Filed Under Butte

M & M Cigar Store

Butte National Historic Landmark District

Sam Martin and William F. Mosby were the first of many proprietors of the legendary saloon, eatery, and gambling house that has operated here since 1890. Although Martin and Mosby’s tenure was short, Butte’s love of nicknames endured and their initials remain on the M & M. For more than a century the M & M never rested, serving customers around the clock. The doors were always unlocked; each subsequent owner ceremoniously and publicly disposed of the keys. The M & M catered to miners coming off their shifts while the kitchen served bountiful breakfasts at any hour of the day or night. When Prohibition hit, the M & M followed other Butte bars, officially becoming a cigar store. Cigars sold in the front discreetly cloaked the speakeasy in the back room where the liquor continued to flow. The 1940s Art Deco ground-floor façade, the M & M’s spectacular neon sign, and the vintage 1890s upper level have been refurbished, restoring architectural vitality to a landmark that has provided food, drink, and diversion to generations of Butte residents.

Sadly, a fire destroyed the M & M building in May 2021.

Images

M & M Cigar Store
M & M Cigar Store M & M Cigar Store, facing southwest, front view. Source: MontanaPictures.net Creator: MontanaPictures.net Date: June 2008
M & M Cigar Store
M & M Cigar Store M & M Cigar Store, facing west, front view at night. Source: MontanaPictures.net Creator: MontanaPictures.net Date: December 2005
M & M Cigar Store
M & M Cigar Store View of the interior of a cigar store in Butte, Montana. A group of about 15 men, most wearing hats, stand and sit around a glass counter holding cigars in boxes. Two incandescent electric lights hang from the ceiling. Many cigar boxes are stored in a large cabinet on the left. Source: PAc 946-095, Montana Historical Society Research Center Photograph Archives, Helena, MT. Creator: Unknown photographer Date: Between 1895 and 1910

Location

9 North Main Street, Butte, Montana | Private

Metadata

The Montana National Register Sign Program, “M & M Cigar Store,” Historic Montana, accessed March 28, 2024, https://historicmt.org/items/show/1967.