Montana State History - Key Facts:
The land was 1 of 13 states purchased by the US as a part of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 from Napoleon Bonaparte for $15 million - about 3 cents an acre. Thomas Jefferson, president at the time, hired explorers Lewis and Clark to visit the territory and map it regions, geography and landscapes.
Montana was admitted to the Union as an official state on November 8th, 1889 - the 41st state. In 1894 Helena was named the state capital, following the "War of the Two Copper Kings"
The state gem is the Sapphire and there are MT sapphires in the Crowned Jewels in England. The only North American gem on the crown.
The highest point in montana is 12,799 ft above sea level.
The largest snowflake ever recorded was 38cm (almost 15 inches) wide and it was found/seen in Montana in 1887.
In 1884, the citizens get tired of the lawlessness and reckless abandon, so they formed a cavalry or vigilantes and executed over 35 horse and carriage thieves in that single year.
Montana has the most recorded native species of mammals of any of the states.
One Montana cowboy insisted on bringing his horse to his hotel room in Fort Benton. When the manager refused to allow it, gunfire was exchanged. The man and his horse reached the top of the stairs before he was killed. They later found 14 .44 caliber bullets in his body.
Motana's famous national park - Glacier - is known as the "Crown Jewel of the Continent". It has 250 lakes within it's boundaries and Going to the Sun Road is "the most scenic drive in the country".
Montana was first inhabited by the Plains indians.
The gold found in Bannack Montana in 1862 was 99.5% pure gold. Almost 5% more pure then any previously found gold in the country. It first finding brought the second largest rush to the west since the California Gold Rush in 1848.
It is illegal for a woman to dance on a Saloon table in Helena, MT unless her closes wiegh more then 3lbs. 2oz.
It is also illegal to throw an item across the street in Helena.
Info from:
http://www.legendsofamerica.com/mt-facts.html
MT sapphires are also the only ones in the world to come out of the ground naturally blue, or so I've always been told. You'll want to get thee down to Townsend and get some ;)
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