Home › Landmarks & Attractions › Ghost Towns
Bannack
Montana's first territorial capital, now abandoned
Bannack, in southwestern Montana, sprang up after a major gold strike on Grasshopper Creek in 1862 and briefly served as the first capital of Montana Territory. At its height it drew thousands of miners and gained a notorious sheriff, Henry Plummer, later hanged as the leader of a road-agent gang. As the gold played out the town faded, and today more than fifty buildings are preserved as a State Park with no admission crowds and no commercial development.