•162 MONTANA-1916 • 



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electricity and has cheap electric power and fuel, has good schools, churches, 

 banks, two newspapers and many business houses. The great pay-roll of the coal 

 mines is the basis of the commercial business of the town, whose trade extends for 

 many miles in all directions. Roundup is surrounded by a rich and developing 

 agricultural country. Klein is a busy coal mining camp near Roundup. 



Near the eastern boundary is the town of Melstone, which is a division point 

 on the Milwaukee railroad and is the trading point for a rapidly developing 

 country. Melstone is surrounded by a good farming district and there are 

 undeveloped beds of coal in the vicinity. 



Lavina was a noted place in the old stage coach days and the new town, a mile 

 east of the old one, enjoys the same advantages of location and is a thriving, growing 

 place. Many prosperous ranch homes are in the vicinity. An artesian well 

 yielding water under good pressure is in the town. 



The county around Rygate, a town in the western end of the county, has under- 

 gone a wonderful transformation in the last five years from a grazing to a farming 

 country. The soil is good and large yields of all staple crops are made. Opportunities 

 exist to buy good land on easy terms. 



The character of the soil, the climatic conditions and sheltered positions of 

 considerable area of land in Musselshell county suggest that fruit growing on a 

 commercial basis would be successful; and the growing of sugar beets on irrigated 

 lands in the valley would surely be carried on on a large scale if there were a 

 beet sugar factory within shipping distance. 



The population of Musselshell county is estimated at 16,280 and the assessed 

 valuation is $12,614,799. 



LAND AREA — Musselshell, which is in the Billings and Lewistown land dis- 

 tricts, embraces an area of 2,944 square miles, including 92,155 acres of unreserved 

 and unappropriated public land, and 24,480 acres of national forests. Of the total 

 area of the county, 1,221,375 acres are privately owned. 



CROP PRODUCTION — The following gives the estimated crop production for 

 1915: wheat, 850,000 bushels; oats, 375,000 bushels; barley, 30,000 bushels; flax 15,000 

 bushels; potatoes, 105,000 bushels; corn, 20,000 bushels; hay 28,000 tons. 



In 1915, the assessor's rolls showed the following livestock; horses, 9,257 head; 

 milch cows, 2,507 head; other cattle, 8,086 head; sheep, 42,468 head; swine, 3,939 

 head. 



PARK COUNTY. 



Park county is one of the southern tier of counties and adjoins the Yellow- 

 stone National Park from which it was named. It was created February 23, 1887, 

 from a part of Gallatin county and some of its original territory is now included 

 in Carbon and Sweet Grass counties. 



The county is watered by the Yellowstone and Shields rivers and their 

 numerous tributaries. In the southern part of the county are high mountains on each 

 side of the Yellowstone valley. The Yellowstone river emerges from the Yellowstone 

 National Park and flows south through several canyons to Livingston, where it turns 

 to the east. South of Livingston is a long valley of varying width; and on each side 

 are foothills rising to the mountain ranges which contain timber, minerals, much 

 beautiful secenery, and favorite resorts for hunting and fishing. Hunters, Chico, 

 and Corwin springs attract many health seekers, and their waters have valuable cura- 

 tive properties. 



The industries are stock raising, farming and mining. The minerals are gold, 

 silver, copper, lead, scheelite, and coal. Emigrant gulch was formerly a producer 

 of placer gold in large quantities and there are quartz mines in the neighbor- 



