Page Updated: August 18, 2023
Virginia City
Virginia City MT
A national historic landmark, Virginia City, MT is the site of the richest placer gold strike in the Rocky Mountains. The estimated 100 million dollars pulled out of the ground turned Virginia City into a thriving social center. Today, it’s marketed as one of Montana’s busiest ghost towns — during a typical year.
Peak season for ghost town touring in Montana is Memorial Day through Labor Day. Since we hit Virginia City mid-September, our experience was different than what you’d typically find since much of the town had closed for the season.
There were no train rides, no live theater shows, and no panning for gold. In fact, there were very few people around — it was glorious. We had zero trouble peaking in any of the buildings lining Wallace Street. So for us, we really had “the ghost town” vibe.
Some structures have mannequins posed in positions appearing to perform whatever duties went on the establishment which was a neat touch.
Historic plaques placed throughout the town chronicle the history of various buildings bringing life to dank musty walls.
If the weather is good, the Virginia City Café is a good stop for an al fresco lunch. We dropped in and ordered burgers and fries.
We had fun exploring the rustic rawness of Virginia City, and I’m not certain we would’ve enjoyed it as much had we visited in peak season with larger crowds. But as it was, it’s cool place to spend a late summer day and learn about some Montana history without all the hoopla.
scenes from Virginia City
-b&b
Grand Teton
