The town of Centerville, situated between Butte and Walkerville was where the first people working a placer mine in Buffalo Gulch was recorded in 1866 by David Upton. When quartz mining started in the area now known as Silver Bow County the first recorded claims were the Gem, Original, Mountain Chief, Steward, Parrott and Colusa in Butte. The Allie Brown, Magna Carta, Alice, Valdemere and Moulton in Walkerville. The LaPlata, Banker, Clear Grit and Green Mountain claims in Centerville. As mining expanded in the next decade thousands of claims were recorded for the Butte Mining District. There were over 70 mining claims alone in Centerville. Centerville grew at a rapid rate as did Butte, Walkerville and Meaderville, peaking with the rest of them in the 1920's. It had three schools: The Adams (East Centerville school), the Blaine (West Centerville school) and St. Lawrence, situated between the two towns of Walkerville and Centerville took care of the Catholic children's education. It had three churches: Trinity Methodist, St. Andrew's Episcopalian and St. Lawrence O'Toole Catholic. It had several hotels; The Centerville, the American and the Union being the largest. It was the center of the Irish community with the Hibernia Hall built in 1889 and also the center of the Cornish, English and Scot community in St. George's Peace and Harmony Hall right below the Trinity Methodist Church. The town of Centerville had several merchandise stores. The two biggest and best known were the T.J. Bennetts & Co. in the St. George's Hall and the Hennessey Department Store branch one building up from the Mullin House on the east side of Main. Dozens of grocery stores through the years made Centerville their home. The Butte Cash grocery was situated in the Hibernia Hall and the Wilson Bros. grocery was located in the building before the Hennessy Store. The last grocery stores were Pearl Shea's on Center St. and after that Ene's on the corner of Main and Center. (to be continued)