pop (2000e) 902 200; area 380 834 km²/147 046 sq mi. State in NW USA, divided into 56 counties; the Treasure State; most of the state acquired by the Louisiana Purchase, 1803; border with Canada settled by the Oregon Treaty, 1846; became the Territory of Montana, 1864; gold rush after 1858 discoveries; ranchers moved into the area in 1866, taking over Indian land; conflict with the Sioux resulted in the defeat of General Custer at the Battle of the Little Bighorn, 1876; six Indian reservations now in the state; 41st state to join the Union, 1889; new state constitution, 1973; capital, Helena; other chief cities, Billings and Great Falls; bounded N by the Canadian provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, and Saskatchewan; fourth largest US state; crossed by the Missouri and Yellowstone Rivers; Bitterroot Range, part of the Rocky Mts, lies along much of the W border; highest point Granite Peak (3901 m/12 798 ft); the Great Plains (E) are largely occupied by vast wheat fields and livestock farms; W dominated by the Rocky Mts, covered in dense pine forests; part of Yellowstone National Park in the S; Glacier National Park in the W; tourism a major state industry; hunting, fishing, skiing, hiking, boating (glacier lakes); copper, silver, gold, zinc, lead, manganese in the mountainous W; petroleum, natural gas, large coalmines in the E; timber, wood products, refined petroleum, processed foods; cattle, wheat, hay, barley, dairy products.
background: none;">| Flag of Montana | Seal of Montana |
| Nickname(s): Treasure State, Big Sky Country | |
| Motto(s): Oro y plata (Gold and silver) | |
| Official language(s) | English |
| Capital | Helena |
| Largest city | Billings |
| Area | Ranked 4th |
| - Total |
147,165 sq mi (381,156 km²) |
| - Width | 255 miles ({{{Width}}} km) |
| - Length | 630 miles (1,015 km) |
| - % water | 1 |
| - Latitude | 44°26'N to 49°N |
| - Longitude | 104°2'W to 116°2'W |
| Population | Ranked 44th |
| - Total (2000) | 902,195 |
| - Density |
6.19/sq mi 2.39/km² (48th) |
| Elevation | |
| - Highest point |
Granite Peak 12,799 ft (3,901 m) |
| - Mean | 3,396 ft (1,035 m) |
| - Lowest point |
Kootenai River 1,800 ft (549 m) |
| Admission to Union | November 8, 1889 (41st) |
| Governor | Brian Schweitzer (D) |
| U.S. Senators |
Max Baucus (D) Jon Tester (D) (Senator-elect) Conrad Burns (R) (Outgoing Senator) |
| Time zone | Mountain: UTC-7/DST-6 |
| Abbreviations | MT US-MT |
| Web site | www.mt.gov |
Montana (IPA: [mɑnˈtænə]) is a U.S. state in the Pacific Northwest and Great Plains regions of the United States.
Geography
With a land area of 145,552 mi² (376,978 km²), the state of Montana is the fourth largest in the United States (after Alaska, Texas, and California).
The topography of the state is diverse, but roughly defined by the Continental Divide, which runs on an approximate diagonal through the state from northwest to south-central, splitting it into two distinct eastern and western regions.
The Bitterroot Mountains, divide the state from Idaho to the west with the southern third of the range blending into the Continental Divide.
East of the Divide, several parallel ranges march across the southern half of the state, including the Gravelly Range, the Tobacco Roots, the Madison Range, Gallatin Range, Big Belt Mountains, Bridger Mountains, Absaroka Mountains and the Beartooth Mountains. The isolated "Island" ranges east of the Divide include the Castle Mountains, Crazy Mountains, Little Belt Mountains, Snowy Mountains, Sweet Grass Hills, Bull Mountains and, in the southeastern corner of the state near Ekalaka, the Long Pines and Short Pines. Farther east, areas such as Makoshika State Park near Glendive, and Medicine Rocks State Park near Ekalaka also highlight some of the most scenic badlands regions in the state.
Montana also contains a number of rivers, many of which are known for "blue-ribbon" trout fishing, but which also provide most of the water needed by residents of the state, as well as being a source of hydropower. Montana is the only state in the union whose rivers form parts of three major North American watersheds: The Pacific Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico, and Hudson Bay which are divided atop Triple Divide Peak in Glacier National Park.
