Bearcreek, Montana

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Bearcreek is a town in Carbon County, Montana, United States. It is part of the Billings, Montana Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 83 at the 2000 census, making it the smallest incorporated town in Montana.

The town of Bearcreek was named for Bear Creek, which runs through the middle of town.

1 Geography
2 History
3 Demographics
4 External links

[edit] Geography

Bearcreek is located at 45°9′35″N, 109°9′23″W (45.159849, -109.156322)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 0.3 km² (0.1 mi²), all land.

[edit] History

Bearcreek was a coal mining town in the early 1900s, named for Bear Creek, which runs through the town. At its peak, Bearcreek and the surrounding communities of Washoe, New Caledonia, Chickentown, Scotch Coulee, International, and Stringtown, had a population of about 3,000 people, most of whom worked in the coal mines. Today, those surrounding towns are almost completely gone, with only a few houses and a quilt shop marking Washoe, currently the largest of them.

A rail spur ran to the mines in and around Bearcreek from Belfry for extracting the coal. From Belfry, it could be taken north to Billings, Montana or south to Cody, Wyoming.

On February 27, 1943, the Smith Mine #3 exploded in the worst coal mining accident in the history of Montana, killing 74 men and sealing the fate of the coal mining industry around Bear Creek. Today, the rail spur has been removed, and no active mining is done in the area.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 83 people, 38 households, and 22 families residing in the town. The population density was 267.1/km² (690.3/mi²). There were 40 housing units at an average density of 128.7/km² (332.7/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 96.39% White, 1.20% African American, and 2.41% from two or more races.

There were 38 households out of which 31.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.2% were married couples living together, 18.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.5% were non-families. 34.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.18 and the average family size was 2.35.

In the town the population was spread out with 21.7% under the age of 18, 10.8% from 18 to 24, 33.7% from 25 to 44, 28.9% from 45 to 64, and 4.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 97.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.7 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $32,917, and the median income for a family was $32,500. Males had a median income of $20,250 versus $25,000 for females. The per capita income for the town was $13,572. There were 3.8% of families and 12.6% of the population living below the poverty line, including 20.0% of under eighteens and none of those over 64.