56 Counties

When the Homestead Act was passed in 1862, people were slow to jump on the offer of 160 acres of free land, that is until the railroad launched a huge ad campaign to draw people West for what they promised to be a land of abundance.

Ever since the Copper Kings showed a complete disregard for the impact of their mining operations on Montana's environment, we have struggled to find a balance between corporations using our abundance of natural resources to create jobs while also showing respect for the environment.

Whitney Williams comes from a long line of political royalty in Montana. Most people know her as the daughter of Pat WIlliams, the longest serving Congressman in Montana history. But her mother also served in the legislature, and as the Senate Majority Leader, the first woman to hold that title. And Whitney's grandfather, Hannah Griffith, served as mayor of Butte from 1959-1964.

Dave Strohmaier served two terms on the City Council for Missoula, and he is currently serving his second term as County Commissioner for Missoula County. But he is also the founder a chairman of the Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority, an organization that is working to restore passenger rail service to Montana.

Montana just lost Philip Aaberg, one of its most talented musicians, to cancer. After growing up in Chester, Phil attended Harvard and went on to become a highly sought after touring musician.

Tim Gordon grew up in Missoula, where his father owned a construction business. But Tim was always fascinated with art and antiques and at a very early age, he started collecting and selling whatever valuable items he could get his hands on.

Since 1929, Billings has relied on Daylis Stadium as the primary venue for most of the major outdoor sporting events in the city. But the west end of the stadium was condemned for safety reasons in 2024, which caused several community members to step up their efforts to push forward with a plan to refurbish the stadium. It is now scheduled to re-open in September as Sam McDonald Stadium at Daylis. I talked to School District Number 2 Sports and Activities Director Mark Sulser about how this project came to be.

Jeff Mangan is a former state representative and state senator, and he also served for six years as the Commissioner for Political Practices.

Megan Torgerson grew up on a ranch near Dagmar, Montana. After moving away when she finished high school, she found herself fascinated by stories from the place where she grew up.

In 2010, Elouise Cobell, the long-time treasurer for the Blackfeet Tribe, settled a lawsuit against the US government on behalf of over 500,000 members of several tribes who had been victimized by the US government for decades.