Filed Under Butte

Wah Chong Tai Company Building and Mai Wah Noodle Parlors

Butte National Historic Landmark District

These two buildings are at the heart of what was Butte’s Chinatown. By 1890, nearly 400 Chinese lived and worked in this area. Chinese businesses—physicians, druggists, tailors, laundries, and restaurants—served the population. The Wah Chong Tai Company constructed its building in 1891 to house a mercantile stocked with a general line of Chinese goods, including porcelain, teas, and silk. In 1909, the company added the Mai Wah Noodle Parlor. The “beautiful, luxurious” noodle parlor occupied the second floor of the building.

Images

Wah Chong Tai Company Building and Mai Wah Noodle
Wah Chong Tai Company Building and Mai Wah Noodle Wah Chong Tai Company Building and Mai Wah Noodle (PAc 91-51 B1 RollCBD07 F21). Front to side view of the building, facing northeast on West Mercury Street near the intersection of West Mercury and Colorado Street to the west of the building (left in the photograph). B&W. Source: Montana State Historic Preservation Office from the Photograph Archives at the Montana Historical Society Creator: Photographer unidentified Date: 1985
Wah Chong Tai Company Building and Mai Wah Noodle
Wah Chong Tai Company Building and Mai Wah Noodle Wah Chong Tai Company Building and Mai Wah Noodle (PAc 91-51 B1 RollCBD07 F22). Front view of the building, facing north on West Mercury Street. B&W. Source: Montana State Historic Preservation Office from the Photograph Archives at the Montana Historical Society Creator: Photographer unidentified Date: 1985
Wah Chong Tai Company and Mai Wah Noodle Parlor, Butte, MT
Wah Chong Tai Company and Mai Wah Noodle Parlor, Butte, MT View of facade Source: iPhone 8 image capture, jpeg format Creator: Martha Kohl, photographer Date: May 28, 2021
Mai-Wah Noodles
Mai-Wah Noodles Photo of buildings facades. Source: Montana Historical Society Creator: Tom Ferris, photographer Date: 3 August, 2021
Mai-Wah Noodles
Mai-Wah Noodles Photo of building interior. Source: Montana Historical Society Creator: Tom Ferris, photographer Date: 3 August, 2021
Mai-Wah Noodle Kitchen
Mai-Wah Noodle Kitchen Photo of building interior, kitchen. Source: Montana Historical Society Creator: Tom Ferris, photographer Date: 3 August, 2021

Location

17 West Mercury Street, Butte, Montana | Private

Metadata

The Montana National Register Sign Program, “Wah Chong Tai Company Building and Mai Wah Noodle Parlors,” Historic Montana, accessed March 28, 2024, https://historicmt.org/items/show/1995.