|
In 1881, nearby Dillon became the county
seat and the courthouse was abandoned. The building remained
empty until 1890, when it was purchased by Dr. John Meade, who
remodeled it as a plush hotel. However, by this time
Bannack
was called home to only about 400 people, and the hotel was closed
several times over the years, reopening whenever mining activity
revived.
In 1895,
Bannack was revived
for a time when the first electric dredge was invented. In no
time at all Grasshopper Creek supported five of them for the next ten
years. Unfortunately, it was these very same dredging operations
that destroyed several hundred of the many buildings that had been
erected in the 1860s.
By the 1930s the
businesses and social community had left
Bannack and very few
people remained. By the 1940’s there would be so few students that the
school would have to close and
Bannack became a ghost
town.
Bannack survives due to the
good graces of the
Montana
Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Parks who saved the town from the
elements and vandalism by making it a
state park on August 15, 1954.
Today, over sixty structures remain
standing, most of which can be explored. The staff preserve,
rather than restore the buildings of this old town allowing visitors
an opportunity to relive the
American West.
Bannack State Park is
open year round with winter operating hours of 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, and
summer hours of 8:00 am to 9:00 pm. The Visitor Center is open
seven days a week during the summer months from 10am to 6pm.
Bannack Days, with
historic displays, activities and events, is held the third weekend in
July each year. The visitor center is open from mid-May through
September. A group picnic site is available. The park is 5,800 feet in
elevation and is 1154 acres in size. There are 28 sites in the
campground with vault toilets, grills/fire rings, firewood, picnic
tables, trash cans, drinking water and access to Grasshopper Creek for
fishing. Flush toilets are located in the visitors center and escorted
and unescorted tours are available.
©
Kathy Weiser/Legends
of America, updated March, 2010.
|
