Welcome to Stillwater County, Montana

It took a special kind of people to settle Montana and Stillwater County. Some were farmers, others miners, yet others businessmen. Many worked very hard to make their corner of the world a better place. All played a role in the settling of this country. Some moved on while others stayed.

Located in southcentral Montana, Stillwater County was created in 1913 from parts of Carbon, Sweet Grass and Yellowstone Counties. It's major rivers are the Yellowstone, which bisects the county running from west to east, and the Stillwater, which flows from south to north and joins the Yellowstone at Columbus, the county seat of Stillwater County.

Enjoy your visit, your search and give thanks for those who came before us.

I don't live in Stillwater County but Randy and Maria Parthe do and have graciously consented to assist with local research. Randy also has captured the beauty of Stillwater County in postcards. (Photo left by Randy Parthe.)

This page is under the care of Joan Shurtliff. If you have any questions or suggestions please contact me.

Stillwater County Data Bases

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Cemetery inscriptions: Holland Settlement; Jackson Family, Nye, Park City & Stillwater cemeteries transcribed by June Mandeville. As an ongoing project, vital records from Stillwater County newspapers are being transcribed. Some have also been submitted toThe Montana GenWeb archives. Vital Records from early newspapers: Stillwater "Bulletin", 1894; Stillwater County Democrat vitals 1914; Stillwater County Democrat vitals 1915; Stillwater County Democrat vitals 1916; Stillwater "Enterprise", Absarokee, 1928-30. Full stories (FS) are at the Museum of the Beartooths or are available on microfilm through the Montana State Historical Society/Library. 1880 Census for the State of Montana
1900 Federal Census for Sweet Grass County, Stillwater Township, transcribed by Joan Shurtliff. Montana Death List 1954-2002 transcribed by the Montana State Genealogical Society. List of residents who died at the Stillwater County Nursing Home, 1958-62.
Obituaries & queries, including recent obituaries from the Big Timber "Pioneer" (through 2007). Stillwater & Sweet Grass County Photo Album. Stillwater County obituaries beginning in 2008.
Stillwater Stories Progressive Men of the State of Montana, biographies from the late 1800s. 1895 Sweet Grass County, Montana Tax List. Until Stillwater County was formed in 1913, the Stillwater River was the boundary for Carbon and Sweet Grass Counties. Nye and Merrill were located in Sweet Grass County.
History of the Yellowstone Valley index. This 669 page volume was published by Western Historical Publishing Co., Spokane, Wash. For lookups contact Mike Hoines. Click the back arrow to return to the Stillwater County index page. Lookups: They Gazed on the Beartooths. Mike Hoines will do lookups in this volume by Jim Annins. Madson Memorial Dedication", 16 Oct. 1938, Absarokee, MT. Jorgen Elesius Madson was a pioneer Lutheran minister. In 1895, he served churches at Melville and Castle. In 1901, he became the pastor at Absarokee, MT and retired from there in 1924.
Stillwater County Mailing List information.

Stillwater County Vital Records from newspapers

Stillwater Bulletin 1894 Tri County News 1901 Tri County News 1902
Tri County News1903 Stillwater County Democrat 1914 Stillwater County Democrat 1915
Stillwater County Democrat 1916 Stillwater Enterprise, Absarokee 1928-30

Resource Individuals

Randy and Maria Parthe live in Stillwater County and know its towns and byways. Interested in the history of the area, they are willing to assist researchers. Randy also has Stillwater County photo greeting cards.

For seeking or sharing information, obituaries & queries, above, will take you to the Stillwater County bulletin board and the Stillwater County Mailing List link will take you to subscribing and unsubscribing information. Click here to access the mailing list.

If you'd like to visit adjacent counties or go back to Montana or U.S. GenWeb home pages go to:

Other resources

Name Searches, Queries and Mailing Lists

 Stillwater County Mailing List 

is online now and administered by Edward A. Black, Sr., a fellow Stillwater County researcher.

To join, just click on the link, the message will show MTSTILL-L-request@rootsweb.com and type "subscribe" in the body of the message.

Thanks for using the Stillwater County mailing list.

Name Searches

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Contact Montana State Coordinator Kevin Haddenham.

A big thank you goes out to Florence Carlson who provided local contact for researchers from 1997-2006. Her interest in the history of the area was a valuable asset.

fine folks have visited this site since October 18, 1999. An invitation is extended to return at any time.

This site is maintained by U.S. GenWeb Volunteer Joan Shurtliff and was last updated 24 August 2008. Montana GenWeb logo used with permission. Sunrise at Nye and Waterfall at Woodbine Trail near Nye, MT pictures by Randy Parthe. Main Street of Columbus postcard contributed by Rita Giebink. Photo images from the Library of Congress and National Archives prints and photographs collections. Depot, courthouse and museum pictures by Joan Shurtliff. Candle gif compliments of Free Gifs & Animations.

Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 by Joan E. Shurtliff. All rights reserved.