MONTANA BUSINESS QUARTERLY

Volume 55, Number 3, Special Edition  2017

Poverty in Montana

Retrospective from 1965

by

Maxine C. Johnson

In Montana today, 19 percent of children live in poverty, while 28 percent of parents lack secure employment. Affordable housing has become an important topic in cities like Missoula and Bozeman. But the issues surrounding poverty for Montana families have been long-standing, as seen in this excerpt from the Montana Business Quarterly in 1965.

Retrospective from 1998

by

Paul E. Polzin, John Baldridge and others

In 1972, the state of Montana legalized a variety of gambling games, including bingo, raffles, poker and other card games. In 1997, the Montana Legislature appointed the Montana Gambling Study Commission to conduct research and make public policy recommendations. The following article is an excerpt from an extensive survey conducted by the Bureau of Business and Economic Research in 1998.

Retrospective from 1971

by

Dorothy Bradley

The women?s rights movement made significant strides in the 1970s and took a prominent role in society. Dorothy Bradley was elected to the Montana House of Representatives from Gallatin County in 1970, at a time when politics was exclusively a man?s realm. In this excerpt from an essay from 1971, she recounts her time serving as the only woman in the Montana House.

Retrospective from 1978

by

Paul E. Polzin

The University of Montana has experienced falling enrollment since 2010, with an overall 24 percent drop to about 11,500 students. At the same time, Montana State University has seen enrollment climb to over 15,000, a record for the university. Shifts in enrollment trends within the Montana University System is nothing new, as seen in this excerpt from an article from 1978.

Retrospective from 1998

by

Ginny Cass and Shannon Furniss

Montana had a record year in 2016 with the largest jump in year-to-year visitation at Glacier and Yellowstone national parks. Millions of people travel to Montana every year to visit these natural attractions. This excerpt from an article from 1998 examines how small towns began capitalizing on a new trend to draw these visitors to their communities.