Folks in Montana have a special affection for the city of Butte. It’s the only city in Montana that has a truly ethnic feel: if your family is Irish, Serbian, Croatian, Finnish, Italian, Cornish, or Welsh, and was in Montana 100 years ago, you can be pretty sure that the copper mines of Butte touched their lives. The story is that immigrants landing in New York and hoping to work in the mines often knew just two English words: “Butte” and “America” and that was enough to get them across the country. The city still calls itself Butte, America, and there’s no shortage of pride in that label. Even so, much of uptown Butte is gritty and dilapidated, reminiscent of an east coast city fifty years ago. Whenever a Butte waitress asks “what do youse guys want?” I’m transported to the South Boston or Brooklyn of my youth.
The mines and the unions made Butte, and you can still see that legacy throughout the city. The old gallows headframes are scattered everywhere, but the reminder of the mines is just as strong in the old bars, groceries, boarding houses, and union halls that are still standing. It’s a great city.
Off the Beaten Path: Hikes, Backpacks, and Travels 
Very cool. Love the historic emphasis.
Thanks – not everyone appreciates this stuff!
I found Butte fascinating the one time we visited. The Berkeley Pit was unlike anything I’ve ever seen, and I loved the old buildings and the history that seemed to still walk the streets. Love your great photos.
Thanks. I love having somewhere to put the photos!
I really enjoy posts like this because it’s something you can’t really “google”. Thank you!
That’s a great point. I think I’ll use the “can you just google this?” standard from now on!
I love the old signs on the sides of the buildings. We had a few around here but they are all disappearing. Great story and love the photos.
Thanks. It’s fun to collect the ghost signs, and Butte is chock full of them.
Good post – I enjoyed it!
Thanks!
I just love old buildings. What a great town.
Thank you. It is a great town.
You’ve got several great posts of pics of downtown Americana. Love the old downtowns, brick buildings and “vintage” advertising. Love the one with the snow just beginning to stick looking down the street.
Thanks, although I was pretty crabby that it was snowing that hard on a Sunday in April!