Helena, The Town That Gold Built: The First 150 Years
by Ellen Baumler
About The Town That Gold Built
Helena claims a colorful, unique past that begins with the yellow treasure once hidden beneath the gulch. Its gold fueled financial empires and laid the town’s early foundation. No other town in Montana with gold rush roots grew into a cosmopolitan settlement. Only Helena can rightly claim to be “the town that gold built.”
To appreciate the city’s progress, one must follow Helena’s remarkable journey from then to now. Its modern-day pulse is a result of the fierce individuality and determination of its enthusiastic citizens, both past and present. This history is not about the names we all know from our history books. Rather, this is a look at Helena as a community, and the collective efforts to shape it into a modern capital. From its humble roots to its cultural diversity and institutional history, The Town That Gold Built presents a new overview and fresh perspective of Helena’s evolution and emergence.
About the Author
Ellen Baumler has been the interpretive historian at the Montana Historical Society in Helena since 1992. She holds a Ph.D. in history, classics and English from the University of Kansas. She has been a teacher of Montana history and is a sought-after tour guide for her extensive knowledge of Montana’s lesser-known past. Ellen is a longtime member of the Humanities Montana Speakers Bureau, a participating scholar in the National Endowment for the Humanities Landmark Workshops “Mining in the Far West,” and an award winning author of many books and articles on diverse topics.
About the Book
- Oversized pages, 8½” X 11”
- High quality book stock
- Case bound with full color dust jacket
- 58 historical photos/illustrations
- 50 business history profiles
The price is $19.95. You can choose to pickup your book order at the Helena Chamber office (225 Cruse Ave., Suite A, Helena, MT) or we’ll ship it to you ($6.95 shipping/handling fee per book).