Gallatin

Formed February 2, 1865 (5^th county)

Gallatin County (118,957), Bozeman (53,317)

A masonry Art Deco facility serves as the Gallatin County courthouse.  Built in 1936, the structure is located on Main Street at 3^rd Avenue.  United States Highway 191 is Main Street in the town.  Fred F. Wilson provided the building designs.  The county was created on February 2, 1865 as the 5^th county.  Gallatine City was the first county seat until 1865 when Bozeman became the county seat.  A classier courthouse existed from 1880.  A Law and Justice Center was built in 1962.  The county is named for United States Secretary of the Treasury, Albert Gallatin.  Bozeman is named for explorer John M. Bozeman. 

Gallatin County government consists of a sheriff, an administrator, an attorney, a collector, a coroner, an assessor and a clerk (executive).  It has 3 Commissioners (legislative.)  Three District Court Judges and a court clerk serve Gallatin County (judicial.)  Gallatin County is on the southern border with both Idaho and Wyoming.  Billings, Montana is northeast and Missoula, Montana is northwest of the county.  The county center is 24.7 miles Southwest of Bozeman nearer Gallatin Gateway.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Meagher and Park counties and Wyoming and Idaho and Madison, Jefferson, and Broadwater counties.  Gallatin County is shaped like a sword pointing south.  The Continental Divide forms its southern border with Idaho. 

The area of the county is 2507 square miles.  It is 25 out of 56 in the state.  It ranks 2 out of 56 in population in the state.  It has a density of 47.4 persons per square mile making it 3 out of 56 in the state.  Gallatin County has 58.1% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 90 crosses the county east to west from Park County to Broadwater County.  United States Highway 20 clips the southern tip of the county from Wyoming, east, to Idaho, south.  United States Highway 191 enters joined with Interstate Highway 90 from Park County, splits and exits southeast into Wyoming.  United States Highway 287 comes joined with United States Highway 20 from Wyoming, splits and goes west into Madison County.  Bozeman is in the northeast quarter of the county.  Bozeman is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 44.8% of the county population.  This county is in the Bozeman Micropolitan Statistical Area.