Blue Range Building
56 E Mercury Street, Butte, MT
Victorian era brothel built in 1897
Photos
Blue Range Building
Photo taken by Richard Doody in June 2019
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Description
The Blue Range Building was built in 1897 by Anton Holter's Montana Land & Realty Company. Holter, a respected family, church and businessman, represented Helena in the first Montana state legislature. His building catered to a distinctly less respectable business, prostitution. The Blue Range had 15 narrow "cribs" that were rented to sex workers for $2 to $5 a night. The building changed hands numerous times before passing into the ownership of retired U.S. Senator, Butte mayor and newspaper publisher Lee Mantle. Butte's open toleration of prostitution came to an end in 1917 at the insistence of the Federal Government and the Blue Range became a boarding house. The building currently houses a mining engineering firm.
Update Log
- July 24, 2019: New photos from Richard Doody
- July 24, 2019: Added by Richard Doody