Hysham is a town in and the county seat of Treasure County, Montana, United States. The population was 276 at the 2020 census.
History
When the Montana Territory became the state of Montana in 1889 the future site of Hysham was just a blank spot in the rolling prairie along the Yellowstone River. At that time, the area was within sprawling Custer County, which covered much of eastern Montana, and also included the eastern part of the Crow Indian Reservation. The area was opened up to homesteading in 1906 after the federal government moved the Crow Indian Reservation boundary further west to its present location. This made possible the development of farms and ranches throughout the area and at the same time allowed the settlement of small towns like Hysham.
The location and founding of the town of Hysham is intertwined with its ranching and railroad history. A large cattle ranch, the Flying E, ran thousands of heads of cattle in the region. Charlie J. Hysham had moved from the town of Red Oak, Iowa, to manage the ranch. In order to facilitate the delivery of the large amounts of supplies the Flying E ranch required, the Northern Pacific Railroad built a siding to unload goods and materials that Hysham had ordered from Billings and Forsyth. In 1907, the siding became the nucleus for the town of Hysham.
James O. Lockard built the first building on the future site of Hysham shortly after the area was open to homesteading. Later, his homestead south of the railroad tracks would become the "Lockard Addition" in Hysham. The general store was located north of the railroad tracks and also served as Hysham's first post office with Lockard appointed the first postmaster. Hysham slowly grew by a general process typical throughout the frontier where an initial commercial or transportation need would establish the site, which would then grow as settlers homesteaded nearby. This would, in turn, resulted in the need for other commercial enterprises followed by schools, churches, banks, government and other civic institutions
Hysham is bordered to the north by the Yellowstone River. The surrounding area is composed of rolling hills and farmland.
Climate
According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Hysham has a hot-summer humid continental climate, abbreviated "Dfa" on climate maps.