46 | SignatureMT
As the number of counties expanded so did the need for "improved"
roads to serve the growing numbers of residents in rural areas. The
evolution from wagon-drawn conveyances to motorized vehicles was
not always easy as this image near the Highwood Mountains indicates.
J
ust how did Montana end up with such a
patchwork of unique counties? Examina-
tion of historic maps reveals the inexorable
expansion of humanity across the territory and,
later the state. e peopling and populating of
Montana can be told in the origins of its counties.
In its early territorial days, Montana's popula-
tion centers were in southwest Montana, clustered
Got Counties?
THE NAMING OF MONTANA'S 56 COUNTIES ADDS COLOR
AND MEANING TO OUR RICH HERITAGE
Text by Michael Ober
