Day 6 - Montana Ghost Towns

Today we decided to take in some of the local history... do I dare say history? With today's cancel culture wanting to re-write American history, will they also take a stab at the American old west? I hope not, those early explorers, woodsmen, miners, and pioneers were made of sterner stuff it seems than today's society. We could all learn something from their determination, perseverance, and grit. However, there were even then the outlaws and road agents, but not typically wanton destruction we are seeing in Seattle and Portland currently. Anyway, we enjoyed taking a trip back through Montana's past.

We started our exploration in Alder Gulch which in its heyday boasted a population in the tens of thousands. There were numerous settlements and the whole area was sometimes called Fourteen -mile City.  As you drive you can still see miles and miles of gravel tailings (piles of gravel). Our first stop was Virginia City. Prospectors found gold in  nearby Alder Gulch in 1863 which started the flood of people coming to seek their fortune. It is considered a ghost town, but there are many inhabitants still today. Some live in the original structures and others in modern homes.

We arrived fairly early so there were only a few other tourists.  Much of the main street's buildings

are either in original condition or have been restored to the way they looked in 1863.  Some of the buildings appear to have been slapped together with whatever wood was available. I imagine those were folks who just wanted to get to the gold diggings. However, many of the structures show evidence of quality

carpentry and masonry skills. As we looked at the construction of these buildings often it is the attention to detail that is intriguing. The way the wood or stone is cut and angled to match the next piece.

For example this brick Bank was built in 1864. It was taken over by Henry Elling in 1873. There was a somewhat humorous note that Elling had made a fortune with a merchandising company before buying the bank, but most of his money disappeared... along with his partner. Oh well, he persevered and his knowledge of gold helped him build this bank into Montana's first large banking institution.


The Hangman's Building,  with its false front, was used by the vigilantes to distribute justice by lynching  a number of road agents (outlaws). Some of the famous ones were of Henry Plummer's gang. Evidently, the heavy center beam that was available during the building's construction was perfect for the vigilantes' purposes, and thus the name of the building. However, the building was also used as a post office until it was purchased in 1908 by Sarah Bickford, a freed slave who owned the Virginia City Water Company.  She ran a business in it until she died in 1939. According to the plaque on the building, "Sarah Bickford was perhaps the only black woman in state history to own a utility, a remarkable achievement in turn-of-the-century Montana.

Many of the buildings on the main street are functioning establishments - stores, restaurants, ice cream shops and such. For example this original building now houses local artists' work. Many other buildings though have displays depicting what it would have looked like during the gold hayday.

The famous Boot Hill, established in 1863 as the first community graveyard, sits on top of a rise just north of town. It actually has the best view of the town and the surrounding hills. We took a quick drive up there to see the headstones of a few of Plummer's Gang.

Then we were off to the next ghost town.
Nevada City was also established in 1863 when gold was found in a nearby Alder Gulch. Currently, it is much smaller than Virginia City, however we enjoyed it a bit more. Of course part of that may be due to the delicious cinnamon rolls we purchased at the Star Bakery. This town just didn't seem quite as touristy and had a few unique buildings of note. One that we found really interesting was the 2-story outhouse. It is connected to the hotel by a

2-story outhouse on left
attached to the hotel

walkway. We were wondering just how that would work and who would get stuck using the bottom one?


In the 1940's Charles and Sue Bovey collected historic buildings and moved them to Nevada City which gives it a different feel. There were sod covered buildlings here that had cacti growing on them. 
Another building has tin that has been flattened and nailed over the joints between the siding. There is a functioning motel so you can stay in one of these rustic buildings complete with LED lights. What a mix of new and old.


A mile further we came across an historical marker describing Adobetown.  It was a number of the many mining communities lining Alder Gulch. The name came from the bricks the miners made from grass and mud to build their dwellings.  According to the plaque, "The small settlement lay in one of the richest sections of the gulch...it was reported to have yielded $350,000 in gold.



Our next stop was Robbers Roost. It was a stagecoach stop and traveler layover run by Pete Daly. Originally called Daley's Ranch, this two story building built in 1866 is still in pretty good shape.
However, the stable which would have held replacement stagecoach horses, is a bit rickety. There is mixed information from the signage regarding this building's history. The common name comes from the belief by many that Henry Plummer's road agent gang would hang out and identify travelers that would be easy targets to rob on the road between Virginia City and Bannack. We could imagine a busy hub with travelers coming to seek their fortunes in the American west.

The ghost town of Bannack was about two hours away traveling through rolling sage and pine covered hills. It was established in 1862 after the first big gold strike. This is a true ghost town that doesn't have current residents. The whole town is open for people to walk through. Most of the wood structures were just two or three

room houses. They haven't been restored and you could see the old wall paper and remnants of linoleum. It was interesting to see how the walls and ceilings were constructed. As Pat pointed out their 2x4's were really that measurement. Some even still had a bit of bark on the edges.


There were other buildings like the school, jail, and saloon. Each had distinctive features like the old student desks with ink wells and a description of the requirements to be a teacher. That was pretty funny to read because there were so many restrictions. For example, you must not be married,  keep company with men, dye your hair, or travel outside the town limits without permision of th e chairman of the school board! Yikes, that wouldn't go over well nowadays.

There were two small jail buildings with a few cells each.  Both were less than six feet tall with bars in the windows and metal rings in the floors. It is interesting that the Bannack Sheriff, Henry Plummer, was also the leader of one of the infamous road agent bands. He was hanged at the age of 27 by the vigilantes in 1864. Did he occupy one of his own jail cells? Was he really guilty? There seems to be some question as to whether he actually was involved with the outlaw group. It is rumored that his gang stole millions of dollars in gold and that most of it is still buried somewhere in the hills.

As in the other ghost towns we visited, the construction and woodwork were intriguing. Some buildings were a bit askew. Whether they always were or had become that way over time we don't know.  We could tell how important the tavern was though because the bar itself had very detailed wood carving decorations. We agree with those miners of the past, after a long day mining, a cold beer sure tastes good!

detailed woodcarving
on bar front

There are so many more ghost towns scattered throughout Montana. These were just a few that we wandered through this trip. It is evident that the history of Montana plays a large part in their culture today.