill on Earth" Butte produced more mineral wealth than any other mine district in the world up to the middle of the 20th century. To date over $43 billion of wealth has been unearthed from this hill. This extraordinary . . . — — Map (db m184260) HM
Butte owes its existence to placer gold discovered on Silver Bow Creek in 1964. But the gold soon played out and it was demand for Butte's copper that made it "the richest hill on Earth." The hill produced over two billion dollars worth of gold, . . . — — Map (db m186109) HM
In 1910, Butte had only three automobile-related businesses, one of which also repaired bicycles, typewriters, slot machines, and revolvers. By 1918, auto dealers, repair shops, garages, and tire stores numbered over fifty. “No other town in Montana . . . — — Map (db m185410) HM
Architect Herman Kemna, who began his Butte practice in 1898, designed this attractive corner landmark at the end of his productive career. The two-story building of brick and concrete, constructed in 1922 at a cost of $45,000, features large arched . . . — — Map (db m185408) HM
Both men and women were admitted to this temperance organization, whose Montana Grand Lodge was organized in 1868. Butte Lodge #14 commissioned architect H. M. Patterson to design this appealing three-story building, completed in 1891, which served . . . — — Map (db m183913) HM
During the annual Miners' Union Day parade on June 13, 1914, spontaneous rioting broke out and the Butte Miners' Union Hall was ransacked. The Butte miners quickly voted to secede from Butte Miners' Union No. 1 of the Western Federation of Miners . . . — — Map (db m184879) HM
Placer Mining
1864- 1875
Early pioneers used placer mining, or gold panning, which relied on water to separate waste rock from the gold (placer ore). Gold is heavier and sinks to the bottom. Placer mining tools generally include the . . . — — Map (db m205897) HM
Butte was driven to life by the rich mineral resources which lay underground. Gold and silver mining brought the city's population of forty men and five women in 1866 to 14,000 by 1885. However, it was Butte's copper, critical to the electrification . . . — — Map (db m184878) HM
The end of a long court battle between Amalgamated Copper and renegade mine entrepreneur F. Augustus Heinze in 1906 brought about an unprecedented building boom. The Beaux Arts style, with its grandiose composition and exuberant detail, was the . . . — — Map (db m184313) HM
A visiting journalist wrote in the 1890s that this neighborhood was “like a street leading into hell,” and, in 1910, even the passionate bar-smasher Carry Nation failed to make an impression. Here in the sleepless heart of Butte’s red light . . . — — Map (db m185407) HM
It took millions of miles of copper to build the telegraph, telephone, and electrical lines that transformed the United States from a collection of small, isolated communities to a cohesive, industrialized nation. Looming gallows frames and the . . . — — Map (db m128045) HM
It took millions of miles of copper to build the telegraph, telephone, and electrical lines that transformed the United States from a collection of small, isolated communities to a cohesive, industrialized nation. Looming gallows frames and the . . . — — Map (db m184718) HM
Butte-Anaconda Walkerville
Has been designated a National Historic Landmark
Atop the “Richest Hill on Earth,” Walkerville was the birthplace of Butte-Anaconda Mining. It was the site of the district’s first mines, and the . . . — — Map (db m128051) HM
(Five plaques are mounted on a carousel-like turntable:)
♦︎ This mining hill produced over $51 billion of mineral wealth
♦︎ This mining hill is the most extensive vein mined area in the world . . . — — Map (db m184188) HM
Swiss-born Rocco Campana came to Butte in 1886 when it was still a mining camp with a precarious future. Rocco first opened a saloon then, confident of the town’s potential, invested his savings in property on this corner. By 1890, three brothers . . . — — Map (db m185245) HM
Butte’s reputation as the “Gibraltar of Unionism” in the Rocky Mountains was further strengthened with the construction of this finely appointed Renaissance Revival style labor temple, one of the first built in the United States. The Butte . . . — — Map (db m184314) HM
The eldest son of copper king William Clark built this twenty-six-room mansion for his bride, Katherine Quinn Roberts, in 1898. Massachusetts architect Will Aldrich reputedly modeled the residence after a French chateau the couple visited while . . . — — Map (db m183775) HM
Paired Ionic columns support a classical one-story porch while the parapet atop the curved two-story bay window evokes the image of a medieval castle. Kitty Paxson and her husband, pharmacist Robert Paxson, lived in the elegant brick residence in . . . — — Map (db m184626) HM
A one-story wooden residence built between 1888 and 1890 marked the earliest development of this lot. A brick-veneered Queen Anne style cottage stood in its place by 1916. Smaller than its high style counterparts, the one-story residence still . . . — — Map (db m185023) HM
Irish-born lawyer and businessman John H. Curtis constructed this lavish four-story Queen Anne style commercial building in 1892. A skillful yet unknown designer combined gables, turrets, arched and keyhole-shaped windows, carved stone, and . . . — — Map (db m185116) HM
