Walkerville is a town in

Silver Bow County Silver Bow County is a county in the U.S. state Montana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 35,133. Its county seat is Butte. In 1977, the city and county governments consolidated to form the single entity of Butte-Silver Bow. Additional ...

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...

, United States, that is an

enclave An enclave is a territory (or a small territory apart of a larger one) that is entirely surrounded by the territory of one other state or entity. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is sometimes used improperly to deno ...

of the

consolidated city-county In United States local government, a consolidated city-county is formed when one or more cities and their surrounding county ( parish in Louisiana, borough in Alaska) merge into one unified jurisdiction. As such it has the governmental powers o ...

Butte __NOTOC__ In geomorphology, a butte () is an isolated hill with steep, often vertical sides and a small, relatively flat top; buttes are smaller landforms than mesas, plateaus, and tablelands. The word ''butte'' comes from a French word mea ...

. The population was 639 at the 2020 census. Walkerville is a suburb of

, and the only other incorporated community in the county, as well as the only part of the county that is not part of Butte. Part of Walkerville is included in the Butte-Anaconda Historic District. Walkerville represents some of the earliest mines in the district and preserves the early

mining camp Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic via ...

flavor present in the 1890s to 1910s.

History

Walkerville is a suburb of Butte, Montana and is home to some of the earliest mining sites in the area. These sites attracted many investors to Walkerville in the late 1800s. Walkerville is named for four of those investors: brothers Joseph, Samuel, Matthew and David Walker of

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the county seat, seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Sal ...

; they had purchased the lucrative Alice mine upon recommendation by their agent (and later Copper King)

Marcus Daly Marcus Daly (December 5, 1841 – November 12, 1900) was an Irish-born American businessman known as one of the three "Copper Kings" of Butte, Montana, United States. Early life Daly emigrated from County Cavan, Ireland, to the United States as ...

. There were many different types of materials mined depending on the location of a given site. Copper and silver were two of the most commonly mined materials. In 1893, silver prices dropped, but the town's economy continued to thrive due to its copper production. Walkerville's economic success continued until 1918 when the end of World War I caused copper prices to drop as well. In 2015, nearly all of the town's many mines are abandoned. Some of these sites have become very dangerous and plans are being made to restore or remove them.

Geography

Walkerville is located at (46.029963, -112.538348). According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the town has a total area of , all land.

Neighborhoods

* Corktown * Sun View Terrace * Seldom Seen * Dewey's Point * Chicken Flat * Butchertown * the Corra Butchertown was named for Rollo

Butcher A butcher is a person who may Animal slaughter, slaughter animals, dress their flesh, sell their meat, or participate within any combination of these three tasks. They may prepare standard cuts of meat and poultry for sale in retail or wholesal ...

, Walkerville's first permanent resident.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of 2010, there were 675 people, 304 households, and 175 families residing in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

was . There were 344 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 93.2%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

, 0.1%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 3.3% Native American, 0.6%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.3%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...

, 0.3% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 2.2% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 3.9% of the population. There were 304 households, of which 27.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.4% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.9% had a male householder with no wife present, and 42.4% were non-families. 35.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.90. The median age in the town was 44.2 years. 22.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.6% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 20.3% were from 25 to 44; 33.8% were from 45 to 64; and 15% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 48.6% male and 51.4% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 714 people, 297 households, and 195 families residing in the town. The

was 325.1 people per square mile (125.3/km²). There were 343 housing units at an average density of 156.2 per square mile (60.2/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 94.26%

, 0.14%

, 4.06% Native American, 0.28%

, 0.70% from

, and 0.56% from two or more races.

of any race were 3.22% of the population. There were 297 households, out of which 31.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.5% were

living together, 11.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.3% were non-families. 30.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 3.00. In the town, the population was spread out, with 25.5% under the age of 18, 8.7% from 18 to 24, 27.3% from 25 to 44, 25.5% from 45 to 64, and 13.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 97.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.3 males. The median income for a household in the town was $28,009, and the median income for a family was $29,861. Males had a median income of $27,404 versus $19,063 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the town was $14,156. About 9.9% of families and 12.1% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 18.8% of those under age 18 and 5.0% of those age 65 or over.

References

External links

Butte History and "Lost Butte": Walkerville, 1881
{{authority control Towns in Silver Bow County, Montana