Robber's Roost

The death this building is known for was not a robbery. Bill Fairweather, who led the party that found gold in Alder Gulch in 1863, died here in 1875 at thirty-nine, broke and drinking; the National Register nomination records that friends paid to bury him in Virginia City, and the Virginia City Preservation Alliance, which owns the inn, says Nancy Daly nursed him in one of its bedrooms. The alliance doubts the name Robber's Roost was in use before the 1920s. Its own interpretive panel beside the building tells the Dalys' story.

What the plaque says

Robber's Roost Pete Daly built a log roadhouse at this site in 1863. Unlike most roadhouses of the time, which provided meals, companionship and a place to stay for weary travelers, Daly's was allegedly a hangout for Montana's most notorious criminal gang - the "Innocents." It was reputedly lead by Henry Plummer, the Sheriff of Bannack and Virginia City. His deputies were supposedly members of the gang. According to legend, the Innocents watched travelers stopping here on the Virginia City and Bannack Road. If they looked like easy targets to the crooks, there were plenty of places to rob them in the wilderness between the two mining camps. Although not a member of the Innocents, Daly was well aware of their activities. Most of the members of the gang, including Plummer, were killed by the Vigilantes in early 1864. This log building is traditionally known as Robber's Roost. It was not, how- ever, constructed until several years after Plummer's gang met its grisly end. Unlike its predecessor, this building functioned more as a traditional stage stop. Pete Daly lived to a ripe old age and was one of the valley s most pro- minent citizens at the time of his death in 1915.

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Virginia City — 12 mi
  A gold camp one couple began buying in 1944, and the state bought from their family in 1997.
• Beaverhead Rock — 15 mi
  The hill Sacagawea recognized in August 1805, the first sure sign that her people were close.

More markers nearby

• Garnets, Vigilantes and Gold Dredges — 6.1 mi
• Adobetown — 9.7 mi
• Gold in Alder Gulch — 9.7 mi
• Nevada City — 10 mi