The semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1882-1886, 1883-06-30
BOOM TOWNS.
The Spirit of Speculation Has
Crossed the Range and
Becoming Epidemic
On the West
Side.

Contemporaneous with the railroad
era is the spirit Of speculation in
townsite property in Montana. The
history Of Glendive, Miles City, Bill
ings, Livingston and other boom
towns on the Northern Pacific is fa-
miliar. Under the magic influence
of well-known methods, the new
towns spring in prominence like
mushrooms, the growth OF a night
and the old ones rub up their rheumy
joints and take on the habiliments of
new life and activity. Bozeman has
had its boom, (of which we hope it
has not seen the end) and our fair
Capital City is now enjoying
hers. Missoula has donated five
hundred lots to the railroad
company in consideration of which
her people expect to be brought with
in the charmed circle of "boom
towns" Citizens of the west side
are now taking hand in the boom
business and at least four new towns
are in swaddling clothes, born of
Butte enterprise. Foremost among
them is Anaconda, which, under the
impetus of a prospective smelter and
railroad connection, is starting into
life with wonderful vigor. A cor
respondent says: "The new town of
Anaconda in the Deer Lodge valley
is booming. About $4,000 worth OF
lots were sold in one day, and each
day brings additional purchasers.
Several buildings are already up and
others are going up as soon as lumber
can be procured. A railroad, stand
ard guage, is surveyed from Butte, to
be finished in sixty days"
Stuart, on the Utah & Northern
r. r., is another Butte enterprise
with great future expectations. The
other two are yet in embryo and will
rely for future greatness upon the
value of mines which are to
be opened in their immediate
vicinity. One is located south of
Basin Creek; 20 miles from this city,
and although manipulated by Butte
men is in the hands of Eastern cap
italists. About a month since party
of Eastern men arrived in Butte and
were taken under wing by some we'll
known local operators. A secret ex-
pedition to the Basin country was
made, and upon their return entire
reticence was maintained as to future
operations, but some exceedingly
high grade ore was shown, with a
manner which indicated entire satis-
faction with what they had seen. 1t
has since leaked out that contract
of purchase was made, townsite To-
Gated and that the eastern men have
now gone to the States tor the purpose
of completing arrangements for the
purchase and shipping machinery for
a large quartz mill and general out
fit of mining supplies. The mill
will be erected, houses for business
and residence purposes constructed
and the town will be pushed to the
front by all the methods known to
the professional boomer. A similar
enterprise has been entered into by
local operators associated with east
ern capitalists, who have located their
townsite on the Little Boulder about
seventy-five miles west of Butte.
Twelve or fifteen mining locations
have been made in the immediate
vicinity, all of which show fattering
prospects and one of them developed
by 90 foot tunnel, shows a five foot
ledge of gray sulphurets assay
ing 200 ounces and upwards
OF silver to the ton. Base ores are
also found and it is the intention OF
the company to erect both quartz
mill and smelter dnring the present
season. The townsite cuts an i'm
portant figure in the plans of this
company also and we may expect to
hear, within the next thirty days,
the announcements of solid super
structure, natural resources and
brilliant prospects which are to turn
the tide of population in the direc-
ton of these new mining camps and
mill sites.
Parenthetically it may be remarked
that in both of the last mentioned
cases the eastern capitalists whose
money will furnish the sinews of war,
came here favorably impressed with
the outlook of Butte, found properties
here which they wanted and would
have purchased had they not deemed
the prices asked far above the actual
value of the mines.