Musselshell County is a county in south-central Montana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 4,730. Its county seat is Roundup.

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.

Major highways

  • 20px U.S. Highway 12
  • 20px U.S. Highway 87

Adjacent counties

  • Fergus County - northwest
  • Petroleum County - north
  • Rosebud County - east
  • Yellowstone County - south
  • Golden Valley County - west

National protected area

  • Lake Mason National Wildlife Refuge

Demographics

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Communities

City

  • Roundup (county seat)

Town

  • Melstone

Unincorporated communities

  • Delphia
  • Elso
  • Klein
  • Queens Point

Census-designated places

  • Camp Three
  • Flat Willow Colony
  • Kilby Butte Colony
  • Klein
  • Musselshell

See also

  • List of lakes in Musselshell County, Montana
  • List of mountains in Musselshell County, Montana
  • National Register of Historic Places listings in Musselshell County, Montana

References

  • Musselshell County website