Granite

Formed March 2, 1893 (18^th county)

Granite County (3,306), Philipsburg (839)

A tan brick building with a small tower serves as the Granite County courthouse.  Built in 1913 on a hill, the structure is located at Kearney and Sansome Streets.  Montana State Highway 1 is about 5 blocks west, bypassing the city.  There was an earlier 1887 wooden courthouse in Philipsburg, the only county seat.  The county was created on March 2, 1893 as the 18^th county.  John G. Link and Charles S. Haire were the architects for this Neo-Classical facility.  Philipsburg was named after mining engineer Philip Deidesheimer.  Granite County is named for local minerals. 

Granite County government consists of a sheriff and 3 Commissioners.  One District Court Judge serves Granite, Deer Lodge, and Powell counties.  The county is located in the southwest part of the state.  The county center is 10.5 miles West of Philipsburg.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Powell, Deer Lodge, Beaverhead, Ravalli, and Missoula counties.  Although the county is basically rectangular, the east border has the only straight lines.  The northern and western borders follow mountain ranges and the southern border follows the Continental Divide. 

The area of the county is 1728 square miles.  It is 40 out of 56 in the state.  It ranks 41 out of 56 in population in the state.  It has a density of 1.9 persons per square mile making it 35 out of 56 in the state.  Granite County has 33.6% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 90, along with United States Highway 12, enters from the northwest and exits to the northeast.  Philipsburg is in the southeast quarter of the county.  Philipsburg is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 25.4% of the county population.