Elaborate and diverse architecture characterizes the homes along this stretch of Broadway today, but during the 1880s rather modest dwellings lined the street. This was one of Butte’s first settled neighborhoods and historic maps indicate that the . . . — — Map (db m184038) HM
Butte miners called the deadly rocks that fell in mine tunnels “Duggans.” The reference was to undertaker Lawrence Duggan, who lived in this house from 1910 until his death in 1939. One of the first professionally trained embalmers in Butte, Duggan . . . — — Map (db m185020) HM
French Canadian brothers Arthur and Joseph Nadeau built this house of prostitution in 1890. Reflecting the architecture of the trade, each room features a door and window so customers could “shop.” In 1900, when Grace McGinnis was madam, the Dumas . . . — — Map (db m185545) HM
Montana Broadcasting Pioneer
E.B. Craney
Established in this Building
Shiner's Furniture Company
KGIR
Butte's First Radio Station
On the Air January 31, 1929 — — Map (db m185068) HM
Prominent real estate developer Charles Passmore built three homes on this block in 1901, all for family members. Nephew Ellis Passmore, a coal merchant, and his wife Martha lived in this transitional Queen Anne/Colonial Revival style home. . . . — — Map (db m186052) HM
Immigrants to Butte during the mining boom often lived, socialized, and worshipped with fellow nationals. Swedish Lutherans first congregated in 1896, and in 1901 they built a small wooden chapel on the back of this lot. They quickly outgrew the . . . — — Map (db m185632) HM
A corner location affords two views of this captivating home, built in the mid-1880s and first owned by Butte attorney Thomas Napton. By 1897, Eugene Carroll, who later became the long-time vice president and manager of the Butte Water Company, . . . — — Map (db m184658) HM
Architect William A. O’Brien designed this grandly scaled Craftsman style bungalow for prominent attorney Lewis O. Evans circa 1906. The stunning home incorporates Craftsman style characteristics, but its magnificent gabled dormers and prominent . . . — — Map (db m185970) HM
The decade following World War I brought an excess of copper to the world market and Butte suffered a severe economic slowdown. The Finlen Hotel and the Fox Theater were the only two substantial structures built in Butte’s business district during . . . — — Map (db m183683) HM
In 1882, the Baptists established their first church in Butte. By 1890, membership numbered 65 and steadily grew until, at 450 members in 1905, new quarters were imperative. The following year marked the beginning of an unprecedented commercial . . . — — Map (db m184043) HM
Christian Science was a young religion when believers first gathered in a private Butte home in 1893; according to church teachings, Mary Baker Eddy discovered this system of prayer-based healing in 1866. The congregation grew rapidly, and Butte’s . . . — — Map (db m184717) HM
The early 1890s brought an urgent need for more living and street-level commercial space. John F. Kelly commissioned the Butte architectural firm of Freys, Bartlett and McMillan to design this commercial-residential Queen Anne style structure in . . . — — Map (db m183857) HM
While Butte’s personality was taking shape in the form of impressive commercial buildings, the construction of five major churches in little more than two decades added grace and eloquence to the city’s demeanor. The Presbyterians, organized in . . . — — Map (db m184040) HM
Originally a hotel with ground-floor offices, this three-story masonry building typifies the combination lodging/commercial space demanded by Butte’s growing population. Lawyer James W. Forbis financed construction of the building circa 1889. He and . . . — — Map (db m183856) HM
Church Rebuilt
The building across the street its the second St. Mary's Church. The first burned on Aug. 31, 1931. Bishop George Finnegan came from Helena the same day, conferred with pastor Father James Nolan and other church authorities . . . — — Map (db m185016) HM
A decorative iron fence symbolically separates this one-and-one-half-story brick residence from the street—reflecting the Victorian-era ideal of the home as a sanctuary removed from worldly bustle. Constructed between 1900 and 1908, the residence . . . — — Map (db m186056) HM
Ornamental wooden brackets tucked under wide overhanging eaves, spacious dormers, exposed rafter tails, and a full-length front porch reflect the Craftsman style’s influence on this two-story residence. The style was initially touted as “the ideal . . . — — Map (db m185634) HM
A gentle arch, a simple balustrade, and a pair of sloping columns frame the entrance of this quietly elegant residence dating to the mid-1880s. An exceptional example of the hip-roofed cottage with a central gable, the well-preserved Victorian-era . . . — — Map (db m184659) HM
Local legend has it that in 1915, Harry W. Turner jacked up the one-story 1890s house on this lot and constructed a new first floor beneath it. Telltale evidence is found in the twelve-foot first-floor ceilings—a height not typically found in . . . — — Map (db m185878) HM
John and Elizabeth Hawke moved into their newly constructed home circa 1903. The brick-veneered residence features an elegant two-story bay, which, along with the low hipped roofline and the brackets under the wide, projecting eaves, reflects the . . . — — Map (db m185772) HM
