By the 1860s, change was coming to Montana. The trail had been blazed by explorers, frontiersmen, fur traders, and settlers, all willing to risk confrontation with the Native Americans who called the land around the Little Rockies home. When prospectors first ventured here hoping to discover gold, the land was unforgiving, the people hostile. Many came here on a wing and prayer, motivated by the nuggets buried beneath their feet, never to be heard from again. As time passed, miners gained a foothold on the Native American lands, and, in 1884, major discoveries began to emerge. Around 1890, prospectors Pike Landusky and Bob Ormond struck a rich vein and the town of Zortman was born.

Named after Oliver ‘Pete’ Zortman, who, with a partner, constructed a mill near the townsite that initiated the extraction of low-grade ore from rock. Mines were sunk into the mountainsides, with the most prosperous being Ruby Gulch, where, in its prime, as much as $14,000 of gold bullion were produced per day. Gold established the community of Zortman, enticing miners and their families to Montana.

In the early 1920s, approximately 2000 people resided in the Zortman area. To accommodate this influx, nine bars, several general stores, two hotels, a barbershop, small hospital, bakery, meat market, a pool hall, two grade schools, and livery stables were constructed in the boomtown. As one could imagine, it wasn’t all promise and prosperity for the town built on gold. Ruby Gulch flourished until World War I and was shut down until the early 1930s when the Little Ben Mining Company was formed. In 1936, a destructive wildfire raged through the Little Rockies, destroying the majority of the mining operation. Despite all the hardships, the era of prosperity didn’t end until 1998. Over the course of decades, prospectors and miners have come and gone, taking the buzzy boomtown with it.

Today, the mining operation is undergoing a reclamation process. The town of Zortman, home to approximately 60 residents, has transformed from a vibrant prosperous mining town to a quaint and nostalgic village. The story remains though and can be felt as you explore historic log cabins and miners’ shacks tucked between modern buildings. The white clapboard church sitting high above the town on a grassy mountain side is the perfect spot to observe the community of Zortman and imagine the sights, sounds, and stories of a gold rush long past.