GREAT FALLS, MONTANA

'Great Falls' is a city located in Cascade County, Montana, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 56,690. It is the county seat of Cascade County and the principal city of the 'Great Falls, Montana Metropolitan Statistical Area' which encompasses all of Cascade County, Montana. Great Falls is famous for having the shortest river in the world nearby, the Roe River. The city is home to Montana State University - Great Falls College of Technology, University of Great Falls and the Montana School for the Deaf and the Blind, as well as the Great Falls White Sox minor league baseball team. The local newspaper is the ''Great Falls Tribune''. Great Falls is known as the "Electric City" due to the five hydroelectric dams that are in the nearby vicinity along the Missouri River.
A Coldwell Banker Home Price Comparison Index listed Great Falls as the most affordable area of 348 markets in the US, Canada, and Puerto Rico.

Contents

Geography and Climate

Demographics

History

Further Reading

Military

Sports

The Mariana UFO Incident

Notable people who have lived in Great Falls

Motion Pictures filmed in Great Falls

Sister city

External links

Geography and Climate

Great Falls is located along the Missouri River near several waterfalls on the Missouri.
Great Falls is located at 47°30'13" North, 111°17'11" West (47.503657, -111.286299)1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 51.6 km² (19.9 mi²). 50.5 km² (19.5 mi²) of it is land and 1.1 km² (0.4 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 2.21% water.

Monthly Normal and Record High and Low Temperatures
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Rec High °F	67	70	78	89	93	101	105	106	98	91	76	69
Norm High °F	32.1	37.7	45.3	55.6	64.7	73.9	82	81.2	69.6	58	42.1	34.2
Norm Low °F	11.3	15.1	21.5	29.7	38.3	46	50.4	49.9	41.2	33	22.5	14.4
Rec Low °F	-37	-35	-29	-6	15	31	36	30	16	-11	-25	-43
Precip (in)	0.68	0.51	1.01	1.4	2.53	2.24	1.45	1.65	1.23	0.93	0.59	0.67
''Source: USTravelWeather.com [1]''

Demographics

As of the 2000 Census there are 56,690 people, 23,834 households, and 14,848 families residing in the city. The population density is 1,123.0/km² (2,909.1/mi²). There are 25,250 housing units at an average density of 500.2/km² (1,295.7/mi²). The racial demographics and ethnic makeup of the city is 89.96% White, 0.95% African American, 5.09% Native American, 0.86% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 0.60% from other races, and 2.45% from two or more races. 2.39% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There are 23,834 households out of which 30.1% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.4% are married couples living together, 11.1% have a female householder with no husband present, and 37.7% are non-families. 31.9% of all households are made up of individuals and 12.4% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.31 and the average family size is 2.92.
In the city the population is spread out with 24.9% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 27.7% from 25 to 44, 22.7% from 45 to 64, and 15.7% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 38 years. For every 100 females there are 94.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 91.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $32,436, and the median income for a family is $40,107. Males have a median income of $29,353 versus $20,859 for females. The per capita income for the city is $18,059. 14.5% of the population and 11.1% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 20.3% of those under the age of 18 and 9.2% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

History

Founded in 1883 by Paris Gibson and railroad magnate James J. Hill, Great Falls began as a planned power city, situated to take advantage of the hydroelectric power of the waterfalls of the Missouri River. Historian William J. Furdell described it as "a businessman's town" and it was said that the city "couldn't point to a boot hill or a hangin' tree."
In 1884, the Great Falls post office was recognized by the United States Postal Service. In 1889, construction on the Black Eagle Dam began, which would provide the city with hydroelectric power by the following year.
Great Falls quickly became a thriving industrial center and, by the early 1900s, was on route to become Montana's fastest growing community. The rustic studio of famed Western artist Charles Marion Russell was a popular attraction, as were the famed "great falls," after which the city was named.
It prospered further with the opening of a nearby military base, but as rail transportation and freight slowed in the later part of the century, its population dwindled. It once had over 60,000 people, but as of 2000 had about 56,000.

Further Reading

★ Leaves of knowledge, MacGibbon, Elma, , , Shaw & Borden Co, 1904, Available online through the Washington State Library's Classics in Washington History collection Elma MacGibbons reminiscences of her travels in the United States starting in 1898, which were mainly in Oregon and Washington. Includes chapter "Great Falls, Montana."

