Rediscovering the abandoned West

A visitor to a Montana ghost town can feel the history. The sound of boots making a thud on the wooden sidewalks, the smell of sagebrush, the warm, dry wind blowing against the face, and the sight of old, wooden, gray buildings provide evidence that here is a place to enjoy and explore.

Towns that emerged because of gold and silver located in the Northwest are now hard to find. The harsh weather does not lend itself to preservation of wooden buildings. Fires and demolition in the name of progress have also contributed to the decline.

But a few have survived, including Virginia City, Nevada City and Bannack, Montana.

It’s hard to speak about Virginia City without including Nevada City in the same breath. If you visit one town, you’ll likely go the other since they’re only a mile apart by highway and are connected in the summer by a small rail passenger train. Limited – but very interesting – accommodations can be found in both towns. Bannack is more remote; the town of Dillon has the nearest guest facilities.

Nevada City

You’ve got to love the place. It has character. It has history. It has local heroes. And, it had bad guys. Nevada City offers non-commercialized, preserved Old West history at its best.

It was a town of several hundred people whose homes and businesses were leveled in the quest for gold. Yet, now there are some 93 – mostly preserved and some restored – buildings on the town site, and each has a tale to tell.

Info: www.legindofamerica.com/mt-nevadacity, (406) 843-5247

Virginia City

The stuff that makes an Old West town exciting in the movies and TV happened in and around Virginia City: land-grabbing outlaws, murders, hangings, corrupt lawmen, prostitution, gunfights, vigilantes and gold fever.

Today it’s a mix of Western history and present-day Western hospitality with family fun and adult activities.

Part of the town has been fixed in time by the preservation of the original gold rush shops. On the other end of the main street, many of the old buildings have been converted into gift shops and restaurants. But there are no neon lights – they are banned.

Info: www.virginiacity.com, (406) 843-5247

Bannack

Bannack is a great ghost town – many of the buildings are standing, there are no gift or candy shops, and visitors can explore some of the structures on their own. Now a state park, this is one of the best-preserved old gold mining towns in the West.

Situated in remote southwestern Montana where rainfall is sparse and people are sparser, a remarkable assortment of buildings have been preserved, including a drug store, assay office, hotel, courthouse, church, jail, Masonic temple, and numerous small homes and shacks. Of course, there is a saloon with the bar still in place. The history of a gold town is laid out for visitors as they walk down the dusty main street.

Info: www.bannack.org