Rich veins of silver were mined in the Historic Neihart Mining District for a fifty-year period beginning in July 1881. Remnants of the first claim, the Queen of the Hills mine, are located a few hundred yards north. During the peak of silver mining there in the late 1800s and early 1900s, the Silver Dyke Mine was one of the world’s largest producers of silver ore. J. L. Neihart helped discover the district and soon founded the town bearing his name. In 1891, the Belt Mountain branch of the Great Northern Railroad connected Neihart to the Anaconda Company smelter at Great Falls, and the line remained in operation until 1945. Neihart had a fire department, electric company, water company, school, several churches, a mining union, three hotels, fraternal lodges, the Belt Mountain Hospital, and two newspapers. At one time, Neihart had fourteen saloons in one block, all on the same side of the street, while respectable stores stood on the opposite side and ladies never crossed over.