Dillon, Montana
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Dillon is a city in and 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 ...
of Beaverhead 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 3,880 at the 2020 census. The city was named for
Sidney Dillon Sidney Dillon (May 7, 1812 – June 9, 1892) was an American railroad executive and one of the US's premier railroad builders. Early life Dillon was born in Northampton, Fulton County, New York. His father, Timothy, was a farmer. Career Sidney ...
(1812–1892), president of
Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad is a Railroad classes, Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United Stat ...
.


History

Dillon was founded in the Beaverhead Valley as a railroad town in 1880. Originally named “Terminus” as it was temporarily the northernmost stop on the
Utah and Northern Railway The Utah & Northern Railway is a defunct railroad that was operated in the Utah Territory and later in the Idaho Territory and Montana Territory in the western United States during the 1870s and 1880s. It was the first railroad in Idaho and in ...
while it was under construction, in 1881, the community was renamed for Union Pacific Railroad President
Sidney Dillon Sidney Dillon (May 7, 1812 – June 9, 1892) was an American railroad executive and one of the US's premier railroad builders. Early life Dillon was born in Northampton, Fulton County, New York. His father, Timothy, was a farmer. Career Sidney ...
, who had directed the project of bringing the railroad through to
Butte, Montana Butte ( ) is a consolidated city-county and the county seat of Silver Bow County, Montana, United States. In 1977, the city and county governments consolidated to form the sole entity of Butte-Silver Bow. The city covers , and, according to the 2 ...
. The town's location was selected by the railroad in part because of its proximity to
gold mines Gold mining is the extraction of gold by mining. Historically, mining gold from alluvial deposits used manual separation processes, such as gold panning. The expansion of gold mining to ores that are not on the surface has led to more complex ...
in the area. The first ore discovered in the Dillon area was silver. Gold was first discovered at Grasshopper Creek in 1862, precipitating a flood of immigration to the area. The last real gold rush in the area occurred near Argenta in 1920 and lasted for 30 years. Dillon served as a central location for transporting goods to nearby
boomtown A boomtown is a community that undergoes sudden and rapid population and economic growth, or that is started from scratch. The growth is normally attributed to the nearby discovery of a precious resource such as gold, silver, or oil, although t ...
s such as Bannack, Argenta,
Glen A glen is a valley, typically one that is long and bounded by gently sloped concave sides, unlike a ravine, which is deep and bounded by steep slopes. The word is Goidelic in origin: ''gleann'' in Irish and Scottish Gaelic, ''glion'' in Manx. ...
, and
Virginia City Virginia City is a census-designated place (CDP) that is the county seat of Storey County, Nevada, United States, and the largest community in the county. The city is a part of the Reno– Sparks Metropolitan Statistical Area. Virginia City dev ...
. In 1881, Dillon became part of a contentious battle with Bannack to become the county seat of Beaverhead County. The first brick building in Dillon was built in 1882. In 1884, Dillon became an incorporated town and began building sidewalks and permanent dwellings for the residents. While many of the gold mining towns around Dillon died, Dillon was able to thrive due to the railroad and
talc Talc, or talcum, is a clay mineral composed of hydrated magnesium silicate, with the chemical formula . Talc in powdered form, often combined with corn starch, is used as baby powder. This mineral is used as a thickening agent and lubricant ...
mining in the area. A cattle industry was established in 1865. The agriculturally rich Beaverhead Valley became an ideal location for sheep ranching, introduced in 1869. Dillon was once the largest exporter of sheep wool in Montana. The Montana Normal College was established as a teaching college in 1892, and is still functioning today, renowned for its Education program. A circus elephant named Old Pitt was struck by lightning in 1943 and is buried at the Dillon fairgrounds. Captain Joel Rude of the
Montana National Guard The Montana National Guard consists of the Montana Army National Guard and the Montana Air National Guard. Structure and mission When National Guard troops are called to federal service, the President serves as Commander-in-Chief. The federal ...
crashed his
F-106 The Convair F-106 Delta Dart is an all-weather interceptor aircraft designed and produced by the American aircraft manufacturer Convair. The F-106 was designed in response to the 1954 interceptor program. Envisioned as an imagined "Ultimate Int ...
into a grain elevator and died during a Labor Day Parade on September 3, 1979. A plaque in his honor is part of the Southwest Montana Veterans Memorial park in Dillon.


