Ekalaka, Montana
| Ekalaka, Montana[1] | |
|---|---|
| — Town — | |
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| Coordinates: 45°53′21″N 104°32′59″W / 45.88917°N 104.54972°WCoordinates: 45°53′21″N 104°32′59″W / 45.88917°N 104.54972°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Montana |
| County | Carter |
| Area | |
| • Total | 1.0 sq mi (2.7 km2) |
| • Land | 1.0 sq mi (2.7 km2) |
| • Water | 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2) |
| Elevation | 3,425 ft (1,044 m) |
| Population (2000) | |
| • Total | 410 |
| • Density | 391.5/sq mi (151.2/km2) |
| Time zone | Mountain (MST) (UTC-7) |
| • Summer (DST) | MDT (UTC-6) |
| ZIP code | 59324 |
| Area code(s) | 406 |
| FIPS code | 30-23650 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0771161 |
Ekalaka is a town in and the county seat of Carter County, Montana, United States.[2] The population was 410 at the 2000 census.
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[edit] Geography
Ekalaka is located at 45°53′21″N 104°32′59″W / 45.88917°N 104.54972°W (45.889231, -104.549716)[3]. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 1.0 square mile (2.6 km2).
Known for its sandstone rock and open plains, Ekalaka is part of the Montana Dinosaur Trail. Nearby is the Custer National Forest.
[edit] History
Ekalaka was named after a Sioux girl, Ijkalaka,[4] who was the wife of David Harrison Russell, a scout.[5]
Ijkalaka (Restless or Moving About) was an Oglala Lakota and the daughter of Wombalee We-chosh (Eagle Man).[4] She was born in 1858 on the Powder River.[4] She later changed her name to Mary Ellen Kelly, while she was living with a cousin, Hi Kelly, at a ranch on Chugwater Creek, near Laramie Wyoming.[4] She was 16 when she met Russell, who was a scout and frontiersman.[4]
The town was created by Russell on the edge of his ranch. He opened a saloon in 1885.[6] The site became a trade center for cattle ranchers and sheepherders.[6] He put up houses to house freight workers and hunters who ran the local freight line (team and horses), and other added to it.
[edit] Demographics
As of the census[7] of 2000, there were 410 people, 195 households, and 109 families residing in the town. The population density was 391.5 people per square mile (150.8/km²). There were 287 housing units at an average density of 274.1 per square mile (105.5/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 99.02% White, 0.49% Native American, and 0.49% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.49% of the population.
There were 195 households out of which 21.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.6% were married couples living together, 8.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.6% were non-families. 42.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 25.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.02 and the average family size was 2.73.
In the town the population was spread out with 21.7% under the age of 18, 2.4% from 18 to 24, 21.7% from 25 to 44, 24.1% from 45 to 64, and 30.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 49 years. For every 100 females there were 85.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.3 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $19,432, and the median income for a family was $27,750. Males had a median income of $22,656 versus $18,125 for females. The per capita income for the town was $13,667. About 7.1% of families and 12.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.5% of those under age 18 and 15.0% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Climate
Ekalaka experiences a dry continental climate (Köppen Dfb) with cold, dry winters and hot, wetter summers.
| Climate data for Ekalaka | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 65 (18) |
66 (19) |
83 (28) |
90 (32) |
98 (37) |
105 (41) |
108 (42) |
108 (42) |
103 (39) |
92 (33) |
78 (26) |
66 (19) |
108 (42) |
| Average high °F (°C) | 29.8 (−1.2) |
35.9 (2.2) |
45.1 (7.3) |
57.5 (14.2) |
68.3 (20.2) |
77.7 (25.4) |
85.5 (29.7) |
84.4 (29.1) |
72.7 (22.6) |
59.4 (15.2) |
41.7 (5.4) |
32.9 (0.5) |
57.58 (14.21) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 18.9 (−7.3) |
24.9 (−3.9) |
33.0 (0.6) |
44.2 (6.8) |
54.7 (12.6) |
64.1 (17.8) |
70.7 (21.5) |
69.7 (20.9) |
58.4 (14.7) |
46.5 (8.1) |
31.2 (−0.4) |
22.1 (−5.5) |
44.87 (7.15) |
| Average low °F (°C) | 8.0 (−13.3) |
13.8 (−10.1) |
20.9 (−6.2) |
30.9 (−0.6) |
41.1 (5.1) |
50.4 (10.2) |
55.9 (13.3) |
55.0 (12.8) |
44.1 (6.7) |
33.5 (0.8) |
20.6 (−6.3) |
11.3 (−11.5) |
32.13 (0.07) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −44 (−42) |
−43 (−42) |
−32 (−36) |
−11 (−24) |
8 (−13) |
27 (−3) |
30 (−1) |
26 (−3) |
13 (−11) |
−15 (−26) |
−30 (−34) |
−43 (−42) |
−44 (−42) |
| Precipitation inches (mm) | 0.59 (15) |
0.51 (13) |
0.81 (20.6) |
1.85 (47) |
2.69 (68.3) |
3.16 (80.3) |
1.90 (48.3) |
1.27 (32.3) |
1.52 (38.6) |
1.59 (40.4) |
0.79 (20.1) |
0.57 (14.5) |
17.25 (438.2) |
| Source no. 1: NOAA (normals, 1971-2000) [8] | |||||||||||||
| Source no. 2: The Weather Channel (Records) [9] | |||||||||||||
[edit] External links
- Chamber of Commerce
- Online biography of Ijkalaka at the Carter County museum.
- Photo of David H. Russell and Ijkalaka Russell.
[edit] References
- ^ TravelMT. "Ekalaka". http://www.travelmt.com/mt-cities-Ekalaka.html. Retrieved 17 November 2011.
- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. Retrieved 2011-06-07.
- ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
- ^ a b c d e Speiser, James; Speiser, Mildred; Gilman, Johnnie; Gilman, Gertrude (1975). Changing West. Miles City, MT: H&T Quality Printing.
- ^ "Montana Place Names: E-G". http://www.montanahistory.net/placenames/indexc.htm. Retrieved 2008-02-04. condensed from the 1957 Montana Almanac
- ^ a b "Montana: Official State Travel Site". http://visitmt.com/categories/City.asp?CityID=102. Retrieved 2011-12-31.
- ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ "Climatography of the United States NO.81". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. http://cdo.ncdc.noaa.gov/climatenormals/clim81/MTnorm.pdf. Retrieved January 15, 2011.
- ^ "Monthly Averages for Ekalaka, MT". The Weather Channel. http://www.weather.com/outlook/travel/businesstraveler/wxclimatology/monthly/USMT0103. Retrieved January 15, 2011.
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