Stay
Hotel Finlen
The chain hotels sit out by the interstate. The Finlen has been checking people in on Broadway since 1924, and the Cavalier Lounge is still downstairs.
Before 1950 · Southwest Montana
Butte, Before 1950
Old School Montana lists 3 places in Butte that are still open: M&M Bar and Cafe (est. 1890), Hotel Finlen (est. 1924), and Matt's Place (est. 1930). Butte is in Silver Bow County, in Southwest Montana.
In Butte, Uptown is still the reference point, even for the parts of the story that moved on.
Memories from Butte
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Back Then in Butte
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Still Old School in Butte
Eat
Matt's Place
Among the first drive-ins in Montana, if not the first, and still in the same building on Placer Street. The counter went quiet for a few years. It's back.
Drink
M&M Bar and Cafe
Butte's all-hours bar and cafe since 1890, through Prohibition and a 2021 fire. It moved next door on Main Street and brought the neon along.
More like this
Back Then · Remember This?
Remember This? Columbia Gardens in Butte
Butte's amusement park never charged admission. It opened in 1899, closed on Labor Day 1973, and burned that November. People are still talking about the swings.
Back Then · Then & Now
Then & Now: Butte's Bars and Counters That Came Back
The M&M burned and reopened next door. Matt's Place went dark and came back on Placer. Pekin closed in 2026 and stayed closed. That's Butte, then and now.
Back Then · Remember This?
Remember This? Pekin Noodle Parlor in Butte
Since 1911, the best seats in Uptown Butte were up a flight of stairs. Pekin Noodle Parlor, often called the country's oldest family-owned Chinese restaurant, served its last noodles in April 2026.
All of ButteAll of Before 1950
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