Sheridan County, Montana

Overview

Sheridan County occupies the far northeast corner of Montana, sharing a border with Canada to the north and North Dakota to the east. The county seat is Plentywood, a small agricultural hub that has served the surrounding wheat and cattle country since the homestead era. This is classic northern Great Plains geography — flat to gently rolling prairie with no significant mountain or foothill terrain. Agriculture is dominated by dryland wheat and small grains, with a secondary but important cow-calf ranching sector running cattle on native range and CRP grasslands.

Weather & Moisture

Sheridan County receives modest precipitation — typically 12 to 14 inches annually — almost entirely as rain and snow directly on the plains. There is no SNOTEL coverage and no Montana Mesonet soil moisture reporting in the county, making real-time moisture monitoring sparse. The primary USGS streamflow gauge is Big Muddy Creek near Antelope (06183450), a very small plains stream that responds quickly to local precipitation but carries minimal baseflow. Big Muddy Creek is not an irrigation source of significance — it is primarily a drainage indicator. Winter moisture comes as direct snowfall on fields, and spring/summer precipitation timing is the critical variable for both wheat yields and range condition.

Water Rights & Land Ownership

Water rights in Sheridan County are limited in scope compared to irrigated counties in western Montana. The small streams — Big Muddy Creek, Redwater River tributaries, and scattered stock water sources — carry modest appropriations primarily for stock water and small-scale flood irrigation of hay meadows. There are no major reservoir or canal systems. Most agricultural water use is stock water from wells and small impoundments. The Montana DNRC WRQS provides access to the county’s water rights records.

Hay & Winter Feed

Hay production in Sheridan County is limited, consisting mainly of dryland grass hay and some alfalfa on scattered irrigated parcels along creek bottoms. Most winter feed is supplemented with grain screenings, crop residue grazing (wheat stubble), and purchased hay. The county’s distance from major hay-producing regions in central and western Montana means freight costs add significantly to winter feed budgets. CRP grassland, where available under emergency haying/grazing provisions, provides a critical buffer during drought years.

Cattle Production

Cow-calf operations in Sheridan County run on native range and CRP grasslands, with herds generally smaller than in the big ranch counties to the south and west. Fall-weaned calves typically sell through Sidney, Williston (ND), or Glasgow sale barns, or move directly to North Dakota and Canadian feedlots. The county’s proximity to the Canadian border also means some cross-border cattle trade. Stocking rates on native range are modest given the semi-arid precipitation regime.

County Logistics

Plentywood is located on Montana Highway 16, approximately 280 miles northeast of Great Falls and 320 miles northeast of Billings. The county is remote by Montana standards — there is no Interstate access, and trucking to major livestock markets in Billings requires a full day. The nearest rail shipping point is Sidney (Roosevelt County). Proximity to Williston, North Dakota and the Bakken oil field region provides some alternative economic activity and market access.

Data Sources

• USDA Drought Monitor — weekly county drought classification
• USGS Water Services — Big Muddy Creek near Antelope (06183450) daily discharge
• NOAA NCEI Climate at a Glance — county precipitation anomaly (1/3/12 month)
• USDA NASS — county cattle inventory and agricultural census