The Ghost Town of Comet, Montana

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This is considered one of the best ghost towns in Montana, but few have heard of it. It’s a small treasure hidden in the hills near Helena which twice in its history boasted a population of around 300 people, all working the silver mines and flotation mill on the hillside.
This video isn’t exactly giving away some secret. There are hopes to preserve this small piece of history as a sort of museum and they need help and awareness to do so. It’s on private property, but visitors are welcome if you respect the site.
Now, let’s explore the history of Comet, or Comet City, Montana, one of the most unexpectedly interesting ruins I’ve visited.
This is the third of four Montana ghost towns I filmed and documented in 2022, the first being Keystone and the second being Elkhorn. Next will be Granite. I also have another one, Pardee, that is exclusive to my Patreon subscribers (we didn't quite make it to the town due to forest fires, but filmed the adventure nonetheless!)
Visit the Jefferson County Museum www.jeffersoncountymuseum.com/

[@user-gq2vn1xj2r]

I know KZbin is your medium, but these rival most PBS documentaries. I wish you continued luck.

[@nurseshark857]

His videos really are some of the best available! I jump on them as soon as they're published!

[@amandam8609]

Definitely tv quality 100%

[@josedasilva4433]

Well said.

[@mattmccormick5042]

I wish you were Full-time explorer! I am-yet again- SUPER impressed by your documentaries. You are hands down THE BEST documentarian that I have been privileged enough to be exposed to. I sincerely appreciate all of the effort that you go through making your videos. Thanks for another great video, and please keep them coming!

[@SalMinella]

I always share the Wreck of the Atlantic video with people. If you haven’t seen it check it out.

[@apancher]

Well said, Matt.

[@p.k.5455]

I second this statement...hands down best!!!

[@Diaz-qv2xd]

I third that statement!!

[@sookieb_88]

Here here!!! Three cheers for Tom 😊

[@richardbeee]

That huge table in the assayers lab was for a scale. I'm a retired assayer and you had to have a huge well anchored table to weigh those tiny little bb's. Some of which were no bigger than the end of a needle. one milligram = 1 oz. p/t. Any vibration from passing vehicles, machinery, a light breeze, etc. would cause your balance to flop around. More than likely at one time it had a glass top around it, with doors that could be opened upon weighing your prill. Great explore. Wish i could help.

[@cv5369]

Please don’t change your edits once you blow up. Your simple yet informative work speaks for itself.

[@spungboy]

yeah, we don’t need another overly-stimulating mrbeast clone

[@ElizabethBattle]

I love how you research before you narrate and explore. I get so tired of explorers going into places and not having a clue about the building, area, or historical time period. Well done!

[@Eurobunneh]

Your style isn’t annoying, isn’t in your face, straight to the point. Exactly what I’ve been looking for, thank you!

[@sirrliv]

My best guess for the Great Boulder Conspiracy (tm) is that maybe it came tumbling down from the hillside to the left, reached the bottom of the valley and turned toward the bunkhouse, then right before impact it hit something, a small rise or another rock, that made it bounce into the air, allowing it to fly through the wall (hence no damage to the sill), which absorbed most of the momentum and slowed it down enough that it bounced off the side wall and came to rest where it is. If you look at it, it looks to me like that boulder would fit the hole in the wall if it flew through vertically and came to rest on its side. That's my best guess, anyway.

[@Fvpigpen26]

Sorry you're wrong. It did come from a long way, but snow and ice gave it the lift and lubrication to slide in where it now rest.

[@MortusSweet]

I was thinking vertically too!

[@flashwashington2735]

@@Fvpigpen26 You're all wrong. After long and careful study, and remembering some conversations with my highly esteemed colleagues at the the time. I have come to the sobering opinion that it fell from a cliff. Rolled up hill and down hill. Dodging left and right. Bouncing up and clearing obstacles such as that threshold, finally stopping where you now see it. If they manage to lift it one day the secret will be revealed for all to see, making perfect sense. Yes, the remains of Wile E. Coyote. May he rest in peace. All those Saturday afternoons studying the historical documents with my friends and brother. The sacrifices have finally paid off. I now have an agent booking a lecture tour and shopping publishers with my draft. Remember, you first heard it here. God bless.

