Originally known as Louisville,[1] the community began as a mining camp in the late-1800s, the town was inhabited by Chinese-American immigrants after being abandoned by its initial founders.
Louisville was originally named Louiseville, and was established as a mining camp along Cedar Creek in Mineral County, Montana circa 1869.
"[6] Scholar Christopher Merritt notes in his 1995 thesis that "Louiseville quickly faded into memory and derelict buildings predominated by the mid-1870s, yet the Chinese staked a relatively permanent presence in the drainage now known as China Gulch, directly adjacent to the town.
China Gulch is an ephemeral drainage running into Cedar Creek from the northeast, and from the name, it seems that this might have been the center of the Chinese population in the area around Louiseville.
"[7] In 2008, the University of Montana performed archeological digs of the former settlement, unearthing hearths, opium tins, ceramic pottery, calligraphy stones, bottles, and numerous soup bones at the site.