East Helena, Montana
East Helena is a city of 1,702 people in Lewis and Clark County, Montana.
Why visit East Helena
Townapedia lists 2 museums and landmarks, 5 parks and trails and 9 places to eat in and around town.
Highlights include Kluge House and W.C. Child Ranch.
July is the warmest month, with average highs of 86°F; January lows average 14°F, and about 37 inches of snow fall in a normal year.
Weather in East Helena
Forecast from the National Weather Service. Full forecast
About East Helena
East Helena is a city in Lewis and Clark County, Montana, United States, approximately 5 miles (8 km) east of downtown Helena. The population was 1,944 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Helena Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Lewis and Clark and Jefferson counties; its population is 83,058 according to the 2020 Census.
From the Wikipedia article East Helena, Montana (this version), under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Museums and landmarks2
Kluge House
Monument and historic site · National Register of Historic Places · 0.5 mi
Historic house in Montana, United States
W.C. Child Ranch
Monument and historic site · National Register of Historic Places · 1.2 mi
Human settlement in Jefferson County, Montana, United States of America
Parks, trails and playgrounds5
Restaurants and cafes9
Churches and places of worship7
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Saints Cyril and Methodius Catholic Church
Church · Roman Catholic · 0.5 mi
120 West Riggs Street, East Helena
History
In 1864 gold was discovered in a gulch off the Prickly Pear Creek. This led to the founding of a mining camp along a small creek in the area which the prospectors called "Last Chance Gulch". In 1876 Drumlummon Mine opened and it produced a rich bounty of gold and silver worth millions of dollars.
In 1888, the Helena & Livingston Smelting & Reduction Company's smelter was built. Workers and their families moved to the area. The settlement officially became the town of East Helena in 1889.
The smelter plant operated from 1888 to 2001. It processed silver-lead ore. From 1927 to 1972, the Anaconda Company had a zinc recovery plant which supplied their Great Falls zinc refinery.
In 1984 East Helena was declared a Superfund Cleanup Site by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. The lead and zinc smelting led to deposits of heavy metals, arsenic, and other hazardous chemicals in both the soil and water.
From the History section of East Helena, Montana on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Shopping2
Gas and EV charging2
Schools, colleges and libraries23
Helena Project For Alternative Learning (P.A.L.)
School · 4.8 mi
1325 Poplar Street, Helena
Map of East Helena
50 places. The map loads OpenStreetMap tiles when you open it.
Climate by month
Monthly table
| Month | High | Low | Rain | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 32°F | 14°F | 0.4 in | 6.6 in |
| Feb | 37°F | 17°F | 0.4 in | 6.6 in |
| Mar | 48°F | 25°F | 0.5 in | 4.6 in |
| Apr | 57°F | 32°F | 1.0 in | 2.9 in |
| May | 66°F | 42°F | 1.9 in | 0.1 in |
| Jun | 75°F | 49°F | 2.2 in | 0.0 in |
| Jul | 86°F | 55°F | 1.1 in | 0.0 in |
| Aug | 85°F | 53°F | 1.0 in | 0.3 in |
| Sep | 73°F | 45°F | 1.0 in | 0.2 in |
| Oct | 58°F | 34°F | 0.8 in | 2.8 in |
| Nov | 43°F | 23°F | 0.6 in | 5.4 in |
| Dec | 33°F | 14°F | 0.5 in | 7.7 in |
U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020 for Helena Rgnl Ap Gsn Hcn 72772 (2 mi away), NOAA NCEI.
People and cost of living
American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020-2024, U.S. Census Bureau. Estimates have margins of error, larger for small towns.
Disaster history
Lewis and Clark County has had 13 federal disaster declarations since 2000, most often for fires.
- 2024-07-12: Horse Gulch Fire (Fire)
- 2020-03-31: Covid-19 Pandemic (Biological)
- 2020-03-13: Covid-19 (Biological)
- 2019-07-28: North Hills Fire (Fire)
- 2018-10-31: Flooding (Flood)
- 2017-09-09: Alice Creek Fire (Fire)
OpenFEMA disaster declarations summaries.
Getting there and nearby towns
Helena Regional Airport (HLN) is the nearest airport with scheduled flights listed in OpenStreetMap, 3 miles away.
- Helena Valley Southeast 3 mi north, about 5 min by car
- Montana City 4 mi south, about 7 min by car
- South Hills 4 mi southwest, about 7 min by car
- Helena 5 mi west, about 8 min by car
- Helena Valley West Central 8 mi northwest, about 14 min by car
- Helena Valley Northeast 8 mi north, about 14 min by car
- Unionville 8 mi west, about 13 min by car
- Helena West Side 9 mi west, about 15 min by car
- Boulder 26 mi south, about 42 min by car
- Deer Lodge 41 mi west, about 1 h by car
Drive times are estimates from straight-line distance, not routes.
Local news
Headlines from INDB, the NEMICO news database.
Reviews, tips and questions
Loading what members have shared...
Sources and licences
- NCES EDGE (Public domain): public schools
- NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020 (Public domain): climate by month
- OpenFEMA (Public domain): disaster declarations
- OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL 1.0): places, airports, map data
- U.S. Census Bureau (Public domain): population, income, housing, education, commute
- Wikidata (CC0 1.0): elevation, founding date, time zone, website, landmarks and historic places
- Wikimedia Commons (see each image): photos
- Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0): overview and history text
Photo credits
- BUGX 1852 at East Helena, Montana on April 5, 2024, Insomniac187, CC BY-SA 4.0
- W.C. Child Ranch (2012) - Jefferson County, Montana, Robstutz, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Kluge House, Al Huntsman, Public domain
- Saints Cyril and Methodius Catholic Church in Helena Montana, Always dreamin, CC0
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