[@MajesticalHonky]

You're all wrong. It was definitely aliens. 👽

[@swissmiss6696]

Boulders are not perfectly round like a bowling ball and unpredictable. Plus the size of that one had a lot of momentum to travel very far. My expertise: Witnessing rocks roll down a hill

[@justingoalie111]

I absolutely love how Part-time explorer is able to deeply research such niche and small points in history and create absolutely entertaining and informative documentaries on them every time.

[@Kurt-Wehde]

As a Montana resident, I was just there a few weeks ago! Looks a lot different covered in snow but I’m happy to say the hotel is still standing.

[@kaw8473]

Keep in mind that there are people alive today who have great grandparents that may have stayed at that hotel. Thank you for sharing this little treasure from Montana.

[@jeroberts7228]

A FB friend of mine shared your video of Centralia, PA yesterday. I was aware of the situation in Centralia, but there was SO much more about the fires, their origin, the so-called government interventions, and the town's history that I had no idea of. It was fascinating! I was captivated by that documentary, and I wanted to see more, so I subscribed. And I'm so glad I did - I truly enjoyed this documentary today, too!

[@jamessignorelli852]

I grew up there and lost relatives to the fires . The fires are burning because of the town

[@sharonroberts3397]

REALLY ENJOY SEEING OLD TOWNS AND BUILDINGS. IT IS LIKE STEPPING BACK IN TIME GREAT VIDEO!!!!

[@thatkid82]

As a life long Butte resident it's neat to see these well produced and presented Montana history videos. Keep up the great work Tom.👍👍

[@Fvpigpen26]

My great grandmother migrated from the Montana copper mines and garnett mines and moved to Snohomish Valley in the 1920's.

[@Emily_Paris]

I get enjoyment out of how you narrate these videos with good detail. I love the story behind the history of your videos so I really appreciate the time and effort you put into them. Thank you!

[@BlairAir]

You know, if someone had just maintained the roof of the Daley Hotel the FLOORS would still be around in some form, helping the WALLS and DOORS that hang precariously over... well, nothing. Horizontal dimension has moved on leaving vertical world to hang on for dear life! Thanks for documenting the last stages of daily decay of the Daley

[@connorredshaw7994]

When I am able to visit the US I've always wanted to visit old ghost towns just like this one great video Tom great job 👍

[@geese5170]

You must put Coolidge Montana on your list. There is a house that is halfway sunk into a river

[@spungboy]

@@geese5170how did it get there? did it get uprooted by some storm and thrown into the river without being damaged?

[@geese5170]

@@spungboy one commenter made a good observation that it could have been an ice shed for storing cold goods. The way it was in there, it had definitely been washed down the river a bit, though

[@geese5170]

@@spungboy I wish I had the knowledge to tell you :( as far as I know, the history of the town was brief and not well kept. I’ll upload a video on my KZbin so you can see it and help me formulate a theory!

[@anna-lisagirling7424]

As always, your videos are both informative and romantic. You respect the individuals who made these footprints on our world so much. It always leaves me wondering how much of our history remains unknown due to the natural processes of rot and decomposition. ?? Makes me crazy sometimes. My Dad worked a number of silver mines during the Depression, mostly in CO and BC, Canada. When I was 17 our family retraced some of his journeys and exploits, even to places no longer "there". Two faves were Park City, UT before it became a boujie ski resort region and when the two of us bellied into on old culvert near Dolores, CO where he and a couple buddies scratched their names and dates on the inside of a culvert! All the while as we drove, hiked and otherwise almost bushwhacked into these places, he regaled us with his stories. I know each and every person who was included in this period of massive expansion and wealth extraction in this hemisphere had stories. I could listen to them all!

[@savethedandelions]

i imagine heavy snowfall, winter after winter, decade after decade, wears buildings down somewhere like montana too.

[@ericcutler5463]

I was there with a friend approximately 12 years ago. My question that I’ve always had is where is the cemetery? Did they not have one there? Someone does need to reserve this wonderful location. Thank you for such an incredible video!

