Two Montana Towns Land On The 100 Best Small Town List

There's something special about small towns.

Those tight-knit communities where people know who their neighbors are. The type of place where a trip to the grocery store takes twice as long because you run into 4 different people you know. A place where everyone knows what the daily special is at the local diner and someone delivers a casserole after a death or birth in the family.

As Montana continues to grow, many feel like we're losing a lot of our small-town charm, and to their point, there seems to be some truth to that. However, there are still a few places in Montana where you can find that small-town charm.

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Small towns like Hamilton, Livingston, Phillipsburg, Lewstown, and Red Lodge are filled with great folks and mom-and-pop shops that just feel like home. However, the folks over at Far And Wide have come out with a list of the Best U.S. Towns With Fewer Than 10,000 Residents and two Montana towns made the list.

So which two Montana towns made the list?

Well, before we reveal the towns, let me just say that I think a whole lot of Montanans might have an issue with at least one of the towns on the list. Both Whitefish and Big Sky grabbed a spot on the list with Whitefish coming in at #94 and Big Sky ranked at #42.

Both towns are extremely popular with tourists and both are known for their world-class skiing.  Whitefish has been around for over a century and while it's a popular location for transplants, there are still plenty of locals that call the area home. Big Sky, on the other hand, is relatively new to the state after NBC News Anchor Chet Huntley retired and fulfilled his dream of coming back to Montana to build a ski resort and golf course in the area. While there were ranchers living in the area, Big Sky "officially" opened in 1973.

There's no doubt that both communities are certainly a boon to the state's economy, but are they the two best small towns to represent Montana? What do you think?  Let us know which small Montana town best represents the state by sending us a message on our radio station app.