Distinctly Montana Magazine

26 D I S T I N C T LY M O N TA N A M A G A Z I N E • W I N T E R 2 0 2 3 - 2 4 DEER LODGE "NO BLIZZARDS, TORNADOES, OR CYCLONES" Deer Lodge entered the race for capital much earlier than Butte. To the town's credit, the seat of Deer Lodge County did the best it could with what it had. In an oft-run ad, Deer Lodge's daily, New NorthWest, touted the city's nearness to two hot springs as a clear attraction. The ad also described the community's rich agrarian potential and proximity to the mining "camps" of Granite, Philips- burg, and Butte as selling points. Finally, Deer Lodge was lucky enough to be spared "blizzards, tornadoes, [and] cyclones." All the other cyclone-plagued cities in Montana had better watch out. Deer Lodge received 2.1% of the vote, placing second to last. BOULDER "SASSY LITTLE COUNTRY VILLAGE" As early as June 1889, the small town of Boulder in Jefferson County announced aspirations to become the capital. Everyone in Helena was amused, especially after it came out in summer 1892 that Boulder, "[had] never been incorporated in any way [...] all the streets are county roads, and there are no officials of any kind." The Helena Independent dismissed Boulder as "an ambi- tious postoffice [sic]." The Red Lodge Vociferator proclaimed, "[Boulder] was certainly born with a tremendous amount of gall. The sassy little country vil- lage moves that the capital be put at Boulder by acclamation." Boulder garnered 0.6% of the vote in the referendum, coming in dead last. In its own county, it only won 9% of the vote. Over half the citizens of Jefferson County voted for Helena. GREAT FALLS "THE GEM OF THE MISSOURI" In November 1892, just days before the referendum, the Daily Yellowstone Journal in Miles City ran an ad encouraging all north- ern and eastern Montana to vote for Great Falls. Great Falls had a population of over 10,000, abundant water power and coal, and a thriving textile industry. The city boasted six schools, ten churches, a public library and the "finest opera house between Minneapolis and Spokane." Great Falls ultimately received 10.9% of the vote. HELENA "IT HAS GOOD BOURBON" At the constitutional convention in August 1889, Deer Lodge county delegate Robinson denied having a dog in the fight, and then went on to call Helena "a great city. It ha[s] good Bourbon. It ha[s] many good things, in fact Helena [is] Montana. There would have been no Butte, no Northern Pacific Railroad, nothing at all if it had not been for Helena. We owe all we have to Helena." No won- der Helena entered the race with such outsized confidence. Not only was it already the capital of Montana, it was Montana. In the first referendum, Helena ended up with 30.5% of the vote. The 1892 referendum left things too close to call between Anaconda and Helena, and a second vote was arranged to be held in 1894. In the interim played out the famous rivalry be- tween Copper Kings William A. Clark and Marcus Daly. Daly's massive campaign for Anaconda as the next capital was matched in fervor by Clark's support of Boulder, 1885 Great Falls, mid-1880s

• Cover