Bozeman, MT Summary

photo by gusto

The town was named for trailblazer John Bozeman, who led the first wagon train into the Gallatin Valley in 1864. Fifty years earlier, fur traders were among the first to trample the region after the Lewis and Clark expedition. By 1883, the Northern Pacific Railroad brought a steady stream of settlers who were to develop the town.

Now the fastest-growing city in Montana, with a population of 29,230, Bozeman sustains a youthful demographic, centered on Montana State University. Bozeman’s prosperous community is also flourishing with artists, sports enthusiasts, and ranchers. A drive along Main Street features multiple sports stores selling every imaginable ware, and there are many bookstores and trendy cafès.

Worth viewing is the university’s Museum of the Rockies, which chronicles everything from the evolution of the dinosaurs to strange lights in space. It also has an excellent presentation of a Native American interpretation of the universe.

The more generic Gallatin County Historical Museum features local history from an old county jail that only closed its doors in 1982. Bozeman’s solid artistic community is represented at the Emerson Cultural Center while the most unusual gallery is at the American Computer Museum on Babcock Street. Everything from an abacus to slide rules and PCs are on display.

Bozeman’s exquisite location, which is at the foothills of the Bridger Mountains and Gallatin River, is within striking distance of the Big Sky Ski Area as well as Yellowstone National Park. It remains Montana’s revered base for fly-fishing on the Yellowstone, Madison, and the Gallatin Rivers.

The latter, brimming with trout, was the location for the movie \”A River Runs Through It.\”

The town is 8 miles east of Bozeman Hot Springs, once the sacred cleansing ground for local Blackfoot Native Americans, which now serves as a campground. There are numerous downhill ski runs at Bridger Bowl Ski Area and groomed cross-country ski trails at the Bohart Ranch, less than 1 mile away from the resort.

Bozeman has its own airport, the Gallatin Airport, and buses also service the area.