View source for Gardiner, Montana

{{Short description|Unincorporated community in Park County, Montana, United States}}
{{Use American English|date=December 2022}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2022}}
{{Infobox settlement
|name                     = Gardiner, Montana
|settlement_type          = [[Unincorporated area#United States|Unincorporated community]]
|image_skyline            = DowntownGardinerMontana1999.jpg
|image_caption            = Downtown (1999)
|image_map                = Park_County_Montana_Incorporated_and_Unincorporated_areas_Gardiner_Highlighted.svg
|map_caption              = Location within [[Park County, Montana|Park County]] and [[Montana]]
<!-- Location -->
|subdivision_type         = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
|subdivision_name         = United States
|subdivision_type1        = [[U.S. state|State]]
|subdivision_name1        = [[Montana]]
|subdivision_type2        = [[List of counties in Montana|County]]
|subdivision_name2        = [[Park County, Montana|Park]]
<!-- Government -->
|government_footnotes     = 
|government_type          = 
|leader_title             = Mayor
|leader_name              =
|established_title        = Founded
|established_date         = 1880
|established_title1       = [[Platted]]
|established_date1        = 
|established_title2       = [[Municipal corporation|Incorporated]]
|established_date2        = 
|named_for                =
<!-- Area -->
|unit_pref                = Imperial
|area_footnotes           = <ref name="TigerWebMapServer">{{cite web|title=ArcGIS REST Services Directory|url=https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer|publisher=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=September 5, 2022}}</ref>
|area_total_sq_mi         = 5.89
|area_land_sq_mi          = 5.79
|area_water_sq_mi         = 0.10
|area_total_km2           = 15.27
|area_land_km2            = 15.00
|area_water_km2           = 0.27
<!-- Population -->
|population_footnotes     = 
|population_as_of         = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
|population_total         = 833
|population_density_sq_mi = 143.82
|population_density_km2   = 55.52
<!-- General information -->
|timezone                 = [[Mountain Time Zone|Mountain (MST)]]
|utc_offset               = -7
|timezone_DST             = MDT
|utc_offset_DST           = -6
|elevation_footnotes      = <ref name=gnis/>
|elevation_ft             = 5939
|coordinates_footnotes    = <ref name=gnis/>
|coordinates              = {{coord|45|03|43|N|110|45|20|W|region:US-MT|display=inline,title}}
<!-- Area/postal codes and others -->
|postal_code_type         = [[ZIP code]]
|postal_code              = 59030
|area_code_type           = [[North American Numbering Plan|Area code]]
|area_code                = [[Area code 406|406]]
|blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
|blank_info               = 30-29950 
|blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS ID]]
|blank1_info              = 2408279<ref name=gnis>{{GNIS|2408279}}</ref>
|website                  = 
}}

'''Gardiner''' is a [[census-designated place]] (CDP) in [[Park County, Montana]], United States,<ref name=gnis/> along the [[45th parallel north|45th parallel]].  As of the [[2020 United States census|2020 census]], the population of the community and nearby areas was 833.<ref name="Census-2020-Profile">{{cite web |title=Profile of Gardiner, Montana (CDP) in 2020 |url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/profile?g=1600000US3029950 |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=June 26, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220626204224/https://data.census.gov/cedsci/profile?g=1600000US3029950 |archive-date=June 26, 2022 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Gardiner was officially founded in 1880. The area has served as a main entrance to [[Yellowstone National Park]] since its creation in 1872. Yellowstone National Park Heritage and Research Center, which opened May 18, 2005, is located in Gardiner and houses [[National Park Service]] archives, Yellowstone museum collections and reference libraries.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.yellowstone-notebook.com/heritagecenter.html |title=Yellowstone National Park Heritage and Research Center |access-date=December 19, 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nps.gov/yell/historyculture/collections.htm |title=Heritage and Research Center |access-date=December 9, 2009 |publisher=National Park Service }}</ref>

Gardiner was impacted by the [[2022 Montana floods]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=June 17, 2022 |title=Yellowstone: Historic floods could reach eastern Montana |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-61843034 |access-date=June 19, 2022}}</ref>

