Golden Valley County, Montana

Golden Valley County
County
Golden Valley County Courthouse in Ryegate, Montana
Location within the U.S. state of Montana
Montana's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 46°23′N109°10′W / 46.38°N 109.17°W / 46.38; -109.17
Country	United States
State	Montana
Founded	March 8, 1920 [1]
Seat	Ryegate
Largest town	Ryegate
Area
• Total	1,176 sq mi (3,050 km2)
• Land	1,175 sq mi (3,040 km2)
• Water	1.0 sq mi (3 km2)  0.08%
Population  (2020)
• Total	823
• Estimate  (2022)	831
• Density	0.70/sq mi (0.27/km2)
Time zone	UTC−7 (Mountain)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−6 (MDT)
Congressional district	2nd
Website	www.goldenvalleycountymt.org
Montana county number 53

Golden Valley County is a county located in the U.S. state of Montana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 823, ^[2] making it the third-least populous county in Montana. Its county seat is Ryegate. ^[3]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,176 square miles (3,050 km²), of which 1,175 square miles (3,040 km²) is land and 1.0 square mile (2.6 km²) (0.08%) is water. ^[4] It is Montana's fifth-smallest county by area.

Major highways

• U.S. Highway 12
• Montana Highway 3

Adjacent counties

• Fergus County – north
• Musselshell County – east
• Yellowstone County – southeast
• Stillwater County – south
• Sweet Grass County – southwest
• Wheatland County – west

National protected area

• Lewis and Clark National Forest (part)

Politics

The county has usually favored Republican candidates. The 2016 Democratic candidate only received 71 county votes, the lowest ever for a major party in the county in a presidential election. The last Democrat to win there was Lyndon Johnson in his 1964 landslide victory.

United States presidential election results for Golden Valley County, Montana ^[5]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2024	440	85.44%	67	13.01%	8	1.55%
2020	414	82.31%	78	15.51%	11	2.19%
2016	365	77.00%	71	14.98%	38	8.02%
2012	351	73.28%	110	22.96%	18	3.76%
2008	343	69.72%	124	25.20%	25	5.08%
2004	396	75.86%	119	22.80%	7	1.34%
2000	405	76.27%	88	16.57%	38	7.16%
1996	284	58.20%	128	26.23%	76	15.57%
1992	192	38.71%	142	28.63%	162	32.66%
1988	335	61.69%	203	37.38%	5	0.92%
1984	384	64.00%	211	35.17%	5	0.83%
1980	362	65.11%	155	27.88%	39	7.01%
1976	302	53.08%	255	44.82%	12	2.11%
1972	359	64.92%	170	30.74%	24	4.34%
1968	332	60.04%	194	35.08%	27	4.88%
1964	252	41.72%	352	58.28%	0	0.00%
1960	362	56.65%	277	43.35%	0	0.00%
1956	383	59.94%	256	40.06%	0	0.00%
1952	471	70.40%	198	29.60%	0	0.00%
1948	352	53.09%	295	44.49%	16	2.41%
1944	395	59.67%	266	40.18%	1	0.15%
1940	402	52.96%	351	46.25%	6	0.79%
1936	331	40.32%	474	57.73%	16	1.95%
1932	423	46.38%	469	51.43%	20	2.19%
1928	625	63.91%	346	35.38%	7	0.72%
1924	422	37.88%	118	10.59%	574	51.53%
1920	1,185	72.57%	381	23.33%	67	4.10%

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1930	2,126		—
1940	1,607		−24.4%
1950	1,337		−16.8%
1960	1,203		−10.0%
1970	931		−22.6%
1980	1,026		10.2%
1990	912		−11.1%
2000	1,042		14.3%
2010	884		−15.2%
2020	823		−6.9%
2022 (est.)	835	[6]	1.5%
U.S. Decennial Census [7] 1790–1960 [8] 1900–1990 [9] 1990–2000 [10] 2010–2020 [2]

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 823 people living in the county.^{[ citation needed ]}

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 884 people, 363 households, and 239 families residing in the county. The population density was 0.8 inhabitants per square mile (0.31/km²). There were 476 housing units at an average density of 0.4 per square mile (0.15/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 94.0% white, 1.0% American Indian, 0.7% Asian, 2.1% from other races, and 2.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 3.5% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 38.9% were German, 19.5% were English, 18.4% were Irish, 10.1% were Polish, 9.0% were American, 7.3% were Danish, 6.4% were Dutch, and 6.2% were Norwegian.

Of the 363 households, 20.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.4% were married couples living together, 5.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 34.2% were non-families, and 29.5% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.19 and the average family size was 2.68. The median age was 48.8 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,726 and the median income for a family was $48,750. Males had a median income of $33,750 versus $27,938 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,319. About 3.4% of families and 10.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.7% of those under age 18 and 5.8% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Towns

• Lavina
• Ryegate (county seat)

Census-designated place

• Golden Valley Colony

Unincorporated communities

• Barber ^[11]
• Belmont ^[12]
• Franklin ^[13]
• Lavina ^[14]

See also

• List of lakes in Golden Valley County, Montana
• List of mountains in Golden Valley County, Montana
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Golden Valley County, Montana

References

1. "About Golden Valley County". Archived from the original on January 14, 2019. Retrieved February 17, 2012.
2. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved April 23, 2023.
3. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
4. "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Archived from the original on December 5, 2014. Retrieved November 28, 2014.
5. Leip, David. "Atlas of US Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved February 21, 2021.
6. "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2022". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved April 23, 2023.
7. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved November 28, 2014.
8. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved November 28, 2014.
9. "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved November 28, 2014.
10. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 27, 2010. Retrieved November 28, 2014.
11. Barber, Golden Valley County MT Google Maps (accessed January 2, 2019)
12. Belmont, Golden Valley County MT Google Maps (accessed January 2, 2019)
13. Franklin, Golden Valley County MT Google Maps (accessed January 2, 2019)
14. Lavina, Golden Valley County MT Google Maps (accessed January 2, 2019)

External links

• Golden Valley County official website

46°23′N109°10′W / 46.38°N 109.17°W / 46.38; -109.17