Story of Butte

10/23/2026

Standing at an elevation of 6,135 feet, the “Con” is more than a mile high and a mile deep, the deepest on the hill. Originally called the Mountain Consolidated, the name was later shortened by tongue-twisted immigrant miners. The Con was a copper mine and one of the biggest producers in the industry. The headframe of the Con, the second tallest of those remaining on the hill, was erected in 1928.
https://storyofbutte.org/items/show/3394
Western Mining History

Standing at an elevation of 6,135 feet, the “Con” is more than a mile high and a mile deep, the deepest on the hill. Originally called the Mountain Consolidated, the name was later shortened by…

10/21/2026

A great example of people finding Butte and falling in love with it!

10/19/2026

James H. Monteath, assistant manager of the Inter-Mountain Publishing Company and assistant secretary of the Aetna Savings and Trust Company, was the original owner of this lovely two-story home built of frame with brick veneer circa 1891. Originally snug between its two neighbors, the home’s east wing was added circa 1916 when demolition of the residence at 837 West Broadway allowed expansion.
https://storyofbutte.org/items/show/1893

James H. Monteath, assistant manager of the Inter-Mountain Publishing Company and assistant secretary of the Aetna Savings and Trust Company, was the original owner of this lovely two-story home built…

10/13/2026

Who's having a wild ride down the Butte hill after the recent snowfall? Outlying settlements like Centerville sprang up so that miners could live near their work. Perched on the slope, Centerville’s steep streets witnessed many a wild winter bobsled ride down the long hill. A clanging bell cleared the way of horse-drawn traffic.
https://storyofbutte.org/items/show/2019

Outlying settlements like Centerville sprang up so that miners could live near their work. Perched on the slope, Centerville’s steep streets witnessed many a wild winter bobsled ride down the long…

10/09/2026

We're so lucky to have the Butte-Silver Bow Public Archives visiting historical places related to Butte!

09/28/2026

This splendid, highly visible Victorian-era residence was home to English immigrant Lee Mantle. Mantle arrived in Butte in 1877, helped organize city government, and established the Daily Inter Mountain newspaper in 1881. On September 27, 1909, and again on October 19, 1911, U.S. President William H. Taft addressed thousands of bystanders from a stage built in front of the Mantle home.

This splendid, highly visible Victorian-era residence was home to English immigrant Lee Mantle. Mantle arrived in Butte in 1877, helped organize city government, and established the Daily Inter…

09/24/2026

In 1908 the new Central Catholic High School opened in a building once owned and lived in by Marcus Daly. By 1913, an addition to the structure was added to accommodate well over 400 students. To once again increase capacity, the bishop decided to establish a separate school for the boys on the corner of Idaho and Mercury Streets which opened in September of 1924. In 1951, a new Girl's Central High opened on the corner of Park and Idaho Streets.
Read more about the history of Butte Central Schools here:

In the early 1880s the Sisters of Mercy taught in Butte’s Catholic schools. When they departed, the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth stepped in. Although they were trained in hospital work, not…

09/22/2026

In 1890 electric streetcar service began. Based at the carbarn and repair shop just east of Front Street, the system grew to thirty-five miles of track that reached Walkerville in the north, Columbia Gardens in the east, and the Country Club to the south. With the approval of the Montana Public Service Commission, the last streetcars ran on September 22, 1937.
https://storyofbutte.org/items/show/3531
#1937

The first electric railways appeared in the 1880s, built specifically for passenger service on urban street railways. Butte’s street railway system began operation in 1886, briefly with horses and…

09/18/2026

Simple four-room worker cottages like this one provided basic accommodations for miners. This well-preserved example, built circa 1890, retains its original footprint, wood windows and doors, and lapped wood siding. It originally included two bedrooms, a living room, a kitchen, and an outhouse near the alley. Life for miners was often rough. John B. Kelly, in residence from 1898 to 1900, was badly beaten and left for dead following a night of drinking in September 1898.
Read more about the family that lived here for many decades:
https://storyofbutte.org/items/show/3331
Historic Butte Homes - Jason Silvernale

Simple four-room worker cottages like this one provided basic accommodations for miners. This well-preserved example, built circa 1890, retains its original footprint, wood windows and doors, and…

09/16/2026

Excavation of the foundations began in September 1897, and construction was to continue that fall under the superintendence of Frank Jones, chief carpenter for the Anaconda company in Anaconda. Construction halted in November, however, for unknown reasons. Speculation included that the owners were still trying to buy the building to the south along Main Street, so the new building could be larger, and that the project was having trouble getting the order for structural steel filled in Chicago.
https://storyofbutte.org/items/show/3561

The Hennessy Building gets its name from Daniel J. Hennessy, a close associate of Marcus Daly. Hennessy was born in New Brunswick, Canada, in 1854 and, while still a teenager, went to work in a local…