Montana City is located on top of one of the oldest prehistoric sites in the state of Montana. As early as 9,000 BCE, Native Americans came to Montana City to collect chert, a rock similar to flint, which was used to make spear tips, arrowheads, and knives.Kidston, Martin J. "Prehistoric Find." Helena Independent Record. June 20, 2004. White American explorers discovered gold at the site on July 2, 1862, and later that year U.S. Army Captain Jason L. Fisk brought a mule train from Minnesota which stopped at the site and built the first houses that became Montana City.Hedges, Cornelius. "Centennial Address on Lewis and Clarke County, Delivered July Fourth, 1876." Contributions to the Historical Society of Montana. 1896. The town became one of the most important mining centers in Montana during the height of the gold rush in the 1860s.Miller, Donald C. and Miller, Shari. Ghost Towns of Montana: A Classic Tour Through the Treasure State's Historical Sites. Guilford, Conn.: Globe Pequot, 2008. The Montana Town Company laid out the city in 1864, naming it after the territory's new name.Aarstad, Rich. Montana Place Names: From Alzada to Zortman. Helena, Mont.: Montana Historical Society, 2009. Chinese miners took over from whites when the mines began to play out in 1868, and the town saw a brief revival after the arrival of the railroads and the establishment of a post office in the 1880s. At its height in the 1880s, Montana City had 3,000 residents and competed for the location of the state capital.Federal Writers' Project. Montana: A State Guide Book. Helena, Mont.: Department of Agriculture, Labor, and Industry, State of Montana, 1939.
