Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
One curious creature that managed to live in and around the pit for years was a dog
known by miners as “The Auditor.” He greeted workers daily for 17 years but never came
close enough for anyone to touch. He was a white (OK, gray) dog with dreadlocks that
dragged on the ground. The miners built him a shanty and left food and water; they poin-
ted to The Auditor as proof that there were indeed things able to withstand the toxicity of
the Superfund site. The pit's unofficial mascot died in 2003, but not before the community
raised enough money to commission a bronze statue of the mangy mutt, which is on display
at the pit viewing stand.
Our Lady of the Rockies
High atop the crest of the Continental Divide is
Our Lady of the Rockies
(3100 Harrison
Ave., 406/782-1221,
www.ourladyoftherockies.net
, June-Sept., tours $15 adults, $13 seni-
ors, $11 children 13-17, $7 children 5-12, $2 for children under 5), a 90-foot statue of the
Virgin Mary meant to watch over this predominantly Catholic town. Between 1979 and
1985, the statue was built and erected entirely by volunteers, many of them miners who had
lost their jobs when the Berkeley Pit, Butte's last operating mine, closed down. Bob O'Bill,
who worked for the Anaconda Mining Company for years, vowed that if his wife recovered
from illness, he would hoist a statue of the Virgin Mary on the East Ridge overlooking the
city. When the final piece was set in place by a helicopter, Butte came to a screeching halt
to watch in proud silence. Indeed, the statue is a reflection of this city's indomitable spirit.
The roughly 2.5-hour tours leave from the gift shop on Harrison Avenue and include a trip
inside the metal sculpture.
