339 2nd Ave. So. Glasgow, MT 59230 Phone: 406-228-4105 Fax: 406-228-4105 E-mail us
Come visit the Glasgow/Fort Peck area
to enjoy the present, explore the past
An aerial view of four-mile-long Fort Peck Dam and the lake behind it
ABOUT OUR AREA
Fort Peck and Glasgow are friendly Montana communities located in the northeastern corner of 'Big Sky Country' on and near U.S. Highway 2. This highway is a heavily traveled road for folks traveling across the northern tier statesfrom the Midwest to Glacier National Park, and, in Montana, was also a big part of the Lewis and Clark Expedition to the West Coast.
Formerly a government town owned by the US Army Corps of Engineers and built in the CCC days of the 1930s, Fort Peck is a pristine community which offers its residents and visitors a peaceful and tranquil lifestyle that can best be described as a "Blast from the Past". The town has many original buildings built in the 1930s that have been kept in beautiful original condition. Buildings include the still-operating U.S. Army Corps of Engineers administration building, the old Fort Peck Hotel, and a wonderful theater that has been entertaining people from far and near for many years.
CLIMATE
The mean temperature for the area ranges from a low of 10.2 degrees in January to a very comfortable 73.6 degrees in July. Of course, being Montana, it can and does get a lot colder and also a lot hotter than these temperatures. However; historically the extremes don't last for long periods of time. The area has an average annual precipitation of 11.57 inches and an average growing season of 120 days. It's interesting as there is what we call "Lake Effect" weather. We can have a blizzard of fluffy snow at Fort Peck and bright sun-shiny day in Glasgow just 20 miles away.
EDUCATION
The Valley County communities of Glasgow and Nashua are blessed to have excellent educational systems with Fort Peck residents having the choice of busing their children to either school district. Glasgow's total enrollment is approximately 1,100 students and Nashua has around 300 students. Accordingly, both of these schools maintain an excellent teacher/pupil ratio of about 1:15 or lower. Montana State University-Northern is located 158 miles away in Havre, Mt. and Dawson Community College, a 2-year college, is located in Glendive, MT., 151 miles from Glasgow.
MEDICAL FACILITIES
Medical facilities for the area are located in Glasgow. We have a 49-bed hospital as well as one medical clinic, 2 eye clinics, 2 assisted living facilities, a manor for the elderly, and a 96-bed nursing home. Also, 14 Medical Doctors, 3 Dentists, 36 visiting specialists, and 1 Chiropractor serve the area. Medical care is considered excellent with numerous specialties represented. Valley County Emergency Medical Service (a countywide volunteer network) as well as a 24 person volunteer fire department makes first response emergency medical services available to everyone in the community. Glasgow is also home to an air ambulance, which services the surrounding region.
RELIGION AND COMMERCIAL SERVICES
Fort Peck Community has one church that has Saturday and Sunday services for several different religions. Glasgow supports 17 churches representing all main line denominations. A mentor program is available for children through a cooperative effort by all churches.
Because Glasgow serves a relatively large trade area, it has a number of good commercial services not normally found in a city of this size. An informative Chamber of Commerce, one daily paper, one weekly newspaper, two radio stations, and cable TV serves the community and surrounding areas. This recognized Superhost community has 4 banks, as well as quality shopping facilities.
RECREATION
Fort Peck and Glasgow offer its residents and visitors a variety of good recreational and entertainment opportunities. There is a very challenging golf course as well as public tennis courts, public swimming, a senior citizens center, saddle club, 4 public parks, 2 indoor movie theaters, a summer theater, a youth fishing pond, and a soon to be indoor hockey rink.
Fort Peck Dam is the world's largest hydraulic earth-filled dam. Being fed by the Missouri River, the dam creates Montana's largest body of water which is 130 miles long and boasts of over 1,500 miles of shoreline - more than California. It was the first CCC project implemented after WWI to put men back to work. It is fast becoming a nationally known warm water fishery, supporting over 30 species of fish including walleye, sauger, northern pike, lake trout, chinook salmon, smallmouth bass, paddle fish, and sturgeon. Blue ribbon trout fishing is found just downstream of the dam. Local people will tell you that a bad day on the water is still better than the best day at work.
Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge, with over one million acres of public access is just minutes away. Some of the west's finest antelope, elk, white-tailed deer, mule deer, bighorn sheep, upland game birds, and waterfowl hunting can be found in the area.
In the works for enhancing the economy of our area is an Interpretive Center and a warm water fish hatchery, both to be located at Fort Peck. The Interpretive Center will be a fantastic new museum housing locally found dinosaur fossils, history of the Corps of Engineers, and history of other government agencies. It is a project that we are all very proud and excited about. The warm water hatchery will raise walleye fry and as well as other warm water species. There is only one other warm water hatchery in the state. We are extremely lucky to have convinced the legislature that we need another for backup and that it should be here. Ground breaking for the project was this past summer. It will take around 5 years to complete.
There are those people that think of the nearest Walmart/K-Mart being 3 hours away as making our area just too remote - "the end of the Earth". To each his own. But if you desire an area with friendly people who still care, a low crime rate, short grocery lines, three stop lights, and open spaces in which to live, raise a family and work, consider Fort Peck/Glasgow - it's one of our country's best kept secrets!
Here is some additional information
from the state's Travel Montana Web site
Fort Peck
Fort Peck was planned and developed by government engineers as the headquarters for construction and operation of the huge Fort Peck Dam in 1933. Fort Peck Dam is one of the largest earth-filled river impediments in the world. Its original purpose was not only to control floods but to create jobs in a depression-saddled economy. At that time, the undertaking was the nation’s largest public works project. The building of the dam, at its peak in 1936, provided 10,456 jobs; it was completed in 1940. The dam spans across the Missouri River from bluff to bluff covering 3.5 miles.
The construction spawned shanty boom towns that were scattered around the work area; Square Deal, New Deal, Park Grove, Delano Heights and Wheeler. These places disappeared almost as quickly as they grew. Some, including New Deal, are now covered by the lake. All that’s left today of any of them is the rebuilt Buckhorn Bar; the original burned down in 1983.
The name is derived from an old trading post that was located here. Colonel Campbell K. Peck and Commander E. H. Durfee established a trading post and Indian agency in 1867 a few miles from the present dam site. Fort Peck established a monopoly on fur trade with the Assiniboine and Sioux.
Remains of herbivorous and carnivorous dinosaurs, armored fish, and swimming reptiles are some fossils that are preserved at the Fort Peck Theater. Other findings suggest that the area was once subtropical and underwater.
This small town offers big recreation and entertainment opportunities. A scenic overlook just east of the dam on Montana Highway 24 offers views of Fort Peck Lake and interpretation of Lewis and Clark’s journey through northeast Montana.
Fort Peck Lake is a Montana treasure for its size and outdoor opportunities. Six recreation areas within a few miles of the dam provide access for water sports, fishing and hunting. The Beaver Creek Nature Trail starts at the campground downstream from the dam and leads through wildlife habitat. A wildlife viewing auto route, the Leo B. Coleman Wildlife Exhibit, takes off from near the Fort Peck Theater.
While at Fort Peck, you can either camp or stay in the 1930s-style Fort Peck Hotel (the rooms were remodeled in 1993). Visit the Fort Peck Museum to view its collection of Indian artifacts and fossils uncovered during the construction of the dam. And if you’re there between June and September, be sure to attend the Fort Peck Theater. It was built in 1934 as a movie house for the new town. Today it boasts a fine summer theater company.
This part of Fort Peck Lake is surrounded by the eastern unit of the Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge. You can camp anywhere on the refuge. One recommendation is to go out to the Pines Recreation Area, about 20 miles southwest of the dam. It provides some great scenery and photo opportunities, especially late in the day.
Elevation: 2,100 feet.
To learn more about Fort Peck or other travel in Montana, go to the Travel Montana Web site.
