Drink
Buckhorn Bar
If Augusta had a town hall, it would be the Buckhorn. Three generations of Dellwos have worked it since the family bought it in 1959.
Lewis and Clark County
Lewis and Clark County, Montana. We've got 2 towns from here so far: Augusta and Helena. There are 3 places, 4 Back Then stories and 4 memories on the site.
Towns
Still Old School in Lewis and Clark County
Eat · Montana Original
The Parrot Confectionery
The original soda fountain, a hand-cranked freight elevator, and names carved into the booths in the '40s and '50s. Same Gulch storefront since the 1920s.
Drink
Windbag Saloon & Grill
On the Gulch since 1977, inside a building a lot older than that. Still where downtown Helena goes for a beer and a plate.
Back Then in Lewis and Clark County
Back Then · Still Old School Stories
Still Old School: The Parrot in Helena
The Parrot has made candy by hand on Last Chance Gulch since 1922. In 2025 the candy apprentice who started in 2018 bought the place, and she'd like to keep it exactly like this.
Back Then · Then & Now
Then & Now: Last Chance Gulch and the Walking Mall
Between 1973 and 1977, Helena took the cars off Main Street and put in a fake stream. Most towns that built a walking mall tore it out later. Helena didn't.
Back Then · Remember This?
Remember This? Frontier Town on MacDonald Pass
Just below the summit of MacDonald Pass, John Quigley spent more than 30 years building a log-and-stone town by hand. The bar alone used up a whole Douglas fir.
Back Then · Remember This?
Remember This? Bert and Ernie's in Helena
For 48 years, "meet you at Bert and Ernie's" was all the directions anybody in downtown Helena needed. Last call on Last Chance Gulch came December 1, 2022.
Memories from Lewis and Clark County
You're Old School Montana if... the bar in your little town was also the town hall, the cafe, and the message board
You're Old School Montana if... you still say Main Street, and it's been a walking mall since the '70s
You're Old School Montana if... somebody in your family has initials carved into a booth at the candy shop downtown
You're Old School Montana if... you bought bolts one at a time at a hardware counter where they knew your last name