Toole County, Montana

Toole County is a county in the northern portion of the U.S. state of Montana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 4,971. Its county seat is Shelby. The county was established in 1914 from parts of Hill County and Teton County and was named after Joseph Toole, the first and fourth governor of Montana. Its northern boundary is the Canada–United States border south of Alberta.

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1946 sqmi, of which 1916 sqmi is land and 30 sqmi (1.5%) is water.

Its northern boundary is the Canada–United States border. A part of its southern boundary by the southwestern county corner is formed by Marias River, which flows eastward through the southern part of the county. In the eastern part are several creeks, the largest of which is Willow, which rises in the Sweet Grass Hills and follows a southerly course through the county. In the Sweet Grass Hills and elsewhere indications of oil and gas have been found.

Major highways

 * I-15.svg Interstate 15 - connects to Alberta Highway 4 at Canadian border
 * US 2.svg U.S. Route 2

Adjacent counties

 * Glacier County - west
 * Pondera County - south
 * Liberty County - east
 * County of Warner No. 5, Alberta - north
 * County of Forty Mile No. 8, Alberta - northeast

2020 census
As of the 2020 census, there were 4,971 people living in the county.

2010 census
As of the 2010 census, there were 5,324 people, 2,015 households, and 1,246 families in the county. The population density was 2.8 PD/sqmi. There were 2,336 housing units at an average density of 1.2 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 92.0% white, 4.5% American Indian, 0.5% black or African American, 0.4% Asian, 0.6% from other races, and 1.9% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 2.4% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 30.8% were German, 17.7% were Irish, 15.8% were English, 10.5% were Norwegian, and 3.6% were American.

Of the 2,015 households, 27.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.8% were married couples living together, 7.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 38.2% were non-families, and 34.3% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.88. The median age was 41.5 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $42,949 and the median income for a family was $54,722. Males had a median income of $41,490 versus $32,582 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,464. About 11.3% of families and 15.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.2% of those under age 18 and 8.0% of those age 65 or over.

Politics
Toole County voters have only selected Republican Party candidates in national elections since 1964.

City

 * Shelby (county seat)

Towns

 * Kevin
 * Sunburst

Census-designated places

 * Camrose Colony
 * Hillside Colony
 * Rimrock Colony
 * Sweet Grass

Other unincorporated communities

 * Devon
 * Dunkirk
 * Ethridge
 * Ferdig
 * Galata
 * Gold Butte
 * Kippen
 * Naismith
 * Ohio Camp
 * Oilmont
 * Virden

Notable people

 * Earl W. Bascom (1906–1995), "Father of Modern Rodeo" and Hall of Fame cowboy, artist, sculptor, actor, inventor; cowboyed in the 1920s on a ranch on Kicking Horse Creek once owned by his cousin C.M. Russell
 * Charles M. Russell (1864–1926), cowboy artist and sculptor; ranched on Kicking Horse Creek near the Sweetgrass Hills; honored in the Hall of Great Westerners in Oklahoma City