In little more than a decade, entrepreneur Daniel Hennessy’s mercantile business became Montana’s first and most elegant department store. Minneapolis architect Frederick Kees designed the magnificent 1898 Renaissance Revival style showcase of . . . — — Map (db m184311) HM
Henry Jacobs, Butte’s first mayor 1879-80, was a native of Baden, Germany. He immigrated to America’s South at the age of nine and to Montana in 1866, where he established the H. Jacobs and Company clothing store. He and his wife, Adele, completed . . . — — Map (db m184668) HM
Occupying a place of prominence in the business district, this eight-story Main Street landmark of steel and brick was one of Butte’s first skyscrapers. Owner S. Emanuel Hirbour constructed this showcase of architectural detailing in 1901 to house a . . . — — Map (db m183860) HM
Bank, was the first owner of this magnificent T-shaped Classical Revival style residence built in 1899. Second owner John D. Ryan purchased the home in 1905. Ryan rose from a lowly oil drummer to president of the Daly Bank and was the only man to . . . — — Map (db m185722) HM
The changing character of East Park Street is well documented in the history of this rooming house, built as an investment in 1900 by Abraham Wehl. By this time, Butte’s first red light district, located on the block in the 1870s and early 1880s, . . . — — Map (db m185070) HM
Lawyers Robert McBride and Patrick Talent originally owned this three-story commercial/residential building designed by architect George De Snell. Built in 1905, it was one of several brick buildings that replaced frame stores, liveries, and . . . — — Map (db m185072) HM
H. M. Patterson designed this residential building for J. L. Morris in 1898, replacing an earlier dwelling. A year later, Morris commissioned J. A. Riddell to add a storefront to the east at a cost of $9,000. Danish immigrant L. M. Brobeck rented . . . — — Map (db m184120) HM
Butte real estate developer William V. Lawlor built this elegant home on speculation circa 1891. Hardware store owner Ras Rochester, who lived on this block, purchased the home from Lawlor in 1895. Neither of these early owners lived in the . . . — — Map (db m185877) HM
This two-story home was built circa 1900 by James Naughten, one of the state’s most skilled master mechanics. Naughten worked for various mining companies, including the North Butte Mining Company, where he installed the first electric hoist. By . . . — — Map (db m183854) HM
Elaborate and elegant on its eye-catching corner, this well-tended gabled and turreted Victorian-era home was built circa 1897 for mining engineer J. Benton Leggat. Bowed glass, a diamond-paned window, and dentils under all the eaves spark its . . . — — Map (db m184628) HM
A myriad of Victorian-era details makes this splendid residence and its next-door neighbor, built by brothers John E. and A. J. Davis, true period showcases. Known as the “Twin Sisters,” these mirror-image homes were constructed in 1891 for the . . . — — Map (db m184518) HM
Armed with a degree in mining engineering, Canadian John Gillie arrived in Butte via stagecoach on April 6, 1880. The mining camp was so crowded that even hotel floor space rented at a premium. Gillie bedded down in in the hayloft of a barn, a rude . . . — — Map (db m185881) HM
The early 1890s brought an urgent need for more living and street-level commercial space. John F. Kelly commissioned the Butte architectural firm of Freys, Bartlett and McMillan to design this commercial-residential Queen Anne style structure in . . . — — Map (db m185067) HM
The Butte chapter of this fraternal organization was founded in 1902 and its present quarters constructed in 1917-18. Architect Wellington Smith designed the three-story Renaissance Revival style building, which features “tapestry” brick from Helena . . . — — Map (db m185303) HM
Patrick A. Largey, Butte’s “fourth copper king,” got his start freighting goods into early-day Virginia City. After he settled in Butte, Largey’s many business interests included founding both the Inter-Mountain newspaper and the State Savings Bank. . . . — — Map (db m183774) HM
Graceful arches and a lovely stone balustrade atop a stone cornice make this attractive Georgian Revival style building a perfect companion to the adjacent Water Company Building. Multi-paned windows trimmed in stone and brick, a dentil frieze below . . . — — Map (db m184312) HM
The distinctive façade of this longtime Butte business conceals a building whose varied history extends back to the early 1880s. Originally a grocery warehouse and stationery/variety store, other businesses that operated here include the Montana . . . — — Map (db m184121) HM
Turn-of-the-twentieth-century social critics viewed apartment living as “the most dangerous enemy American domesticity has had to encounter.” Butte investors ignored this admonition, constructing the fashionable Leonard Apartments in 1906 to help . . . — — Map (db m184665) HM
In 1900, Sixth Ward alderman and assayer Albert G. Sienbenaler lived here, in what was then a one-story residence. The characteristic Queen Anne style home boasted a polygonal bay and open front porch. Some time before 1916, owners added a second . . . — — Map (db m185689) HM
Exceptionally fine craftsmanship and an intriguing combination of styles characterize this early and very elegant brick-veneered home, built in 1880. In 1892, dry goods merchant Michael J. Connell commissioned local architect Charles Prentice, known . . . — — Map (db m184661) HM
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