Fort Peck food and lodging
Lodging
Buckhorn Lodge 406-526-3208
Fort Peck Hotel 800-560-4931
Lakeridge Motel & Tackle 888-554-8125
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Restaurants
Gateway Inn Supper Club 406-526-9988
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Camping
Bear Creek Campground 406-526-3411 (U.S. Army Corps of Engineeers)
Bone Trail Campground 406-526-3411 (U.S. Army Corps of Engineeers)
Downstream Campground 406-526-3411 (U.S. Army Corps of Engineeers)
Duck Creek Campground 406-526-3411 (U.S. Army Corps of Engineeers)
Mcguire Creek 406-526-3411 (U.S. Army Corps of Engineeers)
Nelson Creek 406-526-3411 (U.S. Army Corps of Engineeers)
Rock Creek Marina 406-485-2560 (Private Campground)
The Pines Campground 406-526-3411 (U.S. Army Corps of Engineeers)
West End Campground 406-526-3411 (U.S. Army Corps of Engineeers)
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Glasgow
The Glasgow area is rolling plains and open farmland. Established in the late 1800s as a railroad town, Glasgow grew in stature when the Fort Peck Dam was built a few miles south in 1933. One of the world’s oldest and largest hydraulic earth-fill dams, Fort Peck Dam stretches over four miles across the Missouri River. The former Glasgow Air Force Base was a centerpiece for the community for years. The large 13,500 ft runway and 67 buildings of the base are in good repair.
On May 8, 1805, the first ‘tourist’ to this region, the Lewis and Clark Expedition, camped at the confluence of the Milk and Missouri rivers, about 18 miles southeast of present-day Glasgow. Lewis explored the Milk for about three miles and said, ‘The water of this river possessed a peculiar whiteness, being about the color of a cup of tea admixture of a tablespoon full of milk. From the color of its water, we called it ‘Milk River.’
While in Glasgow, visit the Valley County Pioneer Museum for its fossils and Indian artifacts, and railroad, early business, aviation, and wildlife collections. Inquire at the Chamber of Commerce about other Glasgow highlights.
Leaving Glasgow, head southeast on Montana Highway 24 for about 18 miles to Fort Peck and Fort Peck Lake, traversing a mixture of rolling and level country. Once you see the lake, you realize that you’re looking at the largest body of water in Montana. Fort Peck Lake has almost 1,600 miles of shoreline and is backed up for 134 miles behind the dam. The shoreline is equal to the total coastal front of the state of California.
Montana’s Governor’s Cup Walleye Fishing Tournament, held the second weekend in July at Fort Peck, is a national event. Contact the Glasgow Chamber of Commerce for information. Also ask them about fishing guides and boat rentals.
Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge; many roads lead to Fort Peck Lake through the CMR area. Make sure you inquire for conditions and directions, either at the Glasgow Chamber of Commerce, the Bureau of Land Management in Glasgow or the Fort Peck CMR Refuge Office, located on Highway 117. Before leaving Glasgow, make sure you visit the South Valley Wildlife Viewing area for an opportunity to see antelope, deer and other animals. The road route is about 65 miles long and can take three hours or more depending on how much time you have and what you want to see.
Elevation: 2,090 feet.
To learn more about Glasgow or other travel in Montana, go to the Travel Montana Web site.
Glasgow food and lodging
Lodging
Campbell Lodge 406-228-9328
Cottonwood Inn 800-321-8213
Koskis Motel 888-238-8282
La Casa Motel 877-228-9311
Star Lodge Motel 406-228-2494
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Restaurants
Sam’s Supper Club 406-228-4614
Cottonwood Inn 800-321-8213
Eugene’s Pizza 406-228-8552
Pizza Hut 406-228-2411
Quick-N-Tasty 406-228-2997
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Camping
Camp Creek Campground 406-654-1240 (B.L.M. Campground)
Hi-Line Terrace Mobile Home and RV Park 406-228-8587 (Private Campground)
Shady Rest RV Park 800-422-8954 (Private Campground)
Trails West Campground 406-228-2778 (Private Campground)
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