== Etymology ==
The name "Gardiner" derives from Johnson Gardner, a [[fur trapper]] who operated in the area in 1830–31.<ref name="mhs">{{cite web |title=Gardiner |url=http://mtplacenames.org/ |access-date=April 2, 2021 |website=Montana Place Names Companion |publisher=Montana Historical Society}}</ref> He named the lush headwaters valley of today's [[Gardner River]] "Gardner's Hole". Originally named "Gardner's Fork", the river took on Gardner's name, although prospectors and explorers who visited the area later in the century were unaware of the trapper Johnson Gardner. In 1870, when the [[Washburn–Langford–Doane Expedition]] passed through the area, they began calling the river "Gardiner," a phonetic error. [[Hiram M. Chittenden]] (1895) and [[Nathaniel P. Langford]] (1905) confirmed this spelling in their accounts of the expedition.<ref name="Haines">{{cite book |last=Haines |first=Aubrey L. |title=Yellowstone Place Names-Mirrors of History |publisher=University Press of Colorado |year=1996 |isbn=0-87081-382-X |location=Niwot, Colorado |pages=24–27}}</ref>

=== McCartney's hotel ===
When the [[Hayden Geological Survey of 1871]] passed through the Gardiner area, they encountered two men, named J.C. McCartney and H. R. Horr, who had laid claim to {{convert|320|acre|km2}} and established a ranch and [[Public bathing#United States|bath house]] on the Mammoth terraces near Liberty Cap. These entrepreneurs eventually established a primitive hotel at Mammoth, and were not evicted from the area until many years after the park was established.<ref>{{cite book |last=Culpin |first=Mary Shivers |url=http://www.nps.gov/yell/historyculture/concessiondevel.htm |title=For the Benefit and Enjoyment of the People: A History of Concession Development in Yellowstone National Park-1872-1966 |publisher=Yellowstone Center for Resources |year=2003 |location=Yellowstone National Park, WY |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070809000114/http://www.nps.gov/yell/historyculture/concessiondevel.htm |archive-date=August 9, 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref> McCartney also went by the name "Jim Gardiner" and received messages, consignments and such destined for guests of his hotel addressed to "Jim on the Gardiner".{{Citation needed|date=October 2025}}

==History==

=== Pre-contact ===
Evidence shows that Native Americans have lived and hunted in the Gardiner area since at least 11,000 years ago.<ref name=":1">{{Citation |last=Infanger |first=Jared |title=Gardiner's Historic Resources |date=2013 |url=https://npshistory.com/publications/yell/gardiner-hist-res.pdf |publisher=National Park Service}}</ref> In the Nez Perce War of 1877, the United States forced all the Nez Perce people who formerly lived on the Yellowstone Plateau, which includes Gardiner, onto reservations.<ref name=":1" />

=== Early Gardiner ===
Between 1860 and 1880, the confluence of the Gardner and Yellowstone Rivers (exactly where Gardiner is located today) was settled by prospectors and entrepreneurs interested in placer claims and the local hot springs.<ref name=":1" /> Gold was discovered along Bear Gulch in 1865, and claims caused a large rise in new settlers.<ref name=":1" /> Along with prospecting the rivers themselves, new settlers would arrive and start ranches in order to make a living supplying them.<ref name=":1" /> A notable homesteader was James C. McCartney, who had initially built a hotel near Mammoth Hot Springs, but due to his relationship with park officials and shifting park policies relocated to Gardiner in 1879.<ref name=":1" />

Yellowstone National Park was established in 1872.<ref name=":1" /> Settlers now also started businesses catering to early park visitors and the U.S. Army, facing the park and located very closely on the park's north boundary.<ref name=":1" /> Gardiner's future location was well-placed for this.<ref name=":1" />

Notable services the town provided to coal miners, gold miners, and soldiers nearby were drinking, gambling, and prostitutution.<ref name=":0">{{Cite sign |title=Gardiner Jail |date= |publisher=Montana Historical Society}} [[commons:File:Gardiner_Jail_Sign.jpg|Commons image]]; [https://historicmt.org/items/show/2781 registry site].</ref> Early on, the small town of Gardiner was described in one account as "a veritable Shantyville... an ideal squatter town, with the rudest houses."<ref name=":0" />
[[File:Gardiner, Montana, showing the entrance to Yellowstone Park (NBY 432137).jpg|thumb|Early 1900s postcard showing Gardiner]]
In the early 1880s, the Northern Pacific Railroad announced a planned branch line to Yellowstone Park near Gardiner.<ref name=":0" /> In 1883, the [[Northern Pacific Railway]] had completed the extension of their Park Branch Line from [[Livingston, Montana]] to Cinnabar,<ref name=":2">{{cite book |last=Haines |first=Aubrey L. |title=Yellowstone Place Names-Mirrors of History