Big Sandy is a town in Chouteau County,

Montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ...

, United States. The population was 605 at the 2020 census. The

Lewis and Clark Trail The Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail is a route across the United States commemorating the Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804 to 1806. It is part of the National Trails System of the United States. It extends for some from Pittsburgh, Pe ...

, following

U.S. Route 87 U.S. Highway 87 (US 87) is a north–south United States highway (though it is signed east–west in New Mexico) that runs for from northern Montana to southern Texas, making it the longest north–south road to not have a "1" in ...

, goes through Big Sandy. Big Sandy native

Jeff Ament Jeffrey Allen Ament (born March 10, 1963) is an American musician best known as the bassist of rock band Pearl Jam, which he co-founded alongside Stone Gossard, Mike McCready, and Eddie Vedder. Ament wrote or co-wrote many of Pearl Jam's hits, ...

Pearl Jam Pearl Jam is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. One of the key bands in the grunge, grunge movement of the early 1990s, Pearl Jam has outsold and outlasted many of its contemporaries from the early 1990s, ...

bassist, built the town a skatepark with his Montana Pool Service non-profit organization in 2010.

Big Bud 747 The Big Bud 747 or 16V-747 Big Bud is a large, custom-made farm tractor built in Havre, Montana, Havre, Montana, in 1977. It has 1100 horsepower. It is billed by the owners and exhibitors as the "World's Largest Farm Tractor". It is about twice t ...

, claimed to be the largest farm tractor in the world, was located here from 1997 until 2009, and returned in 2020.

History

At one time the site of a saloon that served

Missouri River The Missouri River is a river in the Central United States, Central and Mountain states, Mountain West regions of the United States. The nation's longest, it rises in the eastern Centennial Mountains of the Bitterroot Range of the Rocky Moun ...

freighters, the community of Big Sandy is named for nearby Big Sandy Creek. The town began in 1887 with the arrival of the St. Paul, Minneapolis & Manitoba Railway (later the Great Northern Railway). By early 1900, Cornelius J. McNamara and Thomas A. Marlow, owners of the McNamara Cattle Company, had opened the town's first store. Homesteaders began arriving in Big Sandy in 1909, and an influx continued for a decade. Several stories explain the creek's name. The most colorful involves a muleskinner, “Big Sandy” Lane, who arrived one day near the present townsite and, to his dismay, discovered the creek at flood stage. He cursed the uncooperative weather, his bad luck, and the flooded creek crossing so fluently that the offending stream dried up immediately and he was able to cross. For decades Big Sandy's primary landmark was the town water tower, which was visible for many miles. The water tower was dismantled in 1993. As of 2019 some local and former residents have banded together to establish a particularly charismatic and recurring puddle on Main Street (which has been dubbed, simply, "Puddle") as a new and recognizable landmark of the municipality. Two of the higher profile natives of Big Sandy, Craig Edwards and Steve Sibra, are among those who actively promote "Puddle" as a body of water of consequence.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town has a total area of , all land. The town is located in what is referred to as the "Golden Triangle", a region renowned for its wheat and barley production. Nearby Lonesome Lake is a shallow lake providing a prairie wetland complex. It becomes a resting area for migrating waterfowl and shorebirds. In the summer, pronghorn, coyotes, and badger can be found.

Climate

According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

system, Big Sandy has a

semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of se ...

, abbreviated "BSk" on climate maps.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2010, there were 598 people, 276 households, and 161 families residing in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 337 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 93.1%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.2%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 2.8% Native American, 0.8% Asian, 0.7%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.3% from other races, and 2.0% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 1.3% of the population. There were 276 households, of which 25.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.1% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 10.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 41.7% were non-families. 39.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.12 and the average family size was 2.83. The median age in the town was 47.5 years. 21.9% of residents were under the age of 18; 6.2% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 19.7% were from 25 to 44; 31.6% were from 45 to 64; and 20.6% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 47.0% male and 53.0% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 703 people, 296 households, and 179 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 371 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 95.31%

, 2.84% Native American, 0.14%

, 0.57% from other races, and 1.14% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.71% of the population. There were 296 households, out of which 24.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.7% were

living together, 8.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.2% were non-families. 36.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.18 and the average family size was 2.83. In the town, the population was spread out, with 21.6% under the age of 18, 5.8% from 18 to 24, 16.8% from 25 to 44, 28.7% from 45 to 64, and 27.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 48 years. For every 100 females there were 90.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.1 males. The median income for a household in the town was $28,523, and the median income for a family was $35,417. Males had a median income of $23,000 versus $17,917 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the town was $14,801. About 10.2% of families and 14.1% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 19.7% of those under age 18 and 11.0% of those age 65 or over.

Arts and culture

The Big Sandy Montana Historical Society has a museum in town. They have several exhibits focusing on the early days of the town. Chouteau County Library, headquartered in Fort Benton, has a branch in Big Sandy.

Education

Big Sandy Public Schools educates students from kindergarten through 12th grade. Big Sandy High School serves the area. They are known as the Pioneers.

Media

The local newspaper is ''The Big Sandy Mountaineer''. It is published weekly.

Infrastructure

U.S. Route 87 travels through town. It is intersected by Montana Highway 432. Big Sandy Airport is a public use airport one mile south of Big Sandy.. Federal Aviation Administration. effective November 15, 2012.

Notable people

bassist of Pearl Jam was born in nearby Havre and grew up in Big Sandy.

Gallery

Image:Johannes Avenue, Big Sandy, Montana.jpg, Johannes Avenue Image:Entering Big Sandy.jpg, Entering Big Sandy Image:Big Sandy Elevators from Centennial Ave.jpg, Big Sandy Elevators from Centennial Ave

References

External links

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Visit MT - Big SandyMontana Memory Project (Download Big Sandy High School Yearbooks)
{{Chouteau County, Montana Towns in Chouteau County, Montana Populated places established in 1887