Charlo ( Salish: sallu) is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

(CDP) in Lake 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 385 at the 2020 census. The town was named in 1918 after the Salish leader Chief Charlo. Previously it had been called Big Flat, Charlotte, and Tabor.

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 CDP has a total area of , of which , or 0.58%, are water. Charlo is located in southern Lake County and is south of Polson, the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

. The CDP is within the Flathead Indian Reservation. Charlo borders several protected areas, including the Herak Waterfowl Production area and Ninepipes Reservoir. These protected areas, along with seasonal flood irrigation, provide habitats for various native fauna such as

white-tailed deer The white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), also known Common name, commonly as the whitetail and the Virginia deer, is a medium-sized species of deer native to North America, North, Central America, Central and South America. It is the ...

pheasant Pheasants ( ) are birds of several genera within the family Phasianidae in the order Galliformes. Although they can be found all over the world in introduced (and captive) populations, the pheasant genera's native range is restricted to Eura ...

bald eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche ...

s, and western

painted turtle The painted turtle (''Chrysemys picta'') is the most widespread native turtle of North America. It lives in relatively slow-moving fresh waters, from southern Canada to northern Mexico, and from the Atlantic to the Pacific. They have been shown ...

s. Charlo is home to the Owl Research Institute which manages scientific research on Owls of all species. There are also 2 platforms for osprey nests located near the lake. A live cam features real-time video of the birds. Southwest of Charlo is the CSKT Bison Range, a refuge managed by the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes.

Demographics

2020 Data

At the 2020

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 ...

, there were 385 people, 170 households and 133 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 170 housing units at an average density of 193.37/sq mi(74.64/km^2). The racial makeup of the CDP was 79.4%

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 ...

, .26%

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 ...

, 11.7% Native American, .52% from other races, and 7.5% 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 2.86% of the population. There were 170 households, of which 13.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.6% 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, 35.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.9% were non-families. 44.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 21.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.87 and the average family size was 2.64. 8.6% of the population were under the age of 18, 3.9% from 18 to 24, 15.3% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and 15.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 52.6 years. For every 100 females, there were 102.4 males. The

median household income The median income is the income amount that divides a population into two groups, half having an income above that amount, and half having an income below that amount. It may differ from the mean (or average) income. Both of these are ways of und ...

was $34,219 and the median family income was $48,066. Males had a median income of $22,500 and females $19,375. About 11.6% of families and 19.2% 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 13.3% of those under age 18 and 24.5% of those age 65 or over.

Town events

Each year, residents of Charlo host a

Fourth of July Independence Day, known colloquially as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States which commemorates the ratification of the Declaration of Independence by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, establishing th ...

parade and cookout along Main Street. Regular participants include local equestrian units, Charlo "all school" alumni, representatives from all branches of military service, and the local fire department. In addition, the town also hosts an annual Fireman's Benefit and Dinner to support the local volunteer fire department. The Charlo Outdoor Community Complex, a community-sponsored organization to fund a new track and football field for the Charlo Public School, hosts an annual Fun run, 5K run, and 10K run as a fundraiser event.

Government

The local government is a mayor-council system. There are four elected city council members.

Education

Charlo School District educates students from kindergarten through 12th grade. They are known as the Vikings. Charlo High School is a Class C school, which is a designation used for sporting events. As of 2023, Charlo School District had a total of 229 students enrolled: 96 elementary students, 57 middle school students, and 76 high school students. Along with core classes, Charlo School District offers a variety of electives.

Educational Clubs

Charlo High School offers clubs such as Business Professionals of America (BPA), Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA),

SkillsUSA SkillsUSA is a United States career and technical student organization serving more than 395,000 high school, college and middle school students and professional members enrolled in training programs in trade, technical and skilled service oc ...

, National Honor Society (NHS), and more.

Media

The ''Valley Journal'' provides local news to Arlee, Charlo, Pablo, Polson, Ronan, and St. Ignatius. The FM radio station KYMI is licensed in Charlo. It is owned by the Educational Media Foundation, a Christian media ministry.

Infrastructure

Charlo is along Montana Highway 212. It is west of U.S. Route 93. Via Highway 212, it is northeast of Sčilíp. The nearest commercial airport is Missoula Montana Airport, away. Another option is Glacier Park International Airport, away.

References

{{authority control Census-designated places in Lake County, Montana Census-designated places in Montana