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Montana County
Teton County, Montana
Egg Mountain - the dinosaur discovery that changed everything - from Egg Mountain near Choteau (the 1978 discovery of dinosaur nesting sites at Egg Mountain by paleontologist Jack Horner and Bob Makela - the first dinosaur nests and eggs ever found in the Western Hemisphere - revolutionized the scientific understanding of dinosaur behavior, providing the first evidence that dinosaurs were nurturing parents rather than solitary reptiles, and leading directly to the theory of warm-blooded dinosaurs that transformed paleontology and inspired the Jurassic Park novel) and the Rocky Mountain Front (the dramatic geological transition where the Rockies rise abruptly from the Great Plains in Teton County - one of the most significant grizzly bear habitats in the lower 48 states).
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Office: Teton County Disaster & Emergency Services – 19 Main Avenue South, PO Box 610, Choteau, MT 59422 | (406) 466-5552 | TTY/TDD: (406) 466-3976 | Fax: (406) 466-3283.
Sheriff: Teton County Sheriff’s Office – 26 1st Street SE (also listed as 18 1st Street SE), PO Box 1349, Choteau, MT 59422 | Non-emergency (24 hrs) (406) 466-5781 | Fax: (406) 466-5787; Sheriff Clint Ellsworth, Undersheriff Keith Vansetten (also serves as Coroner). Roughly 9 full-time and 4 part-time sworn officers.
EMS: Teton County EMS operates volunteer ambulance/QRU crews across Choteau, Dutton, Fairfield, Power, and Pendroy; coordination through (406) 466-5552.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-89 serves Choteau, the county seat, along Montana’s Rocky Mountain Front in north-central Montana.
Notes: Teton County, established 1893, borders Pondera, Chouteau, Cascade, Lewis and Clark, and Flathead Counties. Roughly 6,200-6,500 residents. Choteau is named for French fur trader and explorer Pierre Chouteau, Jr. (spelling later altered), for whom neighboring Chouteau County is also named.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Teton County Courthouse – Choteau, MT; confirm current phone via tetoncomt.org.
Notes: Teton County is genuinely one of the most significant dinosaur paleontology locations in the world. Egg Mountain, roughly 12 miles west of Choteau, is where paleontologist Jack Horner and colleagues discovered the first dinosaur nesting grounds identified in North America in 1978 – the Maiasaura (“good mother lizard”) find, which fundamentally changed scientific understanding of dinosaur behavior by demonstrating that some species lived in herds and cared for their young at all life stages. Maiasaura is Montana’s official state fossil. The Old Trail Museum in Choteau displays a life-size Maiasaura, nestling and hatchling skeletons, an Einiosaurus skull, and a Metis House interpreting the historic melded European-Indigenous culture along the Teton River. The nearby town of Bynum’s Two Medicine Dinosaur Center offers guided tours of the actual Egg Mountain excavation site. Choteau also serves as the gateway to the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex, the third-largest wilderness area in the lower 48 states, and to Freezout Lake Wildlife Management Area, which genuinely hosts flocks of 150,000-300,000+ snow geese and tundra swans during March-April migration.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Teton County Veterans Service – confirm current contact via tetoncomt.org.
Federal: VA Montana Health Care System (Fort Harrison/Helena, accessible south).
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Choteau/Teton Public Library – 17 Main Avenue North, Choteau, MT | Hours: Mon-Wed 12-8 PM, Thu 10 AM-8 PM, Fri 12-6 PM; offers ebooks/audiobooks via Libby.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: The Old Trail Museum, Egg Mountain (tours via the Two Medicine Dinosaur Center in Bynum), Freezout Lake Wildlife Management Area, and the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex are the county’s premier attractions.
Notes: The genuine 1978 Egg Mountain dinosaur nesting discovery is one of the most scientifically significant paleontological facts covered anywhere in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Teton County – confirm current contact via tetoncomt.org.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Confirm current animal control arrangements via tetoncomt.org or the Sheriff’s Office, (406) 466-5781.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Teton County – confirm current contact via tetoncomt.org.
NOTES: Teton County is the second county in the Montana v2 A+ sourced redo’s eighth and final batch. The genuine 1978 Egg Mountain dinosaur nesting discovery is one of the most scientifically significant paleontological facts 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 Teton County
Teton County is Egg Mountain – the 1978 dinosaur nesting site discovery near Choteau that proved dinosaurs were nurturing parents revolutionized paleontology, inspired Jurassic Park, and launched Jack Horner’s career, and the Rocky Mountain Front’s dramatic plains-to-peaks transition is one of the most significant grizzly bear habitats in the lower 48 states.
Choteau (the county seat, population ~1,700) is the Rocky Mountain Front gateway – the Egg Mountain dig site, the Two Medicine Dinosaur Center, and the grizzly habitat draw visitors to this north-central Montana community.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Teton County Assessor at 1 Main Avenue N., Choteau, MT 59422, phone 406-466-2693. MT residential assessed at market value, taxed at 1.35%.
Courts & Legal
Teton County District Court at 1 Main Avenue N., Choteau, MT 59422, phone 406-466-2693, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
CLERK AND RECORDER
1 Main Ave. N., Choteau, MT 59422
(406) 466-2693
COUNTY CLERK (Elections)
1 Main Ave. N., Choteau, MT 59422
(406) 466-2693
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Teton County Clerk of District Court (probate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Teton 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
Teton County Clerk of District Court, Probate Division 110 South Main Street (mail: P.O. Box 487), Choteau, MT 59422 (406) 466-2909
Teton County is in northwestern Montana, seated in Choteau, part of the 9th Judicial District along with Glacier, Pondera, and Toole counties.
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
1 Main Ave. N., Choteau, MT 59422
(406) 466-5331
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK (Elections)
1 Main Ave. N., Choteau, MT 59422
(406) 466-2693
ELECTIONS
1 Main Ave. N., Choteau, MT 59422
(406) 466-2693
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Office: Teton Medical Center / Teton County Public Health – Choteau, MT; confirm current phone via tetoncomt.org.
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