Geography

Dillon is situated on the
Beaverhead River The Beaverhead River is an approximately tributary of the Jefferson River in southwest Montana (east of the Continental Divide). It drains an area of roughly . The river's original headwaters, formed by the confluence of the Red Rock River and ...
. It lies at an elevation of . 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 city has a total area of , all land.


Demographics

In April 2010, Dillon was listed as one of "America's Prettiest Towns" by ''
Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...
'' magazine.


2010 census

As of the 2010
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 4,134 people, 1,774 households, and 897 families living in the city. 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 1,930 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 94.7%
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 ...
, 0.3%
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 ...
, 1.4% Native American, 0.5% Asian, 0.6%
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 ...
, 0.6% from other races, and 1.9% 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 3.5% of the population. There were 1,774 households, of which 23.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.2% 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, 9.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 49.4% were non-families. 40.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.08 and the average family size was 2.82. The median age in the city was 33.9 years. 20% of residents were under the age of 18; 19.4% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 20.3% were from 25 to 44; 23.7% were from 45 to 64; and 16.7% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 49.4% male and 50.6% female.


2000 census

As of the 2000
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 3,752 people, 1,669 households, and 934 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 1,831 housing units at an average density of 1,122.7 per square mile (433.7/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 96.43%
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 ...
, 0.35%
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 ...
, 1.31% Native American, 0.13% Asian, 0.61% from other races, and 1.17% 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 1.95% of the population. There were 1,669 households, out of which 27.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.3% 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, 8.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.0% were non-families. 36.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.19 and the average family size was 2.88. In the city, the population was spread out, with 22.7% under the age of 18, 11.1% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 22.4% from 45 to 64, and 18.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 97.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.6 males. The median income for a household in the city was $26,389, and the median income for a family was $39,643. Males had a median income of $25,625 versus $18,906 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 city was $16,432. About 13.8% of families and 18.2% 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 15.9% of those under age 18 and 15.9% of those age 65 or over.


Media

KDBM KDBM (1490 AM) is a radio station licensed to serve Dillon, Montana. The station is owned by Dead-Air Broadcasting Company. It airs a full-service Country music format. The station was assigned the KDBM call letters by the Federal Communicatio ...
AM 1490 and
KBEV-FM KBEV-FM (98.3 FM) is a radio station licensed to serve Dillon, Montana. The station is owned by Dead-Air Broadcasting Company. It airs an adult contemporary music format. The station was assigned the KBEV-FM call letters by the Federal Commun ...
98.3, owned by the Dead-Air Broadcasting Company, are both licensed to serve the Dillon area. Two radio stations are operated by the
University of Montana The University of Montana (UM) is a public research university in Missoula, Montana, United States. UM is a flagship institution of the Montana University System and its second largest campus. Fall 2024 saw total enrollment hit 10,811, marki ...
, KDWG FM 90.9 has a variety format and KUMW is public radio. Television stations come from
Butte In geomorphology, a butte ( ) is an isolated hill with steep, often vertical sides and a small, relatively flat top; buttes are smaller landforms than mesas, plateaus, and table (landform), tablelands. The word ''butte'' comes from the French l ...
and
Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...
: * KXLF (Channel 4)
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
affiliate *
KDVR KDVR (channel 31) is a television station in Denver, Colorado, United States, affiliated with the Fox network. It is simulcast full-time over satellite station KFCT (channel 22) in Fort Collins. Nexstar Media Group owns KDVR and KFCT alongsi ...
(Channel 5)
Fox Foxes are small-to-medium-sized omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull; upright, triangular ears; a pointed, slightly upturned snout; and a long, bushy tail ("brush"). Twelve species ...
Affiliate * KTVM (Channel 6)
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
affiliate *
KUSM Montana PBS is the PBS member public television network for the U.S. state of Montana. It is a joint venture between Montana State University (MSU) and the University of Montana (UM). The network is headquartered in the Visual Communications Bu ...
(Channel 9)
PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...
affiliate Dillon has two primary newspapers: * The
Dillonite Daily
' includes sections such as new job listings in and around the area, any and all things for sale, ISO, recent activity, and upcoming events. * The
Dillon Tribune
' presents sports, obituaries, community news, classifieds, weather and a local calendar.


