Map of Culbertson town, Montana

Culbertson is a town in Roosevelt County, Montana, United States. The population was 753 at the 2020 census.

Culbertson town overview:
Name:	Culbertson town
LSAD Code:	43
LSAD Description:	town (suffix)
State:	Montana
County:	Roosevelt County
Elevation:	1,932 ft (589 m)
Total Area:	1.02 sq mi (2.65 km²)
Land Area:	1.02 sq mi (2.65 km²)
Water Area:	0.00 sq mi (0.00 km²)
Total Population:	753
Population Density:	735.35/sq mi (283.84/km²)
ZIP code:	59218
Area code:	406
FIPS code:	3018475
GNISfeature ID:	0770366

Online Interactive Map

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Culbertson online map. Source: Basemap layers from Google Map, Open Street Map (OSM), Arcgisonline, Wmflabs. Boundary Data from Database of Global Administrative Areas.

Culbertson location map. Where is Culbertson town?

Culbertson location on the U.S. Map. Where is Culbertson town. — Culbertson location on the U.S. Map.

Culbertson location on the Montana map. Where is Culbertson town. — Location of Culbertson in Montana.

History

Culbertson was created in June 1887 following the arrival of the Great Northern Railway, then known as the St. Paul, Minneapolis & Manitoba Railway. The town was named after Major Alexander Culbertson, former head of the American Fur Company’s Fort Union, 23 miles (37 km) to the east.

The settlement of Culbertson followed hard on the heels of the 1886-87 watershed years for the early cattle industry. As a result, the first settlers in the area raised horses for the US Cavalry’s various Montana and Dakota posts. As cattle prices slowly rebounded, the range was once again stocked with cattle, though the second wave of cattlemen utilized hardy English breeds instead of the Texas longhorns of the earlier outfits.

With the passage of new homestead laws in 1909 enabling homesteaders to take out larger acreages, the area saw an influx of dryland farmers. With its railroad connection, Culbertson became the center of the area’s agricultural trade. When the agricultural boom went bust after World War II and never resumed its former glory, Culbertson saw a gradual decline in businesses and population. This was somewhat ameliorated by a heavy railroad presence in the community.

Culbertson also became a surviving center as smaller adjacent communities dried up in the agricultural depression of the 1920s and 1930s. With better automobiles and better roads, farmers and ranchers could live farther from centers of trade.