Historic Virginia City, Montana
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Attractions //
Virginia City, Montana - Historic Mining Town
Virginia City holds a special place in Montana's history. Though it may be best known as the rough-and-ready mining camp where vigilantes organized to rid the country of road agents and murderers, it is important to our history for many other reasons as well.
Virginia City was Montana's Territorial Capital. It was the site of our first public school. It was the home of our first newspaper. It was the place where the first book in Montana was published.
The town has been unusually well preserved, largely through the efforts of Charles and Sue Bovey. When they first visited Virginia City in the early 1940s, much of the town was falling down. They began organizing others to save what they could, and many people helped out. But it was mostly their own money and their own work that saved the town.
They traveled the country, collecting historical artifacts. They bought buildings and did the work needed to preserve them. They assembled at Virginia City and nearby Nevada City what may be the largest collection of historical materials dealing with the American West outside the Smithsonian Institution.
Because of a series of lucky circumstances--the absence of major fires, the lack of later development, and the early interest of the preservation-minded Bovey family--Virginia City today remains an historic treasure.
The Montana Legislature voted to purchase these properties in 1997. Under the leadership of the Montana Historical Society, Virginia City and Nevada City are beginning a new future.
There is a lot to do in Virginia and Nevada Cities!
- See cabaret entertainment at the Gilbert Brewery
- See an authentic 19th century melodrama at the Opera House
- Ride the Number 12 Steam Locomotive between Virginia and Nevada Cities.
- Witness living history demonstrations at our tent village.
- Take a walking tour of historic Nevada City buildings and artifacts.
- See our historic homes and businesses.
- Capture the flavor of the Old West by dining and staying overnight here.
- Visit displays of featured historic artifacts at the new McFarland Curatorial Center.
- Visit the Nevada City Museum and Music Hall with operating music machines.
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