[@rafaeltorre1643]

They buried them in their back yards back then if no cemetery.

[@melaniepeck582]

We really appreciate and enjoy you clear, concise history.

[@WereRea3807]

That's a nice boulder, I like that boulder.

[@laracraft82]

Its amazing how you get the old footage and photos the research you do never fails to amaze me. Interesting thank you for sharing ❤️😁 as an artist I can see some real interesting aspects here of the ruins especially with that door hanging and the walls but no floor

[@geese5170]

Part-Time Explorer, there’s a sort of hidden ghost town in Montana called Coolidge. It was an old iron mine and refinery with a huge portion of it’s concrete superstructure still intact. The town stretches super far into a deep Forrest and requires a hike of about a mile on a flat dirt road through that same forest to enter. There’s a portion of the town where an entire house is halfway sunk into a flowing river. Truly one of the most astonishing places I’ve been and I’m sure you would have the same reaction. I’m not sure how often you see comments like this, so I’d like to reach out by email with some more information on the town to peak your interest. Keep exploring!

[@tearainey1]

The house that rests within the creek was actually sort of a fridge-house, they used the cold water of the creek (and ice in the winter) to keep food fresh for longer. No one lived in the structure. This was told to me by an old gentleman who had spent a great deal of time researching the stories of the town, he's gotta be in his nineties now. The 'mayors' house is one of the last standing houses in the area, though a few outhouses still litter the forest, most of which have been on their sides for many years now. The concrete superstructure was part of a lumber mill as well, that area pumped out an astonishing amount of finished lumber and then dispersed it all around the state. Unfortunately Coolidge hasn't received any attention, and so much of it has been lost to time. Comet still has a chance, with enough money and whatnot they could restore the standing buildings enough to suit tourism, and I think it would be pretty amazing to get the hotel patched up and get some old timey stuff in there to make it look frozen in time it'd make a very unique tourist attraction.

[@ColinBache]

I absolutely love this channel!! Amaaazing videos that are not only so well filmed and produced but also so atmospheric and really capture the humanity of these profound insights into the darker human experiences. Thank you for all your amazing work 🙏

[@20thCenturyManTrad]

Another wonderful Documentary Tom, I love all of these, keep up the great work!

[@GolddenWaffles]

I subbed to your channel yesterday and you put this video out! It feels like a welcome party, I love your videos!

[@blaynefrey9839]

Superb video Tom!! I enjoy learning all this rich history. Keep it up my friend!!!

[@perseus32366]

Was just thinking about your channel and was glad to see you posted! Excellent work as always, thanks Tom.

[@CityyByTheBay]

Another amazing video Tom! Keep up the great work!

[@G.F0RD]

I'm never disappointed by these videos. So well done and always interesting

[@ct7473]

Your respect for the history of the area and continuing the story of such areas is something I love. I can think in many years, people will watch these videos the same as we are now to learn about things that used to be on the places they now live or are near.

[@NNDTirish]

I really appreciate how respectful you are of the sites you visit.

[@Space_calamity]

These videos; this one in particular,, are absolutely incredible. I find them incredibly emotional and they touch on so many incredible bits of history. Seeing the hotel in particular made we want to drive down there. Its about 6 hours from me and I’ve always wanted to see a ghost town. You make such wonderful videos and I’m definitely going to show this one to my mother. We both love history, but I’m very particular about who I listen to and watch and your voice is really great. I can’t say enough how much I love your channel!

[@jazzrat2000]

I grew up in South Dakota, Montana and Alaska. One of my favorite things to do as a youngster was what you're doing, finding ghost towns and exploring. Our piano came from one of these ghost towns. What you look for is what I would look for. And it saves me the trip :) Your style of narration is getting better and better.

[@milkmanchristian9859]

Love seeing these ghost town videos! Keep up the great videos, they always get me thinking of the past.

[@strodey123]

I have to say that as amazing as the pictures and videos are, the effort and the story of the backgrounds of the buildings, who owned them etc is amazing. Great video.

