Fort Shaw, Montana
Fort Shaw, Montana | |
|---|---|
Location of Fort Shaw, Montana | |
| Coordinates: 47°30′12″N 111°49′08″W / 47.50333°N 111.81889°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Montana |
| County | Cascade |
| Area | |
• Total | 5.68 sq mi (14.71 km2) |
| • Land | 5.68 sq mi (14.71 km2) |
| • Water | 0 sq mi (0.00 km2) |
| Elevation | 3,527 ft (1,075 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 256 |
| • Density | 45/sq mi (17.4/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-7 (Mountain (MST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-6 (MDT) |
| ZIP code | 59443 |
| Area code | 406 |
| FIPS code | 30-28600 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2408243 |
Fort Shaw is a census-designated place (CDP) in Cascade County, Montana, United States. The population was 256 at the 2020 census, a decrease from 280 at the 2010 census. Named for a former United States military outpost, it is part of the Great Falls, Montana Metropolitan Statistical Area.
First called Camp Reynolds, Fort Shaw is named for Col. Robert G. Shaw of Boston, the first white officer to lead a unit of the United States Colored Troops in the American Civil War. The U.S. government established this fort on the Mullan Road in 1867. A community developed around it. The fort was decommissioned in 1891 and repurposed as an Indian boarding school.
The Fort Shaw Indian girls' basketball team won every game but one from 1902 to 1906. They played in exhibition matches at the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition and earned the title of "World champions".
In 1906 the U.S. Reclamation Service laid out the townsite about 1 mile south of the old fort. The Fort Shaw Historic District and Cemetery is part of the National Register of Historic Places. Portions of the fort that survived are now part of a museum and the historical society offers tours.