蒙大拿(Montana)

美国西北部一州。面积380,847平方公里；首府赫勒拿。该州东为大平原，西为落矶山脉。该州的河流分别注入三个不同的流域︰太平洋、墨西哥湾和哈得逊湾。当欧洲的定居者来到此地时，这里的居民是各个印第安部落，包括了夏延人、黑脚人、内兹佩尔塞人和克劳人。蒙大拿州大部分地方是美国经由1803年路易斯安那购地取得。西部地区一直是有争议的，直到1846年英国撤销对该地区的主权。1804～1806路易斯和克拉克远征曾来到蒙大拿探险。天主教的传教士於於1841年在今天的史蒂文斯维尔镇附近建起圣玛利亚教团，这是在蒙大拿的第一个永久性定居点。1860年代初这里发现黄金；稍後开始放牧牛、羊，开始与印第安人间的艰苦战争，因他们的狩猎地遭到破坏。1864年设立蒙大拿准州。虽然美国的卡斯特的军队在1876年小大角河战役被击败且遭残杀，印第安人於1877年同意停战并移居到保留地。1889年蒙大拿成为联邦第41州。1890年代发现大量铜矿，近一世纪以来，采矿业一直是该州重要的经济支柱。现今，该州经济最重视的是旅游业。人口约902,195（2000）。

English version：

Montana

State (pop., 1997 est.: 879,000), northwestern U.S. It covers 147,046 sq mi (380,849 sq km); its capital is Helena. Montana straddles the Great Plains to the east and the Rocky Mtns. to the west. Unique among the states, its rivers flow into three of the continent's primary watersheds: the Pacific, the Gulf of Mexico, and Hudson Bay. At the time of European settlement the region was inhabited by various Indian tribes, including the Cheyenne, Blackfoot, Nez Percé, and Crow. Most of Montana was obtained by the U.S. through the Louisiana Purchase of 1803. The western part was disputed until 1846, when Britain relinquished its claim to the area. The Lewis and Clark Expedition explored Montana in 1804-6. St. Mary's Mission, established in 1841 by Roman Catholic missionaries, became the first permanent town as Stevensville. Gold was discovered in the early 1860s; cattle and sheep grazing were introduced later that decade, leading to bitter battles with the Indians, whose hunting grounds were destroyed. Montana Territory was established in 1864. Though the U.S. troops of George Custer were defeated and slain at the Battle of the Little Bighorn in 1876, the Indians ceased fighting in 1877 and were placed on reservations. Montana became the 41st state in 1889. Vast deposits of copper were found in the 1890s, and mining was the economic mainstay for almost a century. The state's economy now emphasizes tourism.