[@Ramcharger85]

Been really enjoying this playlist. Need more. Your really good at this. 😊

[@tortugalisa4748]

I really enjoyed this video of Comet City, Wikes & Basin💯 Such amazing history of the cities, people, jobs and building identification throughout the city of Comet City. Great visual history shots & video👍

[@RafaelSouza-xq6vw]

I have been watching your videos for quite some time and love your storytelling, pace and views! More recently my ten year old daughter has been binge watching all of them! She absolutely loves to see the old towns and more recently the history of sunken ships. One imagines that such stories and "old topics" would never catch up with the younger generations, but here is one example for you. Congratulations on your videos! We both love and watch together whenever we can.

[@Mr107sam]

A beautiful production, as always!

[@conemadam]

Another spectacular video. Your documentaries are some of the best I have ever seen. Every new one is such a treat, both visually and historically.

[@haiiiiii11]

I love your channel particularly the ghost town videos but all of them are great. I check every day for new videos.

[@caffeinatedcat7861]

Thanks! Love the quality and care you put into making these vids capturing these places before they disappear.

[@PartTimeExplorer]

Thank you very much!

[@Orpilorp]

That is Amazing how the wall in the hotel had no more floor, but it still hung there! This brings back many memories of my childhood. Back in the 60s my grandparents lived in Central City Colorado. I remember hiking around in the mountains visiting old mine sites. Telluride was a ghost town when I wandered around in it. My great, great grandparents owned a silver mine with their partner. They struck a vein, earning them a large amount of silver. Their partner was robbed of their joint fortune, and killed. That is a strange boulder from nowhere in the boarding house. Thank you for your excellent documentation of these old treasures. The fallen boards reminded me of giant toothpicks.

[@ikedaclaudio]

Your videos are simply amazing. The way you speak is so clear and this makes it easier to understand by anyone. Thank you and greetings from Brazil.

[@joelkoonce8559]

Thanks again Tom . This is the second time I've watched this great documentary. 😊

[@Skoog.]

I'm from Sweden and i find your videos very intresting.!!

[@evank.5135]

Your Centralia video inspired me to visit it myself. I live about 2 hours away from it so I made a day of it with a friend telling him about the history and stuff. The steam vents were the coolest/warmest part of the visit.

[@kjfish2706]

Yessss, no one ever talks about Montana! You guys make the BEST content 😁

[@Me97202]

Best completely untouched ghost town I’ve seen in any video. Loved your dissolve with before and after photos.

[@leighsayers2628]

I have watched lots of your videos now ..I have to say you are now my favourite story and vision teller ..absolutly love your channel ..far superior to many others . Cheers from Australia.

[@stuartapplestein7027]

Always super excited for these uploads

[@edwardaustin740]

Stumbled across your channel a few months ago and I appreciate what you do and how you do it. Instantly subscribed.

[@lilwil-ns3uo]

Just found your channel. I love history. Your presentations are well prepared and narrated with a sense of professionalism. I have subscribed and am looking forward to watching more from you.

[@The_Modeling_Underdog]

Another absolute smasher of a documentary, mate. Well done, Tom and Emma. I wish the place was put under conservation, but my guess is the cost must staggering. Thanks for sharing these outstanding bits of History with us.

[@hannad2279]

I only recently found your channel and I am already a huge fan. Your productions are so professional, intriguing, and educational. You help preserve our quickly fading history. Thank you ao much for providing this amazing content

[@rudyrivera7426]

Thanks for sharing! Great video work! Keep up the good work!

[@blackmonday738]

Montana is just beautiful, i love old mines, caves, forgotten places, such words spoken just from a visual. Thank you for Sharing.

[@juppa]

Great video! I love all of your videos about ghost towns so far. Sad to see that the large cluster of houses in the Northwest were torn down.. would have been interesting to see.

[@byrongilbert3720]

you do amazing work. i really enjoy your videos

[@CabbageTown33]

I’ve been watching your channel now for the last couple months. Came here because of the titanic, but I love history, just about like you do. I love your style of sharing with us, and this is now one of my favorite KZbin channels of all time.

