Cow-to-People ratio of every county in Montana Montana has a reputation of having more cows than people. As it turns out, that reputation is based on reality. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Montana’s 2018 population is roughly 1,062,305. Yes,...
Conservation Stewardship Program provides financial and technical assistance Ask any producer what their No. 1 job is, and most will tell you that it’s taking care of the land. Ranchers don’t only raise cattle; they farm grass. Farmers don’t just...
Major Successes, Major Failures Colored our 66th Montana Legislature Every two years, Montana’s 100-member House of Representatives and 50-member Senate gather in Helena for 90 days of budget negotiations, lawmaking and shenanigans. During the Legislative Session, Prairie Populist will share...
Photos provided by Mary Sexton Choteau residents mull the co-operative business model In rural Montana, there are some problems that cannot be solved without cooperation among community members and the pooling of resources. When profit margins get so slim that...
No easy task: coaxing ewes and lambs from pasture Video by Nancy Powell. Conrad rancher Lisa Schmidt dances with an elusive ewe and her lamb while coaxing both into the back of a truck to transport them from pasture to...
Ag Census and U.S. Census population estimates released this month April is tax season; it’s also census season. And this year, the federal government released two big censuses. Or is it censi? Either way, earlier this month the U.S. Census...
By Martha Williams, Director, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Montanans know how precious water is. It’s essential for fish and wildlife, boating and angling, irrigating, drinking and creating much of our electricity. When something threatens our water — such as...
Photo provided by Cameron Abell, Billings Firefighters Finally, Firefighters Secure the Protection They Deserve After 20 Years of Fighting Gov. Steve Bullock will sign the firefighter health and safety bill into law on Thursday, April 18. Finally, the men and...
Wild Horse Island State Park. All photos by August Schield We reminisce as extra resources bolster our parks During the summer of 2018, Prairie Populist covered every corner of the state, visiting Montana’s grand state parks. We quickly realized the...
Cartoon by Bridget Creel As session winds down, watch for pet bills attached to state budget Every two years, Montana’s 100-member House of Representatives and 50-member Senate gather in Helena for 90 days of budget negotiations, lawmaking and shenanigans. During...
Ruby Valley Produced Upset Winner; Bets Taken Now on Bolt D’Oro Before tractors, hydraulic combines, dirt bikes, and trucks, we Montanans relied on horses for every aspect of life: combining wheat in the fall, tilling the land in the...
There’s Many Fish in the Sea, But There’s Only One Big Spring Creek Lewistown, Montana has some of the most pristine water in the entire country. Big Spring Creek -- the main source of their water supply -- originates seven...
Lawmaker questions whether violence against nurses is really a problem after hearing directly from nurses The recent violent arrest of a nurse in a Salt Lake City hospital, caught on police video, reminded the world what a dangerous job it...
The Value of Agriculture: Welcome to the Ruby Valley Story and Photos by August Schield In Montana, people are bound together by a common landscape. It is the single most underlying substance that all life shares. Air and animals. People...
Feature photo courtesy of the Bureau of Land Management These days, you can easily drive from Billings to Glendive without stopping. At 80 miles per hour, the plains are a blur. But should you choose to slow down, you may...
Written by Laura Nowlin. Feature photo by Reba Ahlgren I have read several stories recently that make life in rural America seem pretty dismal – the population is aging and decreasing, everyone is poorly educated and addicted to drugs, and the land is either not...
Hard Work, Ambition, and Community I’ve lived in Montana my entire life, and the first thing from Montana I ever heard mentioned on TV was Butte. It was mispronounced (as “Butt, Montana”), but it still was on television. I was...
RANCHERS : THE LOCAL CONSERVATIONISTS Story and Photos by August Schield Ranchers are the local conservationists in the Ruby Valley. Here, conservation isn’t only a part of the culture, but also a part of the community. Meet Rick Sandru and...
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