Secondary 269 (Eastside Highway), MP2, north of Hamilton

Hamilton’s Daly Mansion was a summer retreat for Butte’s “Copper Kind” Marcus Daly and his wife, Margaret. Daly came to the United States as a poor Irish immigrant at age 15. Attracted to western mining camps, he quickly learned mining skills. Through ingenuity and hard work, he made a fortune from copper and was influential in Montana’s politics and economy for many years.

Daly began acquiring land to develop a 22,000-acre stock farm in the late 1880s and platted the town of Hamilton in 1890. His prized thoroughbreds, raised and trained in ten Bitterroot Valley, set new records at Eastern tracks. Now open for tours, this 42-room Georgian-revival style mansion contains many exquisite Italian marble fireplaces and an elegant central staircase. Newspapers of that period termed this mansion one of Montana’s largest homes, and also one of the West’s most pretentious and costly dwellings. Surrounding landscaped grounds include many exotic trees and graceful flowerbeds. Other structures include a greenhouse, playhouse, laundry, servant’s quarters and heated swimming pool.

Daly’s mansion is located to your left, just off the Eastside Highway.

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Credits and Sources:

Sign text.

Montana's Historical Highway Markers, Jon Axline, Montana Historical Society Press. 2008.

Sign no longer in place.