Welcome to Custer County

Published: 2022
By Michael W Schuldt

Miles City, located in Custer County, serves as the economic hub for much of Southeastern Montana. With 8,500 of the 11,700 people in Custer County residing in Miles City, the bulk of the land in the county is rangeland with a portion of the county along the Yellowstone and Tongue rivers producing irrigated crops. Cattle are the major agricultural enterprise in the region. Ranchers are preparing to rebuild after drought and grasshoppers caused a 40% liquidation of the cow herd which normally numbers 53,000 head in Custer County. MSU Extension agriculture programs will be centered around a focus on education to assist in rebuilding this cow herd in the coming years. Custer County MSU Extension is a non-formal educational program designed to help people use research-based knowledge to improve their lives. The primary mission of MSU Extension is to bring information from the Land Grant University to the people of Montana. Our program includes, in addition to traditional activities like Winter Series, Arthritis Exercise, 4-H project workshops and contests, educational delivery through web-based platforms including WebEx, virtual meetings and blended techniques, allowing virtual instruction delivered to both a physically present and virtual audience. New for 2023, in partnership with Custer County Commissioners and MSU Extension, we have created a Community and Economic Development Extension Agent position to address opportunities and needs for community growth.