A spectacular gold discovery in Alder Gulch on May 26, 1863, triggered the rapid growth of Virginia City into a colorful and legendary gold camp town as thousands of fortune-seekers rushed in, and by 1864 the area had 30,000 residents. Rough characters drawn by the gold rush gave the town an unsavory reputation, but pioneers and their families also settled there and helped shape the new frontier. After the creation of the Territory of Montana, Virginia City served as the territorial capital from 1868 to 1875 and as the Madison County seat. As the gold was exhausted, the population declined, leaving false-fronted commercial buildings, simple log cabins, and frame Victorian residences as testimony to the transitory gold rush. Charlie and Sue Bovey of Great Falls were among the first to recognize the town’s historical and architectural significance, and in the early 1940s they began buying and stabilizing fragile buildings. Their personal efforts, joined by those of their son Ford, led to the town’s designation as a National Historic Landmark and to its preservation as one of the most intact gold era towns in the West.