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Montana

Capital	Helena
Population	902,195 Source: U.S. Census Bureau GCT-PH1-R. Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density (geographies ranked by total population): 2000 Data Set: Census 2000 Summary File 1 (SF 1) 100-Percent Data
Governor	Brian Schweitzer (D, to January 2009)
Entered the Union	November 8, 1889 as the 41st state
Motto	Oro y plata (Gold and Silver)
Nickname	Treasure state
Flower	Bitterroot
Bird	Western Meadowlark
Song	Montana
Professional Sports Teams (sports listing policy)	No NFL, MLB, NBA, WNBA, MLS, or NHL teams.
Origin of Name	Chosen from Latin dictionary by J. M. Ashley; it is a Latinized Spanish word meaning "mountainous"
Major Industries	Wheat, barley, rye, oats, flaxseed, sugar beets, and potatoes, and sheep and cattle raising
Historical Sites	Custer Battlefield National Monument in Hardin, Museum of the Plains Indians in Browning, Fort Union Trading Post, and Grant-Kohr's Ranch National Historic Sites
Points of Interest	Glacier National Park on the Continental Divide and Yellowstone National Park
Bordering States	Montana borders North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, and Idaho.
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Follow these links to read articles about Montana from Encyclopedias and Almanacs:

• Encarta Concise Encyclopedia
• Columbia Encyclopedia
• Information Please Almanac

• Discovering Montana: The Official State Website
  http://www.mt.gov/
  This is the official website for the State of Montana.
• Montana State Library
  http://msl.state.mt.us/
  Here is the homepage for the Montana State Library.
• Montana Historical Society
  http://www.his.state.mt.us/
  Here is the homepage for the Montana State Historical Society.
• Montana's Museum
  http://www.his.state.mt.us/museum/
  Here is the homepage for the Montana Historical Society Museum.
• Montana Historical Society Library and Archives
  http://msl.state.mt.us/lisd/library-hist.htm
  Here is the homepage for the Montana State Archives.
• Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks
  http://www.fwp.state.mt.us/parks/default.aspx
  Here is the homepage for Montana State Parks.
• Montana Tourism & Recreation
  http://www.mt.gov/discover/sitemap.asp#tourism
  Here is the official state tourism website for Montana.
• Travel Montana
  http://visitmt.com/
  Here is the official state travel website for Montana.
• Montanakids
  http://montanakids.com/
  Here is the official Montana state website jsut for kids!

• 50states.com: Montana
  http://www.50states.com/montana.htm
  The site provides a wealth of information about Montana. It includes everything from the highest point to county profile to climate.
• Things To Do in Montana
  http://www.thingstodo.com/states/MT/index.htm
  ThingsToDo.com is an online guide to information about Montana's entertainment, recreation, and travel, and includes the state's interesting facts, famous people, and special events.
• Roadside America: Montana Attractions
  http://www.roadsideamerica.com/map/mt.html
  Roadside America describes itself as an online guide to offbeat attractions. This site offers reviews of "weird sites along the highway" in Montana.
• MontanaWeb
  http://search.montanaweb.com/
  This site is a directory of websites, similar to Yahoo, but offering only Montana information in subjects as varied as arts and entertainment, environment and nature, real estate, shopping, and sports and recreation.
• FedStats: MapStat: United States: Montana
  http://www.fedstats.gov/qf/states/30000.html
  Fast access to statistics from more than 100 federal agencies on "economic and population trends, crime, education, health care, aviation safety, energy use, farm production and more" in Montana.

• First explored for France by Francois and Louis-Joseph Verendrye in the early 1740s, much of the region was acquired by the United States from France as part of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. Western Montana was obtained from Great Britain in the Oregon Treaty of 1846.
• The major Indian wars (1867-1877) included the famous 1876 Battle of the Little Big Horn, better known as Custer's Last Stand, in which Cheyennes and Sioux killed George A. Custer and mor e than 200 of his men in southeastern Montana.
• Montana is the fourth largest state with the forty-fourth largest population.

• Gary Cooper, born in 1901 in Helena, Montana, he became a famous actor in the 1930s.
• Alfred Bertram Guthrie, Pulitzer Prize-winning author
• Evel Knievel, daredevil motorcyclist
• Jeannette Rankin, a Montana Republican, became the first woman to serve in Congress in 1917, and she was the only member of Congress to vote against entry into both World War I and World War II.