Madison County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

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 ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 8,623. Its

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 ...

is Virginia City. The county was founded in 1865; at the time it was part of the

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 ...

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 county has an area of , of which is land and (0.4%) is water.

Major highways

Interstate 15 Interstate 15 (I-15) is a major Interstate Highway in the Western United States, running through Southern California and the Intermountain West. I-15 begins near the Mexican border in San Diego County and stretches north to Alberta, Ca ...

* U.S. Highway 91 * U.S. Highway 287 * Montana Highway 41 * Montana Highway 84 * Montana Highway 87 * Montana Highway 55 * Montana Highway 287

Adjacent counties

* Beaverhead County - southwest * Silver Bow County - northwest * Jefferson County - north * Gallatin County - east * Fremont County, Idaho - south

National protected areas

* Beaverhead National Forest (part) * Deerlodge National Forest (part) * Gallatin National Forest (part)

Politics

In presidential elections, Madison County has historically voted predominantly Republican, with

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

the only Democrat to carry the vote since 1916, the last of the three times he did so being in

1940 A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280. Events Below, events related to World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January *Janu ...

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 8,623 people living in the county.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 7,691 people, 3,560 households, and 2,192 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 6,940 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 96.8% white, 0.5% American Indian, 0.3% Asian, 0.2% black or African American, 0.8% from other races, and 1.4% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 2.4% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 31.0% were German, 19.7% were English, 18.9% were Irish, 7.3% were Norwegian, 5.9% were Swedish, 5.0% were Scottish, and 2.9% were American. Of the 3,560 households, 21.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.9% were married couples living together, 4.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 38.4% were non-families, and 32.6% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.11 and the average family size was 2.67. The median age was 49.8 years. The median income for a household in the county was $42,998 and the median income for a family was $52,636. Males had a median income of $38,495 versus $28,125 for females. The per capita income for the county was $32,205. About 8.5% of families and 11.6% 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 16.7% of those under age 18 and 9.8% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Towns

Ennis Ennis ( , meaning 'island' or 'river meadow') is the county town of County Clare, in the mid-west of Ireland. The town lies on the River Fergus, north of where the river widens and enters the Shannon Estuary. Ennis is the largest town in Cou ...

* Sheridan * Twin Bridges * Virginia City

Census-designated places

Alder Alders are trees of the genus ''Alnus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The genus includes about 35 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, a few reaching a large size, distributed throughout the north temperate zone with a few species ex ...

* Big Sky * Brandon * Harrison *

Jeffers Jeffers is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Alex Jeffers, American author * Alexis Jeffers (born 1968), St. Kitts and Nevis politician * Anne Burton Jeffers (1851 - 1946), American librarian * Audrey Jeffers (1898–1968) ...

Mammoth A mammoth is any species of the extinct elephantid genus ''Mammuthus.'' They lived from the late Miocene epoch (from around 6.2 million years ago) into the Holocene until about 4,000 years ago, with mammoth species at various times inhabi ...

* McAllister * Norris *

Pony A pony is a type of small horse, usually measured under a specified height at maturity. Ponies often have thicker coats, manes and tails, compared to larger horses, and proportionally shorter legs, wider barrels, heavier , thicker necks and s ...

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against a ...

Other unincorporated communities

* Cameron * Jefferson Island * Junction * Laurin * Nevada City * Red Bluff * Rochester * Ruby * Sterling * Summit

Former communities

* Union City

Education

K-12 school districts:
Text list
/ref> * Ennis K-12 Schools * Harrison K-12 Schools * Twin Bridges K-12 Schools Sheridan Public Schools has two components: Sheridan Elementary School District and Sheridan High School District. Whitehall Public Schools has two components: Whitehall Elementary School District and Whitehall High School District. Secondary school districts: * Sheridan High School District * Whitehall High School District Elementary school districts: * Alder Elementary School District * Cardwell Elementary School District * Sheridan Elementary School District * Whitehall Elementary School District

Notable person

* Sam V. Stewart, former Montana governor and Supreme Court justice

References

External links

Montana Association of Counties - Madison County website
{{Coord, 45.30, -111.92, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-MT_source:UScensus1990 1865 establishments in Montana Territory Populated places established in 1865