[@rancidschannel3206]

Another fantastic video. Thanks for sharing..Look forward to these

[@kaisakev4468]

I’ve just discovered you and I think you are a breath of fresh air your passion for history really shines through I look forward to watching all your videos ❤

[@colleenhelminiak1429]

To me, there is no sound comparable to the wind sighing its way through an abandoned building. Thank you for this informative and thoroughly researched video. Places such as this need to be taken care of and have a chance for their stories to be told. If I could, I'd give a big donation to get the preservation wagon rolling. Unfortunately, my budget doesn't all for such a project - but should I come across a windfall, I'd love to get this show on the road. Thanks again! 👍👍💖💖💖

[@jeanleonard6566]

Excellent documentary and well narrated!

[@celineleeuwe1206]

Thanks, I can listen to you the whole day 😀

[@carlsowell8099]

What you are doing is awesome. I wished I would have paid more attention to history when in school. Thank you for your videos

[@aaron756]

Great work on this documentary!

[@bluwtrgypsy]

Excellent. So interesting and so well done, thank you.

[@AH-st1my]

I love your stories. Especially the narration.

[@callsignbones775]

Thank you for this. My dad loves old ghost towns and when he comes up this summer, I'm going to make sure I take him here.

[@4exgold]

great docu....yr a fine historian and filmmaker, man.

[@ernienorth8394]

Well done on your videos! Very well documented and well spoken. Easy to follow with great content! I explore old mines in Washington State. I love ghost towns and history. Thanks for your videos!

[@BlackCat-aka-Jewels]

I really love when you do ghost towns. We were not far from Comet and didn't even know it! Want to go back! Thankyou!:)

[@bonniekaye]

*Awesome video!* 🙂👍

[@talestoldinthedark]

Perfect narrative and edit. Simple but perfect. Thank you for sharing this. My Dad and brothers live in Missoula.

[@storminite2041]

Faces of the forgotten sent me. Great channel, I subbed! ❤️ Stormi

[@flashwashington2735]

Thank you for your labors and insights that are fruits of your nurtured associations, woven into the tapestries that are these videos. God bless you and yours.

[@Jjajeremy]

Love the vids, awesome quality with even awesomer story-telling. Keep explorin!

[@TheCowardStrikesBack]

Your videos are really well done and informative. Great job.👋

[@YolandaPullman]

Congratulations a new baby! Very interesting video.

[@DDExplores]

Beautifully done. Thank you for sharing !

[@MPWEST83]

Thank you so much for preserving and documenting this town through video. I was fascinated the entire time. This place is now on my bucket list of places that I need to see.

[@louisetraxler3188]

I love your videos keep up the good work I am learning so much from them. I love documentries

[@DavidVanmeterDutch]

Man I love your work!

[@allison8904]

Yay 😀 I had been checking daily for a new video.

[@stevie.dx1710]

Recent subscriber here, and like many here, I love the high standard of quality both in the informatiion as well as the video production quality.

[@scofab]

Excellent as always, thank you very much.

[@buckwheatsofia]

That was a great video. That place was really big. Thank you

[@mnhoss2100]

Great video as always sir.

[@erichellner956]

Thank you for the in depth tour!

[@jasongreen6842]

New subscriber Great productions This is my go to podcast for a relaxing evening Thanks 😊

[@sauletto1]

Very intriguing video , as are all of your videos !

[@loganhalderman7186]

Thank you for documenting these places before they are completely gone!

[@Megabob777]

Another spectacular documentary, outstanding work good sir!!!

[@Corgis175]

Thanks for a most interesting historical narrative.

[@briannave7326]

My first time watching your video, now I’m subscribed.

[@darlenelang3681]

I have always been Impressed with your Videos. Just wanted you to know.

[@joshweinstein5345]

Love your videos! The cinematography, music, thoughtful and knowledgeable narration, they all add up to make this one of the best historical channels on KZbin. Thank you for this. A solution to the boulder mystery? What if it happened during winter, in a high snow? A small avalanche could've sent the rock tumbling down and at a higher lever than you can see when there's no snow on the ground. Snow and ice melt away next spring, leaving the boulder a mystery rock!

[@marygoodsell3602]

Fantastic video!

[@JimCockerham]

Thanks for sharing! Very interesting video.