Butte is a city that is in Silver Bow County, Montana and is the county seat. In 1977, the city and county governments consolidated to form the sole entity of The City and County of Butte-Silver Bow. As of the 2000 census, Butte population was 33,892. In its hey-day between the late 19th century and about 1920, it was one of the largest and most notorious copper boomtowns in the American West, home to hundreds of saloons and a famous red-light district. It now claims the dubious distinction of being home to the Berkeley Pit and being part of the largest Superfund site in the United States.

The local newspaper is the Montana Standard.