Education

Dillon is part of School District 10 under Superintendent Glen A. Johnson. Schools in this district include: Parkview Elementary School, under Principal Greg Fitzgerald, and the Dillon Middle School under Principal Joel Rogers. Dillon is also home to
Beaverhead County High School Beaverhead County High School is a high school in Dillon, Beaverhead 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 ...
, a Class A High School under Principal Gary Haverfield. As of 2017, there were around 320 students. The high school's mascot is the Beaver. Dillon is known statewide for its decades of success in high school sports. The boys' basketball team won the Class A State Championship in 1990, the school's first state title since 1946. Since 2000 the high school football team has played in 11 Class A State Championships, winning eight. The boys' basketball team has played in eight Class A State Championships since 2007, winning five. The city is also home to the
University of Montana Western The University of Montana Western (UMW, Montana Western) is a public college in Dillon, Montana. It is affiliated with the University of Montana and part of the Montana University System. It was founded in 1893 as "Montana State Normal School" a ...
, formerly Western Montana College, under provost and vice chancellor Deborah Hedeen and Chancellor Beth Weatherby. As of 2016, there were 1,501 students. The college mascot is the Bulldog. Dillon Public Library was built as a Carnegie library in 1901 and still serves the community.


Economy

Dillon's largest employers include Barretts Minerals Inc., Barrett Hospital and HealthCare, and Beaverhead County. Great Harvest Bread Company has its franchising headquarters in Dillon. The Beaverhead County Museum is in Dillon. Public facilities in Dillon include the Dillon Public Library, Post Office, and Barrett's Park. The
YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It has nearly 90,000 staff, some 920,000 volunteers and 12,000 branches w ...
has a location within the city limits. Recreational activities that draw tourism to Dillon include fishing on the Beaverhead River,
snowmobiling A snowmobile, also known as a snowmachine (chiefly Alaskan), motor sled (chiefly Canadian), motor sledge, skimobile, snow scooter, or simply a sled is a motorized vehicle designed for winter travel and recreation on snow. Their engines normally ...
, hiking, shopping at the Patagonia outlet, four-wheeling, the annual Demolition Derby, and skiing at
Maverick Mountain Ski Area Maverick Mountain Ski Area is an alpine ski area located in the Beaverhead National Forest in southwestern Montana. References External links Official website
{{Montana Ski areas navbox Buildings and structures in Beaverhead County ...
.
Bannack State Park Bannack is a ghost town in Beaverhead County, Montana, United States, located on Grasshopper Creek, approximately upstream from where Grasshopper Creek joins with the Beaverhead River south of Dillon. Founded in 1862, the town is a National H ...
is popular with tourists. Dillon is also home to the annual "Montana's Biggest Weekend" event, also known as the Jaycee Labor Day Rodeo, Concert, & Parade.


Infrastructure

Dillon Airport is a county-owned airport five miles northeast of Dillon., effective 2023-08-10.


Climate

Dillon experiences 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 ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...
''BSk'') with cold, dry winters and hot, wetter summers. On January 13, 2024, Dillon, Montana reached an all time record low of −42 °F (−41 °C


Notable people

* Troy Andersen,
NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...
linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...
* Ed Barker,
NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...
wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...
* Frank W. Hazelbaker, politician, Speaker of the Montana House *
Lloyd Meeds Edwin Lloyd Meeds (December 11, 1927August 17, 2005) was an American politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1965 to 1979. He represented the Washington's 2nd congressional district, second district ...
, politician, lobbyist, and navy officer *
Edwin L. Norris Edwin Lee Norris (August 15, 1865 – April 25, 1924) was a Democratic politician from Montana. He served as the fifth Governor of Montana. Biography Norris was born in Cumberland County, Kentucky, in 1865, and graduated from the Southern Nor ...
, 5th
Governor of Montana A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...
(1908–1913) *
Jacob Thorkelson Jacob Thorkelson (September 24, 1876 – November 20, 1945) was a Norwegian Americans, Norwegian-born American politician who served as the United States House of Representatives, representative from Montana's 1st congressional district from Janu ...
, United States Representative from Montana * Benjamin F. White, former mayor of Dillon and last Governor of
Montana Territory The Territory of Montana was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 26, 1864, until November 8, 1889, when it was admitted as the 41st state in the Union as the state of Montana. Original boundaries ...
(1889)


See also

*
List of municipalities in Montana Montana is a state located in the Western United States. According to the 2020 United States Census, Montana is the 8th least populous state with inhabitants but the 4th largest by land area spanning of land. Montana is divided into 56 count ...


References


External links

* {{authority control Cities in Beaverhead County, Montana County seats in Montana 1880 establishments in Montana Territory Railway towns in Montana Cities in Montana