Butte-Silver Bow Public Archives

The Archives is housed in the former 1900 Butte Fire Department station located in the Butte Anaconda National Historic Landmark District. In 2007 a $7.5 million dollar bond issue was passed to renovate the existing Fire Station and add a humidity and temperature controlled vault addition. The newly renovated Archives opened in August of 2010, and features a larger reading room, two humidity and temperature controlled vaults to house thousands of feet of historical documents, and an auditorium to host conferences, meetings, and speakers.

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Mining Childhood

The Butte-Silver Bow Public Archives will continue its Brown Bag Lunch Series on December 12, with Janet Finn discussing her new book, Mining Childhood: Growing Up in Butte from 1900-1960. Mining Childhood offers a child's eye view of Butte's history and diverse first-hand accounts of children's work, schooling, play, and family and community life in the Mining City. Finn examines experiences of children and ideas about childhood from Butte's turn-of-century industrialization through the Progressive Era, World War I and its aftermath, the Great Depression, World War II, and the gradual decline of the copper industry in the post-war years. Drawing from a broad range of archival materials and oral histories, Mining Childhood offers a fresh perspective on Butte history from the vantage point of children and childhood. The book, scheduled for release in December by the Montana Historical Society Press, also features numerous photos of childhood in Butte. The Brown Bag Lunch Series will be held during the noon hour every second and fourth Wednesday of each month.  The Series will feature speakers from throughout the community and elsewhere on a variety of history-related topics.  Guests are encouraged to bring a sack lunch. Coffee and water will be provided. For more information, contact the Archives at 782-3280.

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Butte in 1884

The Butte-Silver Bow Archives will continue its Brown Bag Lunch series on Wednesday, October 10, with Dick Gibson discussing Butte in the year 1884. Dick Gibson, geologist, tour guide, and author of "Lost Butte, Montana" will give a presentation on early Butte, focusing on an exploration of the 1884 Bird's Eye Map of Butte and related resources. Modern Butte's subsurface complications can be traced to some 1884 features such as the stream that once flowed through the heart of the Uptown Business District. Dick will also share the story of the Destroying Angel, memorialized in today's Headframe Spirits Whiskey. The Brown Bag Lunch Series will be held during the noon hour every second and fourth Wednesday of each month.  The Series will feature speakers from throughout the community and elsewhere on a variety of history-related topics.  Guests are encouraged to bring a sack lunch. Coffee and water will be provided. For more information about this Brown Bag Lunch or upcoming events at the Archives, contact the Archives at 782-3280.

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Poetry Reading at Archives

The Butte-Silver Bow Public Archives is hosting a poetry reading and book signing for Chester Carter, a local poet who has won numerous national awards for his work.  Paul Babb will also honor Carter with a proclamation out of respect and admiration for his work.  The event will take place at the Archives, 17 West Quartz, at 2:00 p.m. on Friday, September 28. Carter won a Silver Poet Award and two Golden Poet Awards from World of Poetry Association Awards.  He has received awards from the Famous Poetry Society, a national organization of poets, and has received numerous honorable mentions, trophies and medallions.  Carter will read from his book, "Lonely Seasons," a volume of poems that is dedicated to the family and friends of people who have lost their lives as a result of cancer, suicide, SIDS, acts of violence, or unforeseen reasons.  The book sells for $8.95 and will be available for purchase at the Archives.  Carter was born in Missouri and lived in Michigan before moving to Butte.  He has lived here for 25 years and works at St. James Healthcare.  Carter still writes poetry, creating most of it for individuals who are undergoing difficulties or have lost a loved one. For more information, contact the Archives at 782-3280 or [email protected].

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Built in 1923 by the Masonic bodies alongside a six-story temple, the Temple Theatre was use for ceremonial services. During the Great Depression, the building was leased as a theatre for live performances. The building was renovated by skilled artisans at a cost of $100,000, and it's doors we're opened once again on December 7, 1929 as the new Fox Theatre. The front of the theatre was renovated, the box office now being in the middle with large entrances on either side. In the lobby, theatre goers were met with beautiful decorations of Spanish type. In the foyer of the Fox the floors were covered in rich carpeting, which continues throughout the entire theatre. The theatre had 1,534 seats, each allowing an unobstructed view of the wide stage that would become the setting for some of the largest entertainment acts in the country. The theatre was also equipped with new full grown amplifiers, switchboard, modern projectors, and had an orchestra of 14 pieces conducted by Leo Dessauer, which was a feature in itself. This building still stands today, now known as the Mother Lode Theater. The Mother Lode is host to national touring companies, the local symphony orchestra, international performances, and local theater. It also houses a children's theater called the Orphan Girl.

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Newsboys for the Butte Daily Post.