Military

Great Falls is home to Malmstrom Air Force Base and the 341st Space Wing. The 341st Operations Group provides the forces to launch, monitor and secure the wing's Intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) and missile alert facilities (MAF).
These ICBMs and MAFs are dispersed over the largest missile complex in the Western Hemisphere, an area encompassing some 23,000 sq mi (59,570 km²) (approximately the size of the state of West Virginia).
The group manages a variety of equipment, facilities, and vehicles worth more than $5 billion.
Great Falls International Airport is also home to the Montana Air National Guard's 120th Fighter Wing. The 120th is composed of F-16 Fighting Falcon's (F-16C/D) fighter aircraft and associated support personnel.
Great Falls is also home to the 889th Army Reserve Unit.

Sports

Club	Sport	League	Stadium (or Arena)
Great Falls Explorers	Basketball	Continental Basketball Association	Four Seasons Arena
Great Falls White Sox	Baseball	Pioneer League	Legion Park
Great Falls Gladiators	Football	Rocky Mountain Football League	C.M. Russell High School

For the 1979-80 WHL Season, Great Falls and the Four Seasons Arena was the home of the Great Falls Americans. The team was 2-25 before folding. Great Falls has a rich baseball history with the White Sox. Formerly called the Dodgers and Giants, baseball players such as Pedro Martinez, Jose Offerman, and Raul Mondesi have spent time in Great Falls with the team. Since 1988, the team has won the championship 4 times (In 1988, 1989, 1990, and 2002). In 2007, the Great Falls Explorers were the CBA National Conference Runner-Up.

The Mariana UFO Incident

The Mariana UFO Incident occurred in August 1950 in Great Falls, Montana. Nicholas "Nick" Mariana, the general manager of the Great Falls "Electrics" minor-league baseball team, and his secretary observed two "bright, silvery spheres" move rapidly over the city's empty baseball stadium. Mariana used his camera to film the objects; the film was one of the first ever taken of a UFO. The incident received widespread national publicity and is regarded as one of the first great UFO incidents in the United States.

Notable people who have lived in Great Falls

★ Paul G. Hatfield, Federal District Court Judge (1979 to 2000), former U.S. Senator, former Chief Justice of the Montana Supreme Court, former Montana state District Court Judge ★ Einar Axel Malmstrom, U.S. Air Force colonel ★ A. B. Guthrie, Jr., pulitzer-prize winning author of ''The Way West'' ★ Scott Davis, two-time U.S. Figure Skating Championships gold medalist ★ Dave Dickenson, Canadian Football League quarterback ★ Todd Foster, "The Kid", boxer ★ Ted Geoghegan, horror filmmaker ★ John Gibbons, Major League Baseball manager ★ Paris Gibson, U.S. Senator, city founder ★ Malcolm Hancock, magazine cartoonist ★ Lester Hogan, pioneer in microwave and semiconductor technology ★ Joseph Kinsey Howard, author and historian ★ Jay L. Johnson, U.S. Navy admiral, Chief of Naval Operations ★ Ryan Leaf, National Football League quarterback ★ Mike Mansfield, U.S. Representative, Senator, and ambassador to Japan

★ Charles Marion Russell, western artist ★ Linda McDonald, drummer all girl metal band Phantom Blue ★ Cyra McFadden, writer ★ John Misha Petkevich, U.S. Figure Skating Championships gold medalist ★ Andrew Nelson, Japanese-language lexicographer ★ Victoria Paris, adult film actress ★ Tera Patrick, adult film actress ★ Charley Pride, country singer ★ Gerald R. Molen, Academy Award-winning film producer ★ Wallace Stegner, pulitzer-prize winning author of ''Angle of Repose'' ★ Traver Rains, one half of the New York fashion design duo Heatherette. ★ William V. Roth, Jr., U.S. Representative and Senator from Delaware ★ Brett Weldele, comic book artist, ''Southland Tales'' graphic novels ★ Bob Woolf, The Suns Gorilla National Basketball Association team mascot ★ Jim Kalafat, "Laser" from the television show American Gladiators

Motion Pictures filmed in Great Falls

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Numerous motion pictures have been filmed in and around Great Falls, Montana. These movies include:

★ ''Freedom'' (1994)

★ ''Holy Matrimony (1994)

★ ''Northfork'' (2003)

★ ''The Slaughter Rule'' (2002)

★ ''The Stone Boy'' (1984)

★ ''Telefon'' (1977)

★ ''Thunderbolt and Lightfoot'' (1974)

★ ''The Untouchables'' (1987)

★ ''Amazing Grace and Chuck'' (1987)

Sister city

Great Falls has one sister city, as designated by Sister Cities International (SCI):

★ Sharya, Russia

External links

★ Great Falls Official Website

★ Great Falls Convention Visitors Bureau (CVB)

★ Professional Basketball in Great Falls

★ Greater Falls - blog about Great Falls

★ Great Falls Symphonic Choir

★ Russell Country

★ Annual Ice Breaker Road Race through Downtown Great Falls