40. Sweet Grass County

The Sweet Grass County website can't be beat for introducing this county in south central Montana.  They state:

The county of Sweet Grass (two words) is located in south central Montana. Don’t confuse the town of Sweetgrass with the county of Sweet Grass. The town of Sweetgrass (one word) is located on the Canadian border in Toole County in north central Montana.

Sweet Grass County came into being in 1895. It was formed out of parts of Park, Meager, and Yellowstone Counties. Between 1910 and 1920 parts of Sweet Grass County were taken to form Stillwater, Wheatland and Golden Valley Counties. It has been its present size since 1920. Sweetgrass (Hierochloe odorata) is, of course, a native plant used by indigenous people for centuries in purification rituals.  I'm sure that the folk who named Sweet Grass County were thinking more of attracting settlers by suggesting that this would be good farming country, with plenty of good sweet grass for cattle.

The Sweet Grass County Courthouse

Big Timber, Montana

In keeping with the two word, Chamber of Commerce approved county name, the seat of Sweet Grass County is Big Timber.  Curiously, both Sweetgrass and Big Timber are names of films--the former a semi-documentary about a family of sheepherders in the mountains of south central Montana and the latter a silent film from 1917 set in the northern woodlands.  Whether this means Montana woodlands or not, I do not know.

Big Timber the city got its start with the construction of a saw mill at the confluence of the Boulder and Yellowstone Rivers.  The settlement that grew up around the mill was named Dornix, but the town's location was subject to flooding as not only do two rivers flow together at this location, but Big Timber Creek enters the Yellowstone from the north just a short distance from where the Boulder flows in from the south.  In 1883 the Northern Pacific Railroad reached the area and built a station for the town which was soon renamed Big Timber honoring the large cottonwood trees growing along the stream fronts.   The town was incorporated in 1902 and remains the only incorporated community in the county.

Outside The Sweet Grass County Courthouse

Big Timber, Montana

Sheep have long been an important part of the county's economy.  Do a Google search for Sheep Raising in Sweet Grass County, Montana, and you'll find pages of websites devoted to the topic.  The City of Big Timber reports on its website that sheep raising in the area began in 1880 when Charles McDonnell and Edward Veasey drove 3,000 sheep from California to the area.  Note that this was before Montana became a state, and more importantly, before the Northern Pacific Railroad built its line across Montana.  The site further states that in 1901, Montana's first woolen mill was built in Big Timber, and that at one time, Big Timber shipped more wool than any other community in the United States.  The Langhus Sheep Ranch's website states: "Sheep raising has always been the leading industry in Sweet Grass County (Montana).  By 1895, the wool shipment reached the enormous figure of 4,138,763 pounds."  I have already written about the Annual Running of the Sheep in Reedpoint, just across the county line in neighboring Stillwater County (32).

Antelope in the foreground, Absaroka Mountains in the Background

Aside from ranching, and more recently the mining of palladium and platinum which I wrote about in my Stillwater County post, outdoor recreation is a major draw, as it is throughout Montana.  With the Absaroka Mountains to the south and the Crazy Mountains (aka the Crazy Woman Mountains) to the north, the two divided by the Yellowstone River, and the Boulder River flowing north out of the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness, there are plenty of reasons to spend vacation time in Sweet Grass County.  My own childhood memories include many trips to the Boulder River where my father loved to fish.  It's no wonder that half the items on the Chamber's list of "10 things you can do" involve fishing, hiking, floating the river, or just getting outdoors.  In fairness, they list some fun things to do indoors as well.

If the shooting sports are of interest, you may wish to visit the C. Sharps Arms Co., Inc., located in Big Timber since 1980.  Shiloh Rifle Manufacturing is also located in Big Timber, and has been building rifles there since 1976.  As the DistinctlyMontana website dedicated to Big Timber puts it, 

"Within shooting distance of each other, C. Sharpe Arms and Shiloh Rifles offer their worldwide clientele the finest quality in custom-made, single shot rifles. According to owner, John Schoffstall, custom rifles from C. Sharpe Arms have been in great demand since he set up shop in 1975. Both C. Sharps and Shiloh sell their product worldwide through both reputation and the Internet."  

It was just outside of Big Timber that I was introduced to black powder shooting by my friend Dave Christensen, a man dedicated to eradicating hunger by reintroducing open pollinated corn to the world.  While not a native of Sweet Grass County, nor even of Montana, Dave has made Big Timber his home for several decades now.  He is a self-described "Mountain Man" and has taught Native American groups how to brain-tan hides as well as other traditional crafts many native people have lost in recent times.

The Crazy Mountains

Today, Sweet Grass County is home to 3,669 people (US Census 2013 estimate).  This figure is considerably lower than the 1920 count (4,926) but up from the 1970 count (2,980).  The county voters are overwhelmingly Republican, and have always been.  President Obama, for example, received only 22% of the county's vote in 2012, and the only Democrat to win the county in a Presidential election was FDR in 1936.  More to the point, in 1916 and 1932, Sweet Grass County was the only county in Montana to vote for the Republican candidate.  While almost 90% of the county's population over the age of 25 has graduated from high school, less than one quarter has a bachelor's degree or higher.  According to City-Data.com, 27% of males and 12% of females are involved in agriculture.  The average size farm is 2,429 acres, and the average income per farm is $46,718.  Compare this with the average expense of $48,745, and once again we see that family farming is a constant struggle.