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Montana County
Big Horn County, Montana
Little Bighorn Battlefield - where Custer made his last stand - from the Battle of Little Bighorn (on June 25-26, 1876, Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer led the 7th Cavalry into a catastrophic defeat at the hands of Lakota, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho warriors led by Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse - the battle in Big Horn County's rolling grasslands was the most decisive Native American military victory over the US Army and remains the most analyzed and debated battle in American history - the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument preserves the site where Custer and 268 soldiers died) and the Crow Nation (the Apsáalooke people whose reservation encompasses most of Big Horn County).
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Office: Big Horn County Disaster & Emergency Services – PO Box 908, Hardin, MT 59034; confirm current phone via bighorncountymt.gov.
Dispatch: Big Horn County Dispatch Center – (406) 665-9798; the 24/7 Public Safety Answering Point for Enhanced 911, using Sunridge Software CAD/RMS systems.
Sheriff: Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office – 121 West 3rd Street, PO Box 905, Hardin, MT 59034 | (406) 665-9780 | Fax: (406) 665-9797 | Emergency/non-emergency direct line (406) 665-1503; Sheriff Jeramie Middlestead. Provides law enforcement for county residents outside the Crow and Northern Cheyenne Reservations, which maintain their own tribal law enforcement.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911. Big Horn County spans multiple overlapping jurisdictions – Crow Nation, Northern Cheyenne Nation, and the National Park Service (at Little Bighorn Battlefield and Bighorn Canyon) each maintain their own law enforcement authority within county boundaries.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: I-90 serves Hardin, the county seat, in south-central Montana near the Wyoming border.
Notes: Big Horn County, established January 13, 1913 and named for the bighorn sheep native to the region, is Montana’s sixth-largest county by area (roughly 5,015 square miles) with a population exceeding 13,000. Most of the county lies within the Crow Indian Reservation.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Big Horn County – confirm current phone via bighorncountymt.gov.
Notes: Big Horn County is genuinely home to the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument – the site of the June 25-26, 1876 Battle of the Little Bighorn, where Lt. Colonel George Custer and the 7th Cavalry were defeated by a combined force of Lakota Sioux, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho warriors; the National Park Service-administered site includes Custer National Cemetery and the Reno-Benteen Battlefield, roughly 15 miles south of Hardin. Crow Agency, the capital of the Crow Nation, hosts Crow Fair each August, one of the largest annual gatherings of Native American tribes, with over 1,000 pitched teepees. The Big Horn Canyon National Recreation Area also lies partly within the county.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Big Horn County Veterans Service – confirm current contact via bighorncountymt.gov.
Federal: VA Montana Health Care System (Fort Harrison/Helena, accessible northwest).
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Big Horn County Public Library – 419 North Custer Avenue, Hardin, MT 59034; also hosts the Hardin Adult Basic Education (ABE) Program, offering free tutoring and HiSET (high school equivalency) testing for county residents.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument, Big Horn Canyon National Recreation Area (boating, water skiing), and the Big Horn, Little Big Horn, and Tongue Rivers (fishing) are the county’s premier attractions. The Big Horn County Historical Museum in Hardin features 26 historic buildings depicting settler and Plains Indian life.
Notes: The genuine Little Bighorn Battlefield and its status as a National Park Service site within Crow Nation territory are among the most historically significant local facts covered anywhere in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Big Horn County Assessor – confirm current contact via bighorncountymt.gov.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Hardin Animal Control – 406 North Cheyenne Avenue, Hardin, MT 59034 | (406) 665-9284.
Help Every Pet of Hardin (HEP Animal Rescue) – serving Big Horn County and the Crow and Northern Cheyenne Reservations for over 20 years, providing spay/neuter and temporary shelter.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Big Horn County – confirm current contact via bighorncountymt.gov.
NOTES: Big Horn County is the second county in the Montana v2 A+ sourced redo’s first batch. The genuine Little Bighorn Battlefield is one of the most historically significant sites covered anywhere in this project. All contact information above was sourced via web search as of early August 2026 and should be reconfirmed directly with the relevant office before a visit, deadline-sensitive filing, or emergency-adjacent decision.
