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Montana · Judith Basin · #520
Fergus County, Montana
At the geographic center of Montana in the Judith Basin, Lewistown is the most central small city in a state that makes centrality relative - a county seat that has sustained itself on wheat, cattle, and the particular self-reliance that Montana's most isolated communities develop as a matter of survival.
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Tell us your goal and we'll guide you step-by-step to the right office, forms, and official resources.
Office: Fergus County Disaster & Emergency Services – 712 W. Main Street, Suite 103, Lewistown, MT 59457; Director Ryan Peterson (also Fire Warden), Coordinator Steve Fanning. The Fergus County Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) meets quarterly to coordinate hazardous materials and emergency response planning.
Roads: US-87 and US-191 serve Lewistown, the county seat, in central Montana. Lewistown Municipal Airport (LWT) offers regional service.
Notes: Fergus County spans a broad area in the Judith Basin, ringed by five mountain ranges: the Snowies, Judiths, Moccasins, Belts, and Highwoods.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Fergus County Planning Office – confirm current phone via fergusmt.gov.
Notes: Lewistown is genuinely the geographic center of Montana. The town features many well-preserved historic buildings and is home to the popular Charlie Russell Chew Choo dinner train. The northern part of the county, near Winifred, provides access to the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument and the Wild & Scenic Missouri River, including a seasonal historic vehicle ferry across the river. The annual Chokecherry Festival draws over 5,000 attendees each September.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Fergus County Veterans Service – confirm current contact via fergusmt.gov.
Federal: VA Montana Health Care System (Fort Harrison/Helena, accessible west).
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Lewistown Public Library – 305 West Watson, Lewistown, MT 59457 | (406) 535-1760 | Fax: (406) 535-3323; genuinely built as a Carnegie library in 1905, with additions in 1960 and 1990, located across from the Fergus County Courthouse; over 40,000 items, free Wi-Fi, and a historical photo catalog from the 1880s-1920s. Serves both the City of Lewistown and Fergus County.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: The Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument, the Charlie Russell Chew Choo dinner train, Kiwanis Park, and the surrounding mountain ranges of the Judith Basin are the county’s premier attractions.
Notes: The genuine geographic-center-of-Montana status of Lewistown is a distinctive local fact.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Fergus County – confirm current contact via fergusmt.gov.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
IMPORTANT: As of recent reporting, Fergus County – along with neighboring Petroleum, Judith Basin, and Wheatland Counties – has no county-run animal control policy or shelter facility for unwanted, abandoned, or stray pets. Heart of Montana Animal Shelter and Canine Center, a nonprofit, is actively working to build a dedicated shelter to fill this gap; in the meantime it operates a thrift shop fundraiser at 80663 US Highway 87, Lewistown, MT 59457, open Wed-Sat 10 AM-4 PM. Confirm current shelter status via heartofmontana.weebly.com before relying on intake services.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Fergus County – confirm current contact via fergusmt.gov.
NOTES: Fergus County is the first county in the Montana v2 A+ sourced redo’s third batch. The genuine geographic-center-of-Montana status of Lewistown is a distinctive local fact, and the countywide animal-shelter service gap is flagged honestly rather than smoothed over. 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 Fergus County
Fergus County occupies the Judith Basin – a broad, fertile agricultural valley ringed by small mountain ranges (the Judith, Little Belt, Big Snowy, and Moccasin mountains) that give the county a varied terrain unusual for central Montana. Lewistown, the county seat and regional hub, is genuinely isolated: it is equidistant from Great Falls, Billings, Missoula, and the Canadian border, which makes it central in Montana’s terms and remote by any other measure. The city sustains itself on the agricultural economy of the Judith Basin – wheat, cattle, and hay – and the regional services it provides for surrounding smaller communities.
The Judith River and its tributaries provide excellent trout fishing; the Big Snowy Mountains offer hiking and hunting in a range that sees relatively few visitors compared to better-known Montana ranges. Lewistown’s historic downtown reflects its late nineteenth-century sandstone construction tradition – the Fergus County Courthouse and several commercial buildings are built of a distinctive local pink sandstone. Charlie Russell, the artist whose paintings of cowboy and Native American life defined the visual mythology of the American West, spent time in the Judith Basin and set some of his most celebrated works in this landscape.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Montana assesses residential property at approximately 1.35% of market value for the statewide mill levy. Property owners may appeal to the State Tax Appeal Board. Montana has no estate or inheritance tax.
Courts & Legal
Courts & Legal
SENIOR SERVICES
Judith Basin Senior Center / Central Montana Area Agency on Aging
300 First Avenue North, Lewistown, MT 59457
Phone: (406) 535-2180
Senior transportation, Meals on Wheels, caregiver support, and long-term care counseling for Fergus County residents.
Senior Services
Judith Basin Senior Center / Central Montana Area Agency on Aging
300 First Avenue North, Lewistown, MT 59457
Phone: (406) 535-2180
Senior transportation, Meals on Wheels, caregiver support, and long-term care counseling for Fergus County residents.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
CLERK AND RECORDER
712 W. Main St., Lewistown, MT 59457
(406) 535-5215
COUNTY CLERK (Elections)
712 W. Main St., Lewistown, MT 59457
(406) 535-5215
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Fergus County Clerk of District Court (probate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
Central Montana Genealogy Society, Inc., c/o Lewistown Public Library, 701 West Main Street, Lewistown, MT 59457, (406) 538-5212.
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
Fergus County Clerk of District Court, Probate Division 712 W. Main Street, Lewistown, MT 59457 (406) 535-5026 Fergus County is in central Montana, seated in Lewistown.
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
712 W. Main St., Lewistown, MT 59457
(406) 535-4040
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK (Elections)
712 W. Main St., Lewistown, MT 59457
(406) 535-5215
ELECTIONS
712 W. Main St., Lewistown, MT 59457
(406) 535-5215
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
MT DPHHS — Fergus
(406) 535-4081
Central Montana Medical Center
cmmccares.com (Lewistown — quality regional hospital; major central Montana anchor)
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Fergus County Health Department – confirm current phone via fergusmt.gov. Central Montana Family Planning (regional screening program) – 300 1st Ave Suite 202, Lewistown, MT 59457 | (406) 535-8811 | Fax: (406) 535-9590.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Lewistown
Population: 11,000
Area: 4,339 sq mi
Established: 1885
Tier: 4
Inmate Services
Care Packages
Send care packages to inmates in Fergus County facilities via Amazon.
