Entry No. 57 — the Bozeman file — filed under: oddities

Virginia City (Boot Hill & oddities)

A gold-rush boomtown turned living ghost town, Virginia City was the capital of Montana Territory and the epicenter of its road-agent era, when a secret vigilance committee hanged some two dozen accused outlaws across the winter of 1863-64 (five of them in a single day). The dark history is still on display: Boot Hill Cemetery holds the graves of road agents like Boone Helm and 'Clubfoot' George Lane, and the Thompson-Hickman Museum shows off oddities including a petrified cat and a replica of Clubfoot George's actual mummified clubfoot. In season you can ride a narrated stagecoach up Alder Gulch to the original 1863 gold strike or a narrow-gauge railroad over to Nevada City. The whole strip of original storefronts is frozen around the 1860s.

The move: Hike up to Boot Hill to find the road agents' graves, then go hunt down the petrified cat downtown.

📍 Before you go Most attractions, theater, railroad, and staffed museums run only May through Labor Day; about 1.5 hours from Bozeman.

• 📍 Virginia City
• 💸 Free
• ⚡ Up for anything
• 🌗 Outdoors

Where: Wallace St, Virginia City, MT 59755

Hours: Added 2026-06-24 — confirm current hours before you go.

⚠ Seasonal or scheduled — always check before you go.

Plan a visit & invite your people →

Proof: source 1 · source 2 · source 3 · source 4

last checked: 2026-06-24