Main Street

Overview of Boulder

Boulder Hot Springs

Photo courtesy: Boulder Hot Springs

Boulder Courthouse

Boulder is a county seat and was named for the massive stones strewn about the valley. The town was established in the early 1860s as a stage station on the Fort Benton-Virginia City route. Later it became the trading center for a mining and agricultural area, once serving the mining districts of Elkhorn, Comet, and Baltimore. The Great Northern Railway came through in 1888. The town was first called Boulder Valley (from Cheney’s Names on the Face of Montana, Mountain Press Publishing Company), but the name was changed in 1897.

Visit nearby Elkhorn State Park for excellent examples of frontier architecture. This ghost town stands as a reminder of Montana's 1880s silver boom. Enjoy hiking and picnicking in this area.

Boulder Hot Springs, located three miles south of Boulder, began in 1883 as a 52-room resort and spa for the wealthy families in Helena and Butte that made their money from the mining industry. Renovated and redesigned, the hot springs is still in business today, offering pools full of geothermal waters for soaking and swimming.

Elevation: 5,158 feet