West of the divide, the Clark Fork of the Columbia (not to be confused with the Clarks Fork of the Yellowstone River) rises in the Rocky Mountains near Butte, flows west toward Missoula where it is joined by the Blackfoot River and the Bitterroot River and turns to the northwest, entering Idaho just above Lake Pend Oreille, becoming part of the Columbia River, which flows to the Pacific Ocean.
East of the divide, the Missouri River, formed by the confluence of the Jefferson, Madison and Gallatin rivers, crosses the central part of the state, flows through the Missouri breaks and enters North Dakota. The Yellowstone River rises in Yellowstone Park in Wyoming, flows north to Livingston, Montana, where it then turns east and flows across the state until it joins the Missouri River a few miles east of the North Dakota boundary. Montana also claims the disputed title of possessing the "world's shortest river", the Roe River, just outside Great Falls, Montana.
Montana contains Glacier National Park and portions of Yellowstone National Park, including three of the Park's five entrances.
Areas managed by the National Park Service include:
Big Hole National Battlefield near Wisdom Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area near Fort Smith Glacier National Park Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site at Deer Lodge, Montana Lewis & Clark National Historic Trail Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument near Crow Agency Nez Perce National Historical Park Yellowstone National ParkSeveral Indian reservations are located in Montana: Fort Peck Indian Reservation, Fort Belknap Indian Reservation, Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation, Crow Indian Reservation, Rocky Boy's Indian Reservation, Blackfeet Indian Reservation, and the Flathead Indian Reservation.
Adjacent states
British Columbia of Canada - northwest Alberta of Canada - north Saskatchewan of Canada - northeast North Dakota - east South Dakota - southeast Wyoming - south Idaho - west to southwestSee also: List of Montana counties, List of Montana rivers
History
Main article: History of Montana
Native Americans were the first inhabitants of Montana.
Subsequent to the Lewis and Clark expedition and after the finding of gold and copper (see the Copper Kings) in the state in the late 1850s, Montana became a United States territory (Montana Territory) on May 26, 1864 and the 41st state on November 8, 1889.
Demographics
As of 2005, Montana has an estimated population of 935,670, which is an increase of 8,750, or 0.9%, from the prior year and an increase of 33,475, or 3.7%, since the year 2000.
The state ranks fourth in size at 147,000 mi² (381,000 km²) but has a relatively low population (with only six states having fewer people) and consequently a very low population density.
| Demographics of Montana (csv) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| By race | White | Black | AIAN | Asian | NHPI |
| AIAN is American Indian or Alaskan Native NHPI is Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander | |||||
| 2000 (total population) | 92.79% | 0.50% | 7.36% | 0.79% | 0.12% |
| 2000 (hispanic only) | 1.74% | 0.05% | 0.28% | 0.04% | 0.01% |
| 2005 (total population) | 92.52% | 0.62% | 7.47% | 0.82% | 0.11% |
| 2005 (hispanic only) | 2.22% | 0.07% | 0.23% | 0.03% | 0.01% |
| Growth 2000-2005 (total population) | 3.42% | 28.09% | 5.19% | 7.11% | -4.46% |
| Growth 2000-2005 (non-hispanic only) | 2.87% | 25.58% | 5.91% | 8.07% | -0.82% |
| Growth 2000-2005 (hispanic only) | 31.85% | 52.36% | -13.46% | -13.52% | -39.22% |
While German ancestry is the largest reported European-American ancestry in most of Montana, residents of Scandinavian ancestry are prevalent in some of the farming-dominated northern and eastern prairie regions.
Religion
The religious affiliations of the people of Montana:
Christian – 82% Protestant – 55% Lutheran – 15% Methodist – 8% Baptist – 5% Presbyterian – 4% United Church of Christ – 2% Other Protestant or general Protestant – 21% Roman Catholic – 24% LDS (Mormon) – 3% Other Religions – <1% Non-Religious – 18%Economy
The Bureau of Economic Analysis estimates that Montana's total state product in 2003 was $26 billion.
