Wheatland

Formed February 22, 1917 (43^rd county)

Wheatland County (2,077), Harlowton (958)

A gray stone 1911 courthouse serves Wheatland County.  The building was originally a school converted in 1938 as a courthouse.  Wheatland County was organized on February 22, 1917 as the 43^rd county.  Harlowton has always been the county seat.  The county name is a descriptive term for the local farmland.  The county seat was named for railroad officer, Richard A. Harlow.  The courthouse is on Northwest Street between A and B avenues.  Northwest Second Street is United States Highway 12 in the town.  John Hackett Kent provided the Romanesque designs for the courthouse.  The building was renovated in 1940. 

Wheatland 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.)  One District Court Judge serves Wheatland, Golden Valley, Meagher, and Musselshell counties and a court clerk serves Wheatland County (judicial.)  The county is situated in south central Montana.  Great Falls, Montana is northwest and Billings, Montana is southeast of the county.  The county center is 4.6 miles North of Harlowton.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Fergus, Golden Valley, Sweet Grass, Meagher, and Judith Basin counties. 

The area of the county is 1423 square miles.  It is 49 out of 56 in the state.  It ranks 43 out of 56 in population in the state.  It has a density of 1.5 persons per square mile making it 42 out of 56 in the state.  Wheatland County has 51.4% of its population in its incorporated areas.  United States Highway 12 crosses the county east to west from Golden Valley County to Meagher County.  United States Highway 191 goes north to south from Fergus County to Sweet Grass County.  The county is an overall rectangle.  Harlowton is south of the center of the county.  Harlowton is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 46.1% of the county population.