Montana’s Geography Part I

Montana’s GeographyPart I Cities & Reservations

Billings • Population 91,750 (115,000 metro) in 2000; 106, 954 in 2012 (162,848 metro). • On the Yellowstone River • Started out as a rail town, but has become the major city in Montana • Oil (three major refineries in the area Conoco, Exxon, Cenex) • In 1992 it was listed as America’s 2nd most popular city to move to. • Named after the railroad tycoon president of the Northern Pacific Railroad, it is called "The Magic City" as the town site was laid out in 1882 and a month later 5,000 lots had been sold for cash. By the end of that year, there were 155 commercial buildings, 99 homes, 6 railroad buildings and 25 tents where only 3 buildings stood before. The town appeared "magically."

Billings at night

Map It! Draw & label this place on your blank map.

Great Falls • Population 56,395 (70,000 metro) in 2000; 58,950 in 2012 (81,723 metro) • On the confluence of the Missouri and the Sun Rivers • Economy revolves around agriculture/service and smelting and refining • “The Electric City” • Since the mid 80s, the economy has steadily worsened (closure of Anaconda Company, lessening of refinery work and agriculture) • Malmstrom Air Force Base • Total of 4,800 employees (annual payroll of $84 million) totaling 30-35% of the city’s economy

Black Eagle Falls

Missoula • Population 52,239 (70,000 metro) in 2000; 68,394 in 2012 (109,299 metro) • “The Garden City” • On the Clark’s Fork River • Home to the University of Montana (Go Griz!), the premier journalism school in the west, and the only law school in Montana. • Wood products industry (logging, paper mills) • Inversion – air pollution

Downtown Missoula; Missoula as seen from above the University of Montana

Virtual Tour of UM Campus: http://www.umt.edu/virtualtour/

Butte • Population 33,994 in 2000; 34,200 in 2010 • A one time mining camp, its population was 100,000 in 1917 • A bastion of organized labor unions, the Democratic Party, and Catholicism • Most ethnically diverse of Montana’s communities (people of Irish, Finnish, Serbian, Cornish, Italian, Slavic descent) • Berkeley Pit – filling with acid water at over 3,500 gallons per minute. • Mainstay of the modern economy is federal money poured into cleaning up the mess made by mining • Home of “Montana Tech,” known as “Montana School of Mines” • One of the highest placement rates in MT

Photos of uptown Butte, Montana

Bozeman • Population 29,936 (metro 30,000) in 2000; 38,695 in 2012 (micropolitan population of 92,614) • Flanked by the Hyalite Range on the South and the Bridger Mountains on the west. • Agricultural/tourism economy • Home to Montana State University (Go Bobcats!), one of the best engineering schools in the northwest.

Flathead Reservation • Population 21,259 in 2000; 28,359 in 2010. • Home to the Confederated Salish, Kalispel, and Kootenai tribes • 1.24 million acres reaching from midway up Flathead Lake south to the Mountains just North of Missoula. • One of the most prosperous reservations with income from lumber and Kerr Dam which controls the level of Flathead Lake – also a power plant run by the tribes. • Unemployment is far lower than on most reservations. • Salish-Kootenai College and a community college at Pablo show its progressive feel.

Kalispell • Population 16,089 (metro 25,000) in 2000; 20,487 in 2012 (micropolitan population 91,633). • Natural resource economy (lumber and agriculture) • Tourism/recreation are also important • Flathead Valley Community College • North of Flathead Lake

Fort Peck Reservation • Population 10,595 • Home to Assiniboine and Western Sioux tribes • Resource-rich reservation with oil and natural gas • Under the leadership of tribal chairman, Norman Hollow, the reservation built one of Montana’s largest manufacturing plants at Poplar which assembled products.

Fishing is excellent on the Fort Peck Reservation.

Havre • Population 10,200 in 2000; 9,310 in 2010 • Originally called “Bullhook Bottoms,” Havre started as (and STILL is) a rail town. • Burlington Northern RR is the center of its economy, but they cut 1/3rd of upper end jobs there in 1992. • Shopping center for much of the Hi-Line. • Home to MSU-Northern – which is the only non-reservation higher education access in the region.

Havre Beneath the Streets: an old underground pharmacy, and an old underground, er, “hotel” room

Miles City • Population 8,500 in 2000; 8,569 in 2012 • Located where the Tongue River joins the Yellowstone River. • The quintessential “cow town.” • Home of the world famous “Bucking Horse Sale” every May. • The economy stems from livestock & federal employment and investment (the two are intertwined.) • The economy suffered in the 80s due to drought, but it is on its way up again. • Oil boom in the Bakken has boosted Miles City’s economy.

Looking west on Main Street in downtown Miles City

Custer County District High School in Miles City – where my English teacher, Mrs. Horton, told my friend Jerry to get out of her classroom “before I rip your face off!”

Ismay, Montana – near Miles City. Renamed itself Joe, Montana in the 1990s, resulting in the whole town (28 people) being invited to appear on the Late Show with David Letterman

Blackfeet Reservation • Population 8,549 in 2000; 10,405 in 2010 • One of the windiest places in America • Nearly 1.5 million acres • Home to the Blackfeet tribe • 40% of the reservation is owned by non-Indians due to federal allotments • It has its own industrial park where pencils and pens are manufactured • Oil and gas reserves make up well over half of all tribal income • Tourism economy has been boosted by Glacier Peaks Casino.

Blackfeet Reservation: Browning (top) and Heart Butte (below)

Blackfeet Nation Singers

Crow Reservation • Population 6,366 in 2000; 7,900 in 2012 • 2 million acres • Crosses the drainages of the Bighorn and the Little Big Horn Rivers. • A majority of the 8,000 Crow people live on the reservation • 66% of the reservation land is controlled by non-tribal members • Rich in grazing land and millions of tons of mineable coal. • Over 80% of the population speak the native Crow language

Crow Reservation images: Bighorn Canyon; Crow Fair; a government-built home in Crow Agency

Crow Medicine Wheel

Lewistown • Population 6,159 in 2000; 5,901 in 2010 • Judith Mountains to the north and the Snowies to the south • Directly in the center of the state • Agricultural economy • Slavic immigrants did the impressive masonry work on the domed courthouse and other buildings • Big Spring is there which pumps 3 million gallons of water per hour at 99.9% purity – one of the world’s greatest freshwater springs.

Fergus County Courthouse

Facing east on Main Street in Lewistown

Montana’s Geography Part I