Why is montana named montana

The Lewis and Clark Expedition of was the first group of white explorers to cross Montana. Hard on the heels of the expedition arrived the fur trappers and traders.

Trappers brought alcohol, disease, and a new economic system to native populations. The fur trade was mostly over by the s due to dwindling supplies of beaver and the loss of popularity of the beaver hat. Roman Catholic missionaries followed the trappers into Montana. They established Saint Mary's Mission in the Bitterroot Valley, thought to be the first permanent settlement in Montana.

They also promoted agriculture and built a sawmill. The discovery of gold brought many prospectors into the area in the s, and Montana became a territory in The rapid influx of people led to boomtowns that grew rapidly and declined just as quickly when the gold ran out. As more white people came into the area, Indians lost access to their traditional hunting grounds, and conflicts grew.

Yet, in the end, the Indians could not hold out against the strength of the United States Army. Miners weren't the only early settlers in Montana. Cattle ranches began flourishing in western valleys during the s as demand for beef in the new mining communities increased.

After open-range cattle operations spread across the high plains, taking advantage of the free public-domain land. Bordered by the Canadian province of British Columbia to the north and the U.

With an abundance of Live TV. This Day In History. History Vault. Hidden History: Madison Square Park. Roosevelt Arch. Creation of Yellowstone. Hidden History: Park Avenue. Nevada Nevada is the seventh largest of the 50 states, but is one of the most sparsely populated. Arkansas Part of the land acquired in the Louisiana Purchase, Arkansas became a separate territory in and achieved statehood in The state borders North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south and Idaho to the west and southwest.

Chosen from Latin dictionary by J. It is a Latinized Spanish word meaning "mountainous. Created out of the Idaho Territory in , the name Montana is a derivation of the Latin word "montaanus" which means mountainous. Montana is a word derived from the Spanish word meaning "mountainous.

The Continental Divide, the continuous division from north to south along the Rocky Mountain crest, divides the flow of water between the river systems flowing to the Pacific Ocean from those flowing to the Atlantic. In all Montana features over 50 mountain ranges, and many of the higher mountain areas remain covered with snow for up to 10 months of the year.

When gold was discovered near Bannack and Virginia City, the population grew rapidly and there was a drive to make this region a separate territory. In Montana became a territory approved by Abraham Lincoln. It was at this time that the territory officially became known as Montana.