The American Protective Association was a nation-wide anti-Catholic group that achieved political and social prominence in Butte in the mid-1890s. With a large Irish Catholic population in the city, APA activities fueled a full-scale riot in the streets of Butte on July 4th, 1894. As the 2024 Carrie Johnson Fellow, Jeff Guay spent countless hours in the Butte-Silver Bow Public Archives researching the APA riots of 1894. His findings reveal not only the animosities between Irish and Protestant groups in the mining camp, but also the complicated ways that the city’s Black and Chinese populations were involved in this explosive rivalry.

The Brown Bag presentation will begin at noon on Wednesday, November 12^th, 2025, and will last about an hour. The presentation will be held in the auditorium at the Butte-Silver Bow Public Archives located at 17 W. Quartz Street. Guests are encouraged to bring a sack lunch. Coffee and water will be provided. Attendees will have the opportunity to purchase Ryan’s book after the presentation.

Brown Bag Lunches are held on the second and fourth Wednesdays of every month. Upcoming lectures will focus on topics of local interest. For more information, contact the Archives at (406)782-3280.