Moccasin, Montana facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Moccasin, Montana
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Moccasin, Montana
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 Moccasin, Montana
Location in Montana
Moccasin, Montana
Location in the United States
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| Country | United States |
| State | Montana |
| County | Judith Basin |
| Area | |
| • Total | 0.32 sq mi (0.82 km2) |
| • Land | 0.32 sq mi (0.82 km2) |
| • Water | 0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2) |
| Elevation | 4,183 ft (1,275 m) |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 23 |
| • Density | 72.56/sq mi (28.04/km2) |
| ISO 3166 code | US-MT |
| FIPS code | 30-50575 |
Moccasin is a small, unincorporated community in Judith Basin County, Montana, in the United States. An "unincorporated community" means it's a place that doesn't have its own local government, like a city or town. Moccasin got its name from the nearby Moccasin mountain range. It has its own post office with the ZIP code 59462.
Close by, you'll find Ackley Lake State Park. It's one of the few public lakes in central Montana. This park is a great spot for fun outdoor activities. You can go fishing for different kinds of trout and even kokanee salmon there.
The local newspaper for the area is called the Judith Basin Press. It comes out every week, keeping everyone updated on local news.
Contents
Moccasin's History
The name Moccasin comes from the nearby Moccasin Mountain range. Long ago, Native Americans thought these mountains looked like moccasins. Moccasins are soft shoes often made from animal skin. The mountains were covered in thick lodgepole pine trees, which gave them their unique shape. This is how both the mountains and the community got their name.
Fires and Recovery
Moccasin has faced some tough times due to big wildfires. Fires hit the area in 1916, 1919, 1922, and 1955. These fires caused a lot of damage, burning down a whole block of buildings. The community found it hard to fully recover from these events.
Early Settlers and Farming
Moccasin started as a place where homesteaders came to live. Homesteaders were people who moved to new land to build farms. There was a post office here as early as the 1880s. In 1905, a man named D. O. Holt opened a hotel and a store.
In 1908, the state of Montana created the MSU Central Agricultural Research Center. This center is located about three miles west of Moccasin. Its main goal was to teach new settlers how to farm in dry conditions. This type of farming is called "dry land farming." Even after many homesteaders left, the center kept working. It helped develop new machines and crops. This greatly improved how much wheat the area could grow.
Weather in Moccasin
Moccasin has a type of weather called a Humid continental climate. This means it has warm summers and cold winters. It also gets a good amount of rain and snow throughout the year.
| Climate data for Moccasin, Montana | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 1 (33) |
2 (36) |
6 (42) |
12 (53) |
17 (62) |
21 (70) |
27 (80) |
27 (80) |
20 (68) |
14 (58) |
7 (44) |
2 (36) |
13 (55) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −12 (10) |
−11 (13) |
−7 (19) |
−2 (29) |
3 (38) |
8 (46) |
11 (51) |
10 (50) |
5 (41) |
0 (32) |
−6 (21) |
−10 (14) |
−1 (30) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 15 (0.6) |
10 (0.4) |
18 (0.7) |
30 (1.2) |
64 (2.5) |
79 (3.1) |
43 (1.7) |
41 (1.6) |
36 (1.4) |
23 (0.9) |
15 (0.6) |
13 (0.5) |
390 (15.3) |
| Source: Weatherbase | |||||||||||||
Population Information
Moccasin is a very small community. According to the 2020 United States Census, only 23 people live there.
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 2020 | 23 | — | |
| U.S. Decennial Census | |||
