Musselshell County, Montana

{{Infobox U.S. county

| county = Musselshell County

| state = Montana

| seal =

| founded date = February 2

| founded year = 1911[https://musselshellcounty.org/about/ About Musselshell County]

| seat wl = Roundup

| largest city wl = Roundup

| area_footnotes = The NaCo site lists county area as 1,871 sq. miles; the Census Bureau site lists 1,867.15; the Musselshell County website shows 1,965.

| area_total_sq_mi = 1871

| area_land_sq_mi = 1868

| area_water_sq_mi = 2.8

| area percentage = 0.1

| population_as_of = 2020

| population_total = 4730

| pop_est_as_of = 2024

| population_est = 5452 {{increase}}

| population_density_sq_mi = auto

| web = https://musselshellcounty.org/

| ex image = Musselshell County Courthouse July 2020.jpg

| ex image cap = The Musselshell County Courthouse in Roundup

| district = 2nd

| time zone = Mountain

| footnotes =

Montana county number 23

}}

Musselshell County is a county in south-central Montana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 4,730.{{Cite web |title=State & County QuickFacts |url=https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/musselshellcountymontana/PST045222 |access-date=May 8, 2023 |publisher=United States Census Bureau}} Its county seat is Roundup.{{Cite web |title=Find a County |url=http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx |access-date=June 7, 2011 |publisher=National Association of Counties}}

History

Musselshell County was created in 1911 by Montana Governor Edwin L. Norris. The area was taken from Fergus, Yellowstone, and Meagher counties. It was named for the Musselshell River which runs southwest–northeast through the county. That river had been thus named in 1805 by the Lewis and Clark Expedition, due to the abundance of freshwater mussels found along its banks. In 1915, a western portion of the county was partitioned off to form Golden Valley County, giving Musselshell County its present boundaries.

The county's northwestern area is rolling grasslands, which slope southeastward to the Musselshell River and the forested Bull Mountains in the southeast. The county has abundant natural resources of coal deposits, subterranean oil, and timbered slopes.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of {{convert|1863.91|sqmi}}, of which {{convert|1861.16|sqmi}} is land and {{convert|2.75|sqmi}} (0.1%) is water.{{Cite web |date=August 22, 2012 |title=2010 Census Gazetteer Files |url=https://www.census.gov/geo/maps-data/data/docs/gazetteer/counties_list_30.txt |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141205145322/http://www.census.gov/geo/maps-data/data/docs/gazetteer/counties_list_30.txt |archive-date=December 5, 2014 |access-date=January 4, 2019 |publisher=United States Census Bureau}}

=Major highways=

=Adjacent counties=

=National protected area=

Lake Mason National Wildlife Refuge

Politics

In the fourteen national elections after its organization, Musselshell County voters selected Republican presidential candidates 50% of the time, and Democratic candidates 50% of the time. However, since the 1968 election, the Republican candidate has been selected in every election.

{{PresHead|place=Musselshell County, Montana|whig=no|source1={{Cite web |last=Leip |first=David |title=Atlas of US Presidential Elections |url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS |access-date=April 3, 2018 |website=uselectionatlas.org}}|source2=The leading "other" candidate, Progressive Theodore Roosevelt, received 400 votes, while Socialist candidate Eugene Debs received 215 votes.}}

Demographics

{{US Census population

|1920= 12030

|1930= 7242

|1940= 5717

|1950= 5408

|1960= 4888

|1970= 3734

|1980= 4428

|1990= 4106

|2000= 4497

|2010= 4538

|2020= 4730

|estyear=2024

|estimate=5452

|estref={{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/popest/2020s-counties-total.html|title=County Population Totals and Components of Change: 2020-2024|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=June 3, 2025}}

|align-fn=center

|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census{{Cite web |title=U.S. Decennial Census |url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html |access-date=November 29, 2014 |publisher=United States Census Bureau}}
1790–1960,{{Cite web |title=Historical Census Browser |url=http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu |access-date=November 29, 2014 |publisher=University of Virginia Library}} 1900–1990,{{Cite web |title=Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990 |url=https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/mt190090.txt |access-date=November 29, 2014 |publisher=United States Census Bureau}}
1990–2000,{{Cite web |title=Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000 |url=https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100327165705/http://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf |archive-date=March 27, 2010 |access-date=November 29, 2014 |publisher=US Census Bureau}} 2010–2020

}}

=2020 census=

As of the 2020 census, there were 4,730 people living in the county.{{citation needed|date=January 2024}}

=2010 census=

As of the 2010 census, there were 4,538 people, 2,046 households, and 1,276 families in the county. The population density was {{convert|2.4|PD/sqmi}}. There were 2,654 housing units at an average density of {{convert|1.4|/mi2|/km2|disp=preunit|units |units|}}. The racial makeup of the county was 96.1% white, 1.3% American Indian, 0.2% black or African American, 0.2% Asian, 0.2% from other races, and 1.9% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 2.6% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 28.1% were German, 16.5% were English, 16.1% were Irish, 7.6% were Norwegian, and 7.0% were American.

Of the 2,046 households, 23.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.4% were married couples living together, 6.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 37.6% were non-families, and 33.5% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.19 and the average family size was 2.78. The median age was 49.1 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $37,033 and the median income for a family was $47,860. Males had a median income of $33,182 versus $25,750 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,875. About 14.1% of families and 17.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 28.6% of those under age 18 and 9.6% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

=City=

Roundup (county seat)

=Town=

Melstone

=Unincorporated communities=

Delphia[https://www.google.com/maps/place/Delphia,+MT+59072/@46.5046939,-108.2280385,2904m/data=!3m2!1e3!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x533878907f4a0a7f:0x711f00075fe98ec9!8m2!3d46.5046948!4d-108.2192837 Delphia MT Google Maps (accessed January 4, 2019)]
Elso[https://www.google.com/maps/place/Elso,+MT+59072/@46.3485713,-108.6861189,2912m/data=!3m2!1e3!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x5347bc92255f5555:0x6092beb5b848ea39!8m2!3d46.3485722!4d-108.6773641 Elso, MT Google Maps (accessed January 4, 2019)]
Klein
Queens Point[https://www.google.com/maps/place/Queens+Point,+MT+59054/@46.5688666,-107.9855306,2900m/data=!3m2!1e3!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x533864777b4317f3:0x4ddac762443aa086!8m2!3d46.5688675!4d-107.9767758 Queens Point MT Google Maps (accessed January 4, 2019)]