Butte underground city tour.

This city was a wild place up until 1971. It had been a company town run by Anaconda Mining Co.. It controlled the politics and the police in the area. The police were part of the Sullivan Bros gang. The City Jail, known as the Butte Bastille was built in the basement of the 1890 City Hall and was in use until 1971. There were dungeon-like conditions with metal beds, no blankets, pillows or mattress and was not heated. Although one of the cells was right next to the heating system and would be over 100 degrees year round. In 1971 there was a man who supposedly hung himself in the jail. but he is thought to have been an FBI informer and that brought them in to town. It was said that there was no way the man could have hung himself at the shower stall in the jail. It was a gruesome story. Anyway, when the FBI came in over 90% of the police resigned.

There was a men's clothing store that had a speakeasy and brothel connected to the store. So men can go in for a suit, shoes and ...without leaving the building.
We had lunch yesterday right next to the speakeasy. You could go from the speakeasy to another brothel house (M and M) underground.

An interesting side point, "Evel" Knievel grew up here and was arrested in 1956. He acquired his nickname "Evel" from the judge. There was a kid named William Kenoffel arrested at the same time and the judge said something like, bring in Awful Kenoffel and Evil Knievel and the name stuck.