HauntBound archive · catalog record
Reported phenomena, as catalogued
An 1894 Butte bar where staff leave a barstool out to keep the peace
521 W Park St, Butte, MT 59701
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$
Standard bar and pizza menu pricing. No cover for a meal or drinks.
Access
Wheelchair OK
Ground-floor commercial space in a historic Butte building
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1894 · 1894 Campana Building · Butte-Anaconda National Historic Landmark District · Longtime student and local gathering place
The Campana Building at 521 West Park Street went up in 1894, during Butte's fast climb as one of the largest mining cities in the West. Local tradition holds that the Campana family used the ground floor as a mercantile and lived above it, though that detail is not independently confirmed.
The building sits on West Park Street near the approach to Montana Tech, and over the years it shifted from its early commercial use into a bar and, later, a pizza operation. Today it runs as Stella's Vu Villa, a fixture for Montana Tech students and Butte locals; it has operated from the building's first floor since 1967.
Butte's Uptown is full of buildings like this one, where a single masonry storefront carries more than a century of mixed use. The Vu Villa's longevity, its student following, and its reputation for taco pizza have made it a recognizable local landmark well beyond its ghost stories.
Sources
The Vu Villa's haunting centers on the building's upper floor, said to have once been the Campana family's residence, and on the bar below it. The reported phenomena are domestic and a little petty: papers scattered, bottles broken, and barstools found knocked off the bar top in the morning.
The best-known piece of the story is a workaround rather than a sighting. Bartenders in the early 2000s reportedly developed the habit of leaving one barstool down on the floor after closing, on the theory that it kept the resident spirit satisfied and cut down on the overnight mess. Some accounts tie the activity to the original Campana family owners, though the connection is folklore rather than anything documented.
The story circulates through Butte radio features, regional tourism listings, and at least one video that purports to show activity in the bar. As with much of Butte's haunted reputation, the appeal lies in an ordinary working bar carrying a long, slightly unsettling backstory.
Eat or drink at Stella's Vu Villa, in the 1894 Campana Building near Montana Tech. Order online or in person. The haunting is part of the local color rather than a ticketed attraction; ask longtime staff about the barstool tradition.
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