Silver, Sapphires, and Saving the Burg: How Philipsburg Became Western Montana’s Landlord Opportunity
Granite County was born from silver. The Granite Mountain Mine, discovered in 1875 and fully developed through the 1880s, became one of the richest silver producers in the world, generating millions of dollars in output and transforming Philipsburg from a modest smelter camp into a bustling mining center. At its peak, the mine employed hundreds of workers and the town supported hotels, saloons, mercantiles, and the infrastructure of a western boomtown. Montana’s first silver mill was built here. The county took its name from the mine and was formally established in 1893.
Then the silver market collapsed. The manganese boom of World War I provided a temporary reprieve — the district produced up to 40% of U.S. manganese output by the late 1910s — but that market also collapsed after the war. By the mid-twentieth century, Philipsburg’s population had stabilized below 1,000 and the surrounding county was home to more than 24 ghost towns, the abandoned remnants of former mining and timber communities. The closure of local mines and sawmills in the 1980s seemed to seal the county’s fate. Granite Ghost Town State Park, preserving the ruins of the once-thriving mining settlement above Philipsburg, became a monument to what had been lost.
The Reinvention
What happened next is a story that PBS documented in the award-winning 2017 film “Saving the Burg.” Beginning in the 1990s, a wave of newcomers arrived in Philipsburg and began purchasing and restoring the town’s Victorian-era commercial buildings. The historic Broadway Hotel was reopened in 2003. Sapphire hunting companies set up shop, capitalizing on the Rock Creek sapphire deposits that had been mined commercially since the early 1900s. Art galleries, candy stores, and jewelry shops filled the restored storefronts. The Philipsburg Brewing Company opened in 2012 in the historic Sayrs Building and expanded in 2015 with a million-dollar investment in a bottling plant that enabled statewide distribution.
The result has been one of the most successful small-town reinventions in rural Montana. Granite County’s population has grown nearly 20% since 2010 — a growth rate that is virtually unheard of in Montana’s rural counties, most of which are losing population. The growth reflects a combination of tourism-driven economic vitality, lifestyle migration (people choosing to live in Philipsburg for its scenery, outdoor recreation, and small-town character), and the emergence of remote work that allows people to earn urban salaries while living in a town of 900.
Georgetown Lake, Discovery Ski Area, and Year-Round Recreation
Georgetown Lake, located approximately 10 miles west of Philipsburg at the head of the Flint Creek Valley, is a 2,800-acre reservoir that provides year-round recreation: fishing (rainbow trout, brook trout, kokanee salmon), boating, and camping in summer; ice fishing, snowmobiling, and cross-country skiing in winter. The lake is surrounded by seasonal cabins and recreational homes, which account for a significant portion of the county’s 42% housing vacancy rate — these are not available rentals but second homes and vacation properties occupied seasonally.
Discovery Ski Area, located near Georgetown Lake, provides winter recreation that extends the tourism season beyond the summer months. The ski area draws day visitors from Butte (50 miles), Anaconda (20 miles), and Missoula (80 miles), and its operations create seasonal employment in lift operations, ski patrol, food service, and instruction. For landlords, the combination of Georgetown Lake and Discovery Ski Area means that Granite County has a tourism economy that operates year-round, unlike many Montana communities where tourism is purely a summer phenomenon.
The Ranch at Rock Creek and the Luxury Tourism Tier
The Ranch at Rock Creek operates as a luxury all-inclusive guest ranch that has attracted national media attention and a clientele that includes high-net-worth visitors from around the world. As Granite County’s largest private employer, the ranch represents a significant and relatively stable employment base. Ranch positions range from seasonal outdoor recreation guides to year-round hospitality management, food service, and property maintenance staff. The wages and employment conditions vary by position, but the ranch’s scale and reputation provide a level of employment stability that is unusual for a rural Montana tourism operation.
The Sapphire Economy
Montana sapphires from the Rock Creek district have become a recognized category in the global colored gemstone market. Potentate Mining operates commercial extraction from the Gem Mountain district, while Gem Mountain offers tourist-oriented sapphire mining experiences that draw visitors to Philipsburg. The sapphire industry creates direct employment in mining, processing, and cutting, and it generates downstream economic activity through the gem shops and jewelry stores that have become a defining feature of Philipsburg’s historic main street. For landlords, sapphire industry employees represent a niche but real tenant category — seasonal miners during the May-to-October extraction season and year-round gem cutters and retail workers in the shops.
What Landlords Need to Understand About This Market
Granite County’s rental market is tight despite the headline vacancy rate. The 42% vacancy figure reflects Georgetown Lake cabins and recreational properties, not rental inventory. The actual supply of year-round rental housing in Philipsburg and Drummond is limited, and the growing population is creating demand pressure that the existing housing stock cannot easily absorb. For landlords, this means that well-maintained rental properties in Philipsburg will find tenants — but the tenant pool is dominated by tourism and hospitality workers whose income may be seasonal, supplemented by a smaller segment of year-round employees at the brewery, medical center, school district, and county government.
The Flint Creek Valley between Drummond and Philipsburg, traversed by Montana Highway 1 (the Pintler Scenic Route), remains agricultural country — cattle ranching, hay production, and grain farming on the valley floor, with the granite boulders that gave the county its name scattered across the fields. Ranching employment provides a stable but modest-income tenant pool that complements the tourism-sector tenants in town. Landlords operating in this two-segment market should screen carefully for income stability and employment duration, recognizing that the seasonal hospitality worker and the year-round ranch foreman represent very different risk profiles despite living in the same small county.
Granite County landlord-tenant matters are governed by the Montana Residential Landlord and Tenant Act of 1977, MCA Title 70, Chapter 24, and the Montana Tenants’ Security Deposits Act, MCA Title 70, Chapter 25. Nonpayment notice: 3-day pay or vacate. Minor lease violation: 14-day cure or quit. Major lease violation: 3-day cure or quit. No-cause termination (month-to-month): 30-day written notice. Security deposit: no cap; 10-day return if no deductions, 30-day itemized return if deductions; must be held in separate bank account; bank name and address provided to tenant; 24-hour written cleaning notice required before deducting cleaning charges (MCA § 70-25-201(3)). Landlord entry: 24 hours’ advance written notice (MCA § 70-24-312). No rent control. No local ordinances beyond state law. FED action filed at Granite County Justice Court. Federal lead paint disclosure required for pre-1978 properties. Consult a licensed Montana attorney before taking legal action. Last updated: May 2026.
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