Blaine County, Montana

History

In 1912 Blaine, Phillips and Hill counties were formed from the area of Chouteau County. The original boundary of Blaine County included a portion of land in the west that is now included in Phillips County.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 4239 sqmi, of which 4228 sqmi is land and 11 sqmi (0.3%) is water.

The majority of Fort Belknap Indian Reservation is located in the southeastern part of the county.

Features of the area include the Milk River, Bears Paw Mountains, and the Little Rocky Mountains.

Adjacent counties and rural municipalities

• Hill County - west
• Chouteau County - southwest
• Fergus County - south
• Phillips County - east
• Rural Municipality (RM) of Reno No. 51, Saskatchewan (SK) - northwest
• RM of Frontier No. 19, Saskatchewan, SK - north
• RM of Lone Tree No. 18, Saskatchewan, SK - northeast

National protected areas

• Black Coulee National Wildlife Refuge
• Nez Perce National Historical Park (part)
• Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument (part)

Demographics

|align-fn=center 1790–1960, 1900–1990, 1990–2000, 2010–2020

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 7,044. Of the residents, 29.5% were under the age of 18 and 15.7% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 34.5 years. For every 100 females there were 99.5 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 98.2 males. 0.0% of residents lived in urban areas and 100.0% lived in rural areas.

The racial makeup of the county was 42.0% White, 0.2% Black or African American, 52.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% Asian, 0.7% from some other race, and 4.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 2.2% of the population.

There were 2,467 households in the county, of which 38.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 29.9% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 27.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 2,824 housing units, of which 12.6% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 61.0% were owner-occupied and 39.0% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 6.2%.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 6,491 people, 2,357 households, and 1,604 families living in the county. The population density was 1.5 /mi2. There were 2,843 housing units at an average density of 0.7 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 49.4% American Indian, 48.2% white, 0.1% black or African American, 0.1% Asian, 0.2% from other races, and 2.0% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.8% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 23.0% were German, 9.2% were Norwegian, 6.6% were Irish, 5.7% were English, and 2.0% were American.

Of the 2,357 households, 39.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.6% were married couples living together, 16.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 31.9% were non-families, and 28.7% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.28. The median age was 35.1 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $37,034 and the median income for a family was $40,890. Males had a median income of $32,320 versus $28,986 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,813. About 23.6% of families and 29.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 44.6% of those under age 18 and 10.6% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Blaine County is the most consistent on the list of election bellwether counties in the United States, having voted for the winning presidential candidate in all but two elections held in its history. After backing Theodore Roosevelt against Woodrow Wilson in the county's inaugural 1912 election, Blaine County has been won by the winner of the presidential election in every election except that of 1988, held during the aftermath of a major drought and farm crisis; Michael Dukakis won the county by 58 votes. During two other drought years on the Great Plains, Adlai Stevenson II in 1956 and Gerald Ford in 1976 also came close to breaking the county's streak, losing by even smaller vote margins than George H. W. Bush. The county's swing status comes from the fact that it contains the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation, which trends Democratic, with the rest of the county voting strongly Republican. Since 2016, the trends on the Reservation have been a heavy factor in the county's leaning. The strongest Democratic shift in the county in 2020 and in turn the strongest Republican shift in 2024 each occurred on the Reservation, while the rest of the county simply shifted slightly more Republican in both. This pushed the county majority to go to Biden in 2020 and to Trump in 2024.

Economy

The main industry in Blaine County is agriculture. The main employers on the Reservation are the Gros Ventre and Assiniboine tribes.

Education

Aaniiih Nakoda College (formerly Fort Belknap College) is located on the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation. Public high schools in the county include Harlem High School in Harlem, Chinook High School in Chinook, and Turner High School in Turner.

Communities

Cities

• Chinook (county seat)
• Harlem

Census-designated places

• Fort Belknap Agency
• Hartland Colony
• Hays
• Hogeland
• Lodge Pole
• North Harlem Colony
• Turner
• Turner Colony
• Zurich

Unincorporated communities

• Cleveland
• Lloyd
• Lohman
• North Fork
• Rattlesnake
• Savoy

References

References

1. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau.
2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties.
3. (August 22, 2012). "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau.
4. (1997). "Montana almanac". Falcon Publishing.
5. "County Population Totals and Components of Change: 2020-2024". United States Census Bureau.
6. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau.
7. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library.
8. "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau.
9. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000". United States Census Bureau.
10. (2023). "2020 Decennial Census Demographic and Housing Characteristics (DHC)". United States Census Bureau.
11. (2021). "2020 Decennial Census Demographic Profile (DP1)". United States Census Bureau.
12. (2021). "2020 Decennial Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171)". United States Census Bureau.
13. (January 15, 2025). "An Extremely Detailed Map of the 2024 Election". The New York Times.
14. (February 2, 2021). "An Extremely Detailed Map of the 2020 Election". The New York Times.
15. Leip, David. "Atlas of US Presidential Elections".
16. Maxim Technologies. "Pre-Disaster Mitigation Plan".
17. State of Montana, DLI. "Demographic & Economic Information for Fort Belknap Reservation".
18. [https://www.google.com/maps/place/Cleveland,+MT+59523/@48.2694359,-109.1614273,15z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x533fe50fdf9f317d:0xcf0155b89fb101eb!8m2!3d48.2694368!4d-109.1526725 ''Cleveland, Blaine County MT'' Google Maps (accessed December 31, 2018)]
19. [https://www.google.com/maps/place/Lohman,+MT+59523/@48.5897218,-109.4139386,15z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x531545ed2aaa25e5:0xdfbd5e7d78755cff!8m2!3d48.5897227!4d-109.4051838 ''Lohman, Blaine County MT'' Google Maps (accessed December 31, 2018)]
20. [https://www.google.com/maps/place/North+Fork,+MT+59523/@48.5861097,-109.1197569,15z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x53156886ff509fef:0x8fe6261c018d8dee!8m2!3d48.5861106!4d-109.1110021 ''North Fork, Blaine County MT'' Google Maps (accessed December 31, 2018)]
21. [https://www.google.com/maps/place/Rattlesnake,+MT/@48.098044,-109.0575356,15z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x533fed4a01d8b181:0xcb6748c4450ee22f!8m2!3d48.0980449!4d-109.0487808 ''Rattlesnake, Blaine County MT'' Google Maps (accessed December 31, 2018)]
22. [https://www.google.com/maps/place/Savoy,+MT+59526/@48.4741633,-108.5525133,15z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x533e2a513aaf20df:0x13ad5cd8e8eaf0dd!8m2!3d48.4741642!4d-108.5437585 ''Savoy, Blaine County MT'' Google Maps (accessed December 31, 2018)]