Helena

The community of Helena was established in 1864 shortly after gold was discovered in Last Chance Gulch, today's main street area. It quickly grew as a supply center for area mining camps. Colonel Broadwater, a self-made man, announced the construction of a grand resort in honor of Helena's prominence as the Queen City of the Rockies: The Broadwater Hotel and Natatorium. The story of the Broadwater, inextricably linked to the story of the development of Helena, is captured here in vintage photography, including turn-of-the-19th-century Helena, its growth from a mining camp into a financial center, its fires, earthquakes, and magnificent rebuilding.