Babb, Montana

Babb, Montana
Unincorporated community
Babb, Montana
Coordinates: 48°51′37″N 113°26′9″W / 48.86028°N 113.43583°W / 48.86028; -113.43583Coordinates: 48°51′37″N 113°26′9″W / 48.86028°N 113.43583°W / 48.86028; -113.43583
Country	United States
State	State of Montana
County	Glacier County, Montana
Elevation	4,524 ft (1,379 m)
Time zone	MST (UTC-7)
• Summer (DST)	MDT (UTC-6)
ZIP code	59411

Babb is a small unincorporated farming and ranching community in Glacier County, Montana, United States, on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation. The community experiences a large influx of tourist in the summer months as it is the gateway to the Many Glacier area of Glacier National Park.

Community infrastructure includes one school (Babb Elementary School), a U.S. Post Office , a fire station that houses the Babb/St. Mary Volunteer Fire Department , Thronson's General Store and Motel , several restaurants, two churches, and a gas station.

Nearby attractions include Glacier National Park , the Many Glacier Hotel, the St. Mary River, the St. Mary Irrigation Canal, Chief Mountain, and the U.S. ports of entry of Piegan and Chief Mountain.

Many Glacier is an area within Glacier National Park which is located in the U.S. state of Montana. The Many Glacier region is located north of the Going-to-the-Sun Road, on the east side of the park. Lake Sherburne is the large lake in the area and the Many Glacier Hotel, the largest hotel within the park, is along the shore of the adjacent Swiftcurrent Lake. The Many Glacier Hotel and surrounding buildings are a National Historic Landmark, with original construction dating back to 1915. Many Glacier is surrounded by the high peaks of the Lewis Range, and numerous hiking trails can be accessed from the area. The region is noted for numerous lakes, waterfalls and dense coniferous forests interspersed with alpine meadows. Major sites in the immediate vicinity that can be accessed by trails include Lake Josephine, Grinnell Lake, Grinnell Glacier, Cracker Lake, Granite Park Chalet, Iceberg Cirque and the Ptarmigan Tunnel, which is a hiking tunnel carved through the mountainside during the 1930s. Tour boats allow visitors an opportunity to venture onto Swiftcurrent Lake. Other activities in the region include ranger guided nature hikes, horseback riding, fishing and camping

Many Glacier Hotel was built in 1914. Today, the hotel still maintains its historic character, in part by not placing televisions in guest rooms. Most rooms either have views of Swiftcurrent Lake or the surrounding mountain scenery. Facilities include the Ptarmigan Dining room, the Swiss Room Lounge and Interlaken Lounge, Heidi's Snack Shop, and Grizzly Track Traders Gift Shop. The hotel is a contributing property in the National Historic Landmark, Great Northern Railway Buildings district. Many Glacier Hotel is a member of Historic Hotels of America, the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.[2] The main attractions in the area include hiking, boat rides or rentals, or simply enjoying the western environment that Many Glacier provides.

The Saint Mary River is a cross-border tributary of the Oldman River, itself a tributary of the South Saskatchewan River. The Saint Mary together with the Belly River and Waterton River drains a small portion of Montana, in the United States, to the Hudson Bay watershed in Canada. The river rises as a stream on Gunsight Mountain in Glacier National Park and flows into Gunsight Lake, then flows into Saint Mary Lake, exits the park and flows on into Lower St. Mary Lake in the Blackfeet Indian Reservation. From the reservation, the St. Mary River flows into Alberta and into the St. Mary Reservoir. It flows into the Oldman River which eventually reaches the Saskatchewan River. It passes near the town of Cardston, Alberta, and the city of Lethbridge, Alberta.

Chief Mountain (also called Old Chief Mountain) is located in the U.S. state of Montana on the eastern border of Glacier National Park and the Blackfeet Indian Reservation. The mountain is one of the most prominent peaks and rock formations along the Rocky Mountain Front, a 200 mi (320 km) long overthrust fault, known as the Lewis Overthrust, which extends from central Montana into southern Alberta, Canada.

The Chief Mountain Border Station and Quarters is a customs/immigration station on the United States-Canada border in Glacier County, Montana. Located on Montana Highway 17, the station is operated seasonally, primarily for tourist traffic between Glacier National Park in Montana and Waterton Lakes National Park in Alberta. The station is named after Chief Mountain, a prominent peak in the vicinity. The station is owned by the General Services Administration and operated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and is located within the boundaries of Glacier National Park. The station is a notable example of the National Park Service Rustic style and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Geography

Elevation: 4,524 ft.

Location: Glacier County

Latitude 48.86027908

Longitude -113.43582916

History

Established in 1905 as a post office, the town of Babb was named for Cyrus C. Babb, the engineer in charge of surveying the U.S. Reclamation Service’s St. Mary Irrigation Canal, which siphoned water from the St. Mary River into the Milk River and was one of the first Bureau of Reclamation projects in the nation.^[1]

Climate

References

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Babb.

Municipalities and communities of Glacier County, Montana, United States
County seat: Cut Bank
City	Cut Bank
Town	Browning
CDPs	Babb East Glacier Park Village Little Browning North Browning Santa Rita South Browning Starr School
Unincorporated communities	Meriwether St. Mary
Indian reservation	Blackfeet Indian Reservation‡
Footnotes	‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties