Most People Have Long Forgotten About This Vacant Ghost Town In Rural Montana
There’s no denying that Montana has some amazingly well-preserved (and frequently visited) ghost towns, like Bannack State Park and Garnet. But we’ve also got quite a few abandoned towns from our state’s early mining and railroad days that remain under the radar, with buildings slowly eroding. Coolidge Ghost Town is one of those places.
Allen was elected Montana's lieutenant governor in 1908, and soon after he began buying mining claims in the Elkhorn Mining District. In 1913, he quit politics to focus on his business.
It soon became Montana's largest (and final) silver development.
But the national economy soon took a downturn, causing the silver industry to plummet. A string of bad luck caused Allen to lose his fortune, and by 1932, the town was pretty much abandoned.
The ghost town is located south of Butte. To reach it, you'll drive west on SR-43 from I-15, then south onto NF-73 (Wise River Polaris Road). Finally, a one mile walk through a in the forest is required to reach the town itself.
The winters were extremely cold and snowy, and the town didn't thrive for long before silver prices plummeted.
You'll still find plenty of old cabins, the remains of the schoolhouse, and even parts of the old mill.
Coolidge Ghost Town is a great place to spend an afternoon exploring. But if you’d rather enjoy a livelier ghost town experience, add a visit to Virginia City to your summer plans.
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