Chouteau County, Montana

Chouteau County is a county located in the North-Central region of the U.S. state of Montana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 5,895. Its county seat is Fort Benton. The county was established in 1865 as one of the original nine counties of Montana, and named in 1882 after Pierre Chouteau Jr., a fur trader who established a trading post that became Fort Benton, which was once an important port on the Missouri River.

Chouteau County is home to the Chippewa-Cree tribe on the Rocky Boy Indian Reservation. It contains part of the Lewis and Clark National Forest.

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 3997 sqmi, of which 3972 sqmi is land and 24 sqmi (0.6%) is water.

Chouteau County was once the largest county in the Montana Territory and the second largest in the United States, with an area of 15439 sqmi in the early 20th century. However, some parts of the county were over 250 mi from Fort Benton, and in 1893, the first of several divisions began with the creation of Teton County, the western portion of Chouteau County. Chouteau County lost half of its population from 1910 to 1930.

The land is mostly rolling prairie, hence the high density of wheat farming. However, there is notable topography, namely some of Montana's forested island ranges. The Bear Paw Mountains rise in the northeast and the Little Rockies and the Highwood Ranges are in the southeast. Major rivers include the Teton River, Marias River, Missouri River and Arrow Creek.

Adjacent counties

 * Liberty County – north
 * Hill County – north
 * Blaine County – east
 * Fergus County – southeast
 * Judith Basin County – south
 * Cascade County – south
 * Teton County – west
 * Pondera County – northwest

Major highway

 * US 87.svg U.S. Route 87

National protected areas

 * Lewis and Clark National Forest (part)
 * Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument (part)

Census-designated places
The United States Census Bureau, for population data analyses of unorganized rural areas, the following Census-designated places, or CDPs, in addition to the organized communities listed elsewhere in this article.


 * Boneau
 * Carter
 * Floweree
 * Highwood
 * Loma
 * Parker School
 * Rocky Boy West
 * Square Butte
 * Sunnybrook Colony
 * Twin Hills Colony

2020 census
As of the 2020 census, there were 5,895 people living in the county.

2010 census
As of the 2010 census, there were 5,813 people, 2,294 households, and 1,560 families living in the county. The population density was 1.5 PD/sqmi. There were 2,879 housing units at an average density of 0.7 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 75.8% white, 21.8% American Indian, 0.4% Asian, 0.1% Pacific islander, 0.1% black or African American, 0.3% from other races, and 1.6% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.6% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 27.6% were German, 13.0% were Irish, 11.2% were English, 9.8% were Norwegian, and 2.0% were American.

Of the 2,294 households, 31.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.3% were married couples living together, 10.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 32.0% were non-families, and 29.1% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.04. The median age was 41.5 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $41,064 and the median income for a family was $50,201. Males had a median income of $33,866 versus $25,077 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,202. About 14.8% of families and 21.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 33.6% of those under age 18 and 6.2% of those age 65 or over.

Economy
Chouteau County is the state's largest winter wheat producer. It is located in the heart of the "Golden Triangle", which produces about 45% of Montana's annual wheat crop.

City

 * Fort Benton (county seat)

Towns

 * Big Sandy
 * Geraldine

Unincorporated communities

 * Big Sag
 * Coal Banks Landing
 * Lippard
 * Montague
 * Shepherd Crossing
 * Shonkin
 * Stranahan
 * Virgelle
 * Warrick
 * Woods Crossing