Shelby, Montana Community Information

Shelby is a county seat named for Peter P. Shelby, general manager of the Montana-Central Railroad. Shelby came into existence in 1891 when the Great Northern was forging across the prairie towards Marias Pass; the builders threw off a boxcar at the crosstrails in the coulee and called it a station.

In the late 1890s Shelby was a "cowboy town." Old-time stockmen of the area once boasted of being able to drive their cattle from Shelby to the North Dakota line without cutting a fence, but the homesteaders changed all that. In Shelby in 1919 there were 5,000 homestead entries in one land office. It was one of the last prairie and grassland area to be settled in the U.S.

In 1921, Gordon Campbell, a geologist, discovered oil in Montana and successfully drilled the field that stretched from Shelby to the Canadian border. The town grew by leaps and bounds, even hosting the World Heavyweight Championship fight between Cempsey and Gibbons in 1923.(from Cheney's Names on the Face of Montana, Mountain Press Publishing Company)

While in town, visit the Marias Museum of History and Art for a look at area history, homesteading, a dinosaur collection and more, Marias Valley Golf Course and Williamson Park Campground, where camping and outdoor recreation can be found. Nearby, the Sweet Grass Hills offer hiking and wildlife viewing, although they are almost exclusively on private property. Deer, antelope, elk, foxes, golden eagles, grouse and the unique "sweet grass" can be seen in these hills. North of town, Lake Shel-oole offers camping and outdoor recreation and south there is the Marias River, named after Meriwether Lewis' cousin.

Elevation: 3,086 feet