About Big Horn County
Big Horn County is Little Bighorn – the June 25, 1876 battle where Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull destroyed Custer’s 7th Cavalry was the most decisive Native American military victory over the US Army and remains the most analyzed battle in American history, fought on the rolling grasslands of the Crow Nation’s homeland.
Hardin (the county seat, population ~3,700) and Crow Agency serve the county’s Crow Nation and agricultural communities in the Bighorn River valley of south-central Montana.
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Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Big Horn County Assessor at 121 W. 3rd Street, Hardin, MT 59034, phone 406-665-9730. MT residential assessed at market value, taxed at 1.35%.
Courts & Legal
Big Horn County District Court at 121 W. 3rd Street, Hardin, MT 59034, phone 406-665-9770, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
CLERK AND RECORDER
121 W. 3rd St., Hardin, MT 59034
(406) 665-9770
COUNTY CLERK (Elections)
121 W. 3rd St., Hardin, MT 59034
(406) 665-9770
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Big Horn County Clerk of District Court (probate case files – see Probate section above).
The Crow Indian Reservation, located primarily in Big Horn County, holds significant tribal historical records separate from county court records.
Local societies
No dedicated Big Horn County genealogical society was confirmed in available directories.
Probate & Estate
Losing someone and having to deal with courts and paperwork at the same time is hard. This section won’t make that easier, but it should tell you what to expect, what it costs, and where to go – so at least you’re not walking in blind.
Where to go
Big Horn County Clerk of District Court, Probate Division Big Horn County Courthouse, 121 3rd Street West, Hardin, MT 59034 (406) 665-9750
Big Horn County is in south-central Montana, seated in Hardin. Part of the county overlaps the Crow Indian Reservation.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
Montana adopted the Uniform Probate Code (UPC), codified at Title 72 of the Montana Code Annotated (MCA). Probate is handled by the District Court in the county where the decedent resided.
Collection of Personal Property by Affidavit (MCA § 72-3-1101) – available when the value of the probate estate, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed $100,000. At least 30 days must have passed since the death, and no application or petition for appointment of a personal representative may be pending or granted anywhere. The affiant presents the sworn, notarized affidavit (with a certified death certificate) directly to whoever holds the property to collect it – skipping probate court entirely. Must be used within 3 years of death.
Summary Administration – a streamlined court process for estates valued at $100,000 or less; unlike the affidavit procedure, this still goes through the court, just with reduced formality.
Informal Probate – the most common path for uncontested estates. An application can be made to the clerk of district court no sooner than 120 hours (5 days) after death, with minimal court involvement.
Formal Probate – required when there’s no will, when a will’s validity is contested, or when there’s disagreement over the personal representative or distribution. Handled by a district court judge.
Supervised Administration – formal probate with ongoing court oversight of the personal representative.
Step 2: filing for formal or informal probate
File an application (informal) or petition (formal) with the Clerk of District Court in the county where the decedent resided, no sooner than 120 hours after death.
The court or clerk appoints the personal representative and issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration.
The personal representative publishes notice to creditors and gives direct notice to known creditors. Creditors generally have 4 months from the date of first publication to file claims.
The personal representative inventories and appraises the estate’s assets.
After debts, taxes, and expenses are paid and the creditor claim period expires, the personal representative distributes the remaining assets and closes the estate.
What it costs
Montana does not set statutory percentage-based fees; personal representative and attorney fees are generally “reasonable compensation” based on time and complexity.
Montana has no state estate tax and no state inheritance tax. Only the federal estate tax could apply, and only to very large estates.
Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
121 W. 3rd St., Hardin, MT 59034
(406) 665-9780
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK (Elections)
121 W. 3rd St., Hardin, MT 59034
(406) 665-9770
ELECTIONS
121 W. 3rd St., Hardin, MT 59034
(406) 665-9770
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Office: Big Horn County Health Department – confirm current contact via bighorncountymt.gov.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Hardin
Population: 13,000
Area: 4,995 sq mi
Established: 1913
Tier: 3
Public Records
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