Montana is a western state of the United States. The name of Montana probably came from the Spanish word "montaña" which means "mountain". Montana has the largest concentration of grizzly bears in the lower 48 states. Montana was the first state to elect a woman to the United States Congress, Jeannette Rankin. Montana is also home to the shortest river in the world, the Roe River. Its U.S. postal abbreviation is MT.

USS Montana was named in honor of this state.

Contents [showhide]
1 History

2 Law and government

3 Geography

4 Economy

5 Demographics

6 Important cities and towns

7 Education

7.1 Colleges and universities

8 Professional sports teams

9 Ski areas

10 Miscellaneous information

10.1 Major highways
10.2 Further reading

11 External links

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History
Montana became a United States territory (Montana Territory) on May 26, 1864 and the 41st state on November 8, 1889.

Montana was the scene of the Native Americans' last effort to keep their land. For instance, the last stand of U.S. Army Lt. Colonel George Armstrong Custer was fought in Montana near the present day town of Hardin. Montana was also the location of the final battles of the Nez Perce Wars.

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Law and government
See: List of Montana Governors

The capital of Montana is Helena and its current Governor is Judy Martz (Republican). Its two U.S. senators are Max Baucus (Democrat) and Conrad Burns (Republican).

Several Indian reservations are located in Montana: Fort Peck Indian Reservation, Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation, Crow Indian Reservation, Rocky Boys Indian Reservation, Blackfeet Indian Reservation, and the Flathead Indian Reservation.

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Geography
See List of Montana counties

Montana is bordered on the north by the Canadian provinces of British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan, on the east by North Dakota and South Dakota, on the south by Wyoming, and on the southwest and west by Idaho. The state is the fourth largest in the United States. Western Montana is a land of tall, rugged mountains; while eastern Montana is a land of broad plains.

Montana's land area is 145,552 square miles (approx. 376,978 km²) [1] (http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/30000.html).

The Missouri, Milk, Flathead and Yellowstone rivers are the major rivers in the state. See List of Montana rivers. The shortest river in the world is the Roe River in Montana.

Montana contains Glacier National Park and portions of Yellowstone National Park. Other sites include the Little Bighorn National Monument, Bighorn Canyon National Recreational Area, Big Hole National Battlefield, and the National Bison Range. There are also a number of national forests and National Wildlife Refuges. The national government administers 36,000,000 acres (146,000 km²). 275,000 acres (1100 km²) are administered as state parks and forests.

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Economy
Montana's 1999 total state gross product was $20 billion, 48th in the nation. Its Per Capita Personal Income for 2000 was $22,569, placing it 46th in the nation. Its agricultural outputs are cattle, wheat, barley, sugar beets, hay, and hogs. Its industrial outputs are mining, lumber and wood products, food processing, and tourism.

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Demographics
Montana's population in 2001 was estimated at 904,433.

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Important cities and towns
Montana's largest city is Billings.

The major cities and towns in Montana are:

Billings
Missoula
Great Falls
Butte
Bozeman
Helena
Kalispell
Glasgow
Havre
Anaconda-Deer Lodge County
Miles City

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Education
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Colleges and universities
Carroll College
Montana State University System
Montana State University - Billings
Montana State University - Bozeman
Montana State University Northern
Rocky Mountain College
Miles Community College
Salish Kootenai College
University of Great Falls
University of Montana System
University of Montana
Montana Tech of The University of Montana
Western Montana College of The University of Montana

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Professional sports teams
The Minor League baseball teams are:

Missoula Osprey
Great Falls White Sox
Helena Brewers
Billings Mustangs
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Ski areas
Montana has several ski areas including:

Big Mountain near Whitefish
Big Sky near West Yellowstone
Bridger near Bozeman
Turner near Libby
Blacktail near Lakeside

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Miscellaneous information
Official state flower: Bitterroot
Official state tree: Ponderosa Pine
Official state animal: Grizzly Bear
Official state bird: Western Meadowlark
Official state fish: Blackspotted Cutthroat Trout
Shortest river in the world: The Roe River
Montana is also the place where in the sci-fi show 'Star Trek', the historical First Contact between the Humans and the Vulcans was made. Mankind's first contact with an alien race.
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Major highways
Interstate 15
Interstate 90
Interstate 94
U.S. Highway 2
U.S. Highway 212
U.S. Highway 93
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Further reading
Chokecherry Places, Essays from the High Plains, Merrill Gilfillan, Johnson Press, Boulder, Colorado, trade paperback, ISBN 1-55566-227-7.
Dancing at the Rascal Fair, Ivan Doig
English Creek, Ivan Doig
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External links
State of Montana web site (http://www.discoveringmontana.com)
Rocky Mountain Development Council (http://www.rmdc.net/)
Montana Pictures (http://www.bigskyfishing.com/Photo-Gallery/photo_gallery.htm)

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Montana".

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