Transportation
Major highways include:
Interstate 15 Interstate 90 Interstate 94 U.S. Highway 2 U.S. Highway 212 U.S. Highway 93In addition, Amtrak's "Empire Builder" train runs through the north of the state, stopping in the following towns: Libby, Whitefish, West Glacier, Essex, East Glacier Park, Browning, Cut Bank, Shelby, Havre, Malta, Glasgow, and Wolf Point.
Law and government
See: List of Montana Governors
The current Governor is Brian Schweitzer (Democrat) who was sworn in on January 3, 2005.
The state was the first to elect a female member of Congress (Jeannette Rankin), and was one of the first states to give women voting rights (see suffrage).
Politics
Historically, Montana was a Swing state of cross-ticket voters with a tradition of sending "conservatives to Helena (the state capital) and liberals to Washington." During the 1970s, the state was dominated by the Democratic Party, with Democratic governors for a 20-year period, and a Democratic majority of both the national congressional delegation and during many sessions of the state legislature.
Thus, in recent years, Montana has been classified as a Republican-leaning state, and the state supported President George W.
Montana is an Alcoholic beverage control state.
Important cities and towns
Some of the cities in Montana are:
| Billings Bozeman Butte Great Falls | Havre Helena Kalispell Missoula |
Some of the major towns in Montana are:
| Anaconda Belgrade Columbia Falls Cut Bank Deer Lodge Dillon Glasgow Glendive Hamilton | Hardin Laurel Lewistown Livingston Miles City Polson Shelby Sidney Whitefish |
Education
Colleges and universities
|
The state-funded Montana University System consists of: Montana State University - Bozeman Montana State University - Billings Montana State University - Northern - Havre University of Montana - Missoula Montana Tech of the University of Montana - Butte University of Montana Western - Dillon University of Montana - Helena College of Technology Flathead Valley Community College Dawson Community College Miles Community CollegeMajor Tribal Colleges in Montana include: Little Big Horn College Fort Peck Community College or Ft. Peck Community College Salish Kootenai College Stone Child CollegeMajor Private Colleges and Universities include: Carroll College University of Great Falls Rocky Mountain College |
Professional sports teams
The Minor League baseball teams are:
Missoula Osprey Great Falls White Sox Helena Brewers Billings MustangsMiscellaneous topics
The state's name is derived from the Spanish word montaña ("mountain").
In 1902, a group of female students from the Fort Shaw Indian Industrial School began playing basketball and traveled throughout Montana, defeating high school teams and some college teams.
Montana has the largest grizzly bear population in the lower 48 states.
Montana is one of two states (Pennsylvania is the other, see http://www.pennswoods.net/~tomdewey/fishing/watersh.htm) with a triple divide, allowing water to flow into three oceans: the Pacific Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean (Gulf of Mexico), and the Arctic Ocean (Hudson Bay).
Montana is one of two states in the continental United States which in addition to not having a major metropolitan area over 1,000,000 in population, also does not border a state that does have one (Maine is the other).
State symbols
State flower: Bitterroot (Lewisia rediviva), since 1895 State tree: Ponderosa Pine, since 1949 State animal: Grizzly Bear (Ursus arctos horribilis), since 1862 State bird: Western Meadowlark, since 1931 State fish: Blackspotted Cutthroat Trout, since 1977 State Song: "Montana", since 1945 State Ballad: "Montana Melody", since 1983 State Gemstones: Yogo Sapphire & Agate State Fossil: Duck-billed Dinosaur (Maiasaura peeblesorum), since 1985 State Butterfly: Mourning cloak (Nymphalis antiopa), since 2001 State Grass: Bluebunch Wheatgrass, since 1973 State Motto: "Oro y Plata" (Spanish: Gold and Silver)Ski areas
Montana has several ski areas including:
Bear Paw Ski Bowl near Havre, Montana Big Mountain near Whitefish Big Sky Resort near Big Sky, Montana Blacktail near Lakeside Bridger Bowl Ski Area near Bozeman Discovery Basin near Philipsburg Great Divide near Helena, Montana Lost Trail near Darby, Montana Lookout Pass near St. Regis, Montana Maverick Mountain near Dillon, Montana Montana Snowbowl near Missoula Moonlight Basin near Big Sky, Montana Red Lodge Mountain near Red Lodge Showdown Ski Area near White Sulphur Springs, Montana Snowbowl Ski Area near Missoula, Montana Turner near Libby
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