Home to about 10,000 people, the beautiful town of Havre sits in Northern Montana, less than an hour from the Canadian border. Built mainly to serve as a major railroad center, Havre is the largest city on Montana’s Hi-Line and was incorporated in 1893. But its real story lies beneath its quiet streets.
Havre’s railroad history gave it a rambunctious past, and a century ago the town was full of railroaders, bootleggers, cowboys and saloons. And you can still see some of the evidence of its wilder times by touring Havre Beneath the Streets.
When a fire about 100 years ago took out the entire town, residents decided not to give up. Business owners moved underground to carry on their business until the town could be rebuilt. A series of tunnels connected them, and that's how the underground city was born. Today, Havre Beneath the Streets is a major tourist attraction.
The Havre Under the Streets tour takes you back in time 100 years and allows you to explore the Sporting Eagle Salon, a bordello, a restaurant, a Chinese laundry and an opium den.
The railroad employed a lot of Asian workers, and unfortunately they weren’t always welcome in the area. They were apparently safe on railroad property, so the tunnels built from the railroad property to these underground businesses were meant to protect them from harm.
Tours are available from Monday-Saturday 10:30 AM - 2:30 PM during winter and from 9:30 AM - 3:30 PM seven days a week during summer.
Montana’s rich and colorful past is certainly worth learning about, and it’s nice to see part of its history preserved this way. Did you know Havre Under the Streets existed? Have you taken the tour?
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