For years, Petroleum County has been Montana’s smallest county. World Population Review explains it part of it:
Petroleum County, which has a population of 513 people. Since the last census in 2010, Petroleum County’s population has seen an increase of 4.91%. Following up after Petroleum County, other small counties in Montana include Treasure County (679), Golden Valley County (826), Wibaux County (1,034), and Prairie County (1,087). Of these counties, Petroleum County experienced the most significant growth while Prairie County had the most dramatic decline with a growth rate of -8.11%.”
worldpopulationreview.com
It is harder to find the data on school district populations – the 2010 Census was the last to give an actual count, and the results are now reported on the American Community Survey. The ACS samples too small a number to give reliable information – but as we’re having a school district election, and we have 498 registered voters in school district 53, it looks like Trego has a larger population than Petroleum County. The 2010 Census showed Trego’s population at 588. Unitedstateszipcodes.org provides this data for Trego and Stryker (both parts of school district 53):
“Stats and Demographics for the 59934 ZIP Code
ZIP code 59934 is located in northwest Montana and covers a slightly higher than average land area compared to other ZIP codes in the United States. It also has a slightly less than average population density.
The people living in ZIP code 59934 are primarily white. The number of middle aged adults is extremely large while the number of seniors is extremely large. There are also a small number of single parents and a large number of families. The percentage of children under 18 living in the 59934 ZIP code is small compared to other areas of the country.” This site showed 59934 (Trego) population at 528 and 59933 (Stryker) at 43, for a total population of 571.”
Somehow it seems unusual to have a community where 87% of the population is registered to vote. It’s going to be interesting to see when we surpass Treasure County. Unfortunately, the last enumerated count of the school district was in 2010, and we can expect to only have ACS estimates in the future – and precinct counts won’t be contiguous with school district boundaries anymore.
Trego's Mountain Ear 