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Our Genealogy Helper

Introduction ...

We have a couple of goals for our Gazetteer:

  • That it be a tool which helps us with planning our trips.
  • We're trying to shape our Gazetteer as a tool to help us understand the community in which our ancestors lived, the community that was part of their daily lives.
  • On our trips, we try to visit those places where our ancestors left their footprints.

By learning about Butte (and the surrounding area) during the time that our ancestors lived, we hope to have a better understanding of both their community and its relationship to their lifes. We hope that this tool helps to give us an insight into their world.

As we add data and organize our Gazetteer to help with our family research, we will be adding to this our Genealogical Helper for Butte. While we don't have information that is specific to any given person or family, we intend to expand our understanding about where and how people lived.

Neighboring Counties ...

When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring counties.

For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the west. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the north.

So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring counties instead of the county in which they lived:  their home county contained property and probate records; the county to the west contained birth and death records; the county to the north contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring counties, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.

If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.

Butte is located in Silver Bow County and is the County Seat.

To see how the shape of Montana's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Silver Bow County: Beaverhead, Deer Lodge, Jefferson & Madison.

Below are the counties that are near Butte. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Butte:

  • Silver Bow County     (The home county of Butte)
  • Beaverhead County
  • Deer Lodge County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Butte, with the one closest to Butte listed first.
    • Gregson ‑ Historic
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Warm Springs
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Mine Creek
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Mine Creek. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mine Creek
      • Mine Creek is located in Deer Lodge County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Mine Creek
      • From Butte to Mine Creek
    • Anaconda
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • French Town
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for French Town have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for French Town
      • French Town is located in Deer Lodge County
    • Anaconda - Deer Lodge County
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Anaconda - Deer Lodge County came from an uncertain source and they still need to be verified:<4>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anaconda - Deer Lodge County
      • Anaconda - Deer Lodge County is located in Deer Lodge County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 9,204 people
    • Sunnyside
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Stump Town
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stump Town have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stump Town
      • Stump Town is located in Deer Lodge County
  • Jefferson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Butte, with the one closest to Butte listed first.
    • Elk Park
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Elk Park. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elk Park
      • Elk Park is located in Jefferson County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Elk Park
      • From Butte to Elk Park
    • Pipestone Hot Springs
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Pipestone
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Pipestone. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pipestone
      • Pipestone is located in Jefferson County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Pipestone
      • From Butte to Pipestone
    • Basin
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Piedmont
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Whitehall
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Whitehall have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitehall
      • Whitehall is located in Jefferson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,160 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Whitehall <1>
    • Boulder
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Comet ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Cardwell
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cardwell have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cardwell
      • Cardwell is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cardwell <1>
  • Madison County
  • Powell County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Butte, with the one closest to Butte listed first.
    • Emery ‑ Historic
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Emery. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emery
      • Emery is located in Powell County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Emery
      • From Butte to Emery
    • Deer Lodge
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Deer Lodge have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Lodge
      • Deer Lodge is located in Powell County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,805 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Deer Lodge <1>

For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Butte, see our County-by-County Page for Butte.

Cemeteries Near Butte ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Butte.

This is a new section and is likely to have errors. If you find an error, such as a missing cemetery or we have the wrong name, please let us know. If you know of them, we would also appreciate learning about previous or alternate names.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Butte covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Butte, with the one closest to Butte listed first.

Nearby Communities in 1895 ...

We've built the following list with information that came from an Atlas published by Rand McNally in 1895. The Atlas had details such as the population of the community (which appears to have come from the 1890 Census) and whether there was a post office and/or railroad service available. We also indicate if the community no longer exists and is now historic.<7>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Butte had a population of 10,723 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service.

These communities are listed based on their distance from Butte, with the one closest to Butte listed first.

  • Walkerville
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
  • East Butte
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Butte have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Butte
    • East Butte is located in Silver Bow County
  • Burlington ‑ Historic
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Burlington have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burlington
    • Burlington is located in Silver Bow County
  • Rocker
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rocker have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocker
    • Rocker is located in Silver Bow County
  • Woodville
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Woodville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodville
    • Woodville is located in Jefferson County
  • Silver Bow ‑ Historic
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Silver Bow have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Bow
    • Silver Bow is located in Silver Bow County
  • Highview
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Highview have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highview
    • Highview is located in Silver Bow County
  • Trask
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Trask have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trask
    • Trask is located in Jefferson County
  • Buxton
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Buxton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buxton
    • Buxton is located in Silver Bow County
  • Feely
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Feely have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Feely
    • Feely is located in Silver Bow County
  • Elk Park
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Elk Park. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elk Park
    • Elk Park is located in Jefferson County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Elk Park
    • From Butte to Elk Park
  • Stuart
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stuart have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stuart
    • Stuart is located in Deer Lodge County
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Gregson ‑ Historic
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Woodin
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Woodin have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodin
      • Woodin is located in Silver Bow County
    • Champion ‑ Historic
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Champion have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Champion
      • Champion is located in Deer Lodge County

We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Butte. See our List of 1890's Communities around Butte.

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Butte ...

An ongoing effort between the Library of Congress and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has resulted in the National Digital Newspaper Program (NDNP).

To share their results, the partnership has created the Chronicling America website. The goal of this partnership is to assemble a database about the current and historic newspapers of the United States. This includes a growing collection of scanned images from selected papers. All of it available to the public on their website.

Using information that we've taken from the Chronicling America website, we've identified 124 newspapers that have been published in the area around Butte.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Butte. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Butte and those printed in the larger area surrounding Butte.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 28 miles [45.1 km]<6> of Butte.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we begin with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These websites offer the information directly or else point to where you can find it. Their information is open to everyone.

To help you get started, the following links will take you to the pages that are relevant to Butte:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Butte. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for State of Montana: https://mt.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<2>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<3>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<4>If we found a location and have questions about the accuracy of our information, we will simply say that the marker is 'in the vicinity'. We are not confident about the location and the position of our marker is only a rough guide. If we have too many doubts about the location, we will not include it in our database.
<5>The Find-a-Grave website is an excellent research tool with information about a cemetery's location and interments. They also offer a forum for their members which can provide additional help. More information about Find-a-Grave can be found on their website: findagrave.com.
<6>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Butte) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Butte. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 46.0039, Longitude: -112.5345    
<7>We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about Butte, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025