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Helena Montana 59601 - Helena exists because
of gold discoveries in Last Chance Gulch by
prospectors in 1864. The discovery of placer
gold created a boom town. Montana's third
territorial capital and the state capital of
today became the “Queen City of the
Rockies”. The Montana’s first gold strike
came in 1852 in Deer Lodge Valley; however,
the real gold rush in Montana started 1862
with the discovery at Bannack. It was in
1864 that the “Four Georgians” (consisting
of Daniel Miller, Robert Stanley, John Crab,
and John Cowan), found gold in Last Chance
Gulch.
As the gulch began to fill
with people, the miners decided they needed
to come up with a name for the town. It was
originally named it Crabtown after John Crab
one of the founders. Searching for a name,
the miners decided on a Helena. Around 1888
there was supposed to be around fifty
millionaires living in Helena. It has been
reported that Last Chance Gulch produced
around $3.6 billion (in today's dollars) in
gold.
Helena
became the capital of Montana Territory in
1875. Helena is still the seat of Montana's
state government and is the State Capitol.
The downtown of Helena is located in a steep
gulch. This gulch opens up into a wide
valley to the north where most of the town’s
residents live today. On the upper eastside
of the town is Montana's State Capitol with
it’ cooper clad dome.
The
Saint Helena Cathedral, an imposing
structure and a replica of the Votive Church
in Vienna. The majestic twin spires rise 230
feet above ground level. The cathedral has
stained glass windows, white marble altars,
statues and genuine gold leaf in the
sanctuary.
Helena
has the Montana Historical Society, founded
in 1865, containing one of the country's
most important collections of Charles M.
Russell art and is among the favorite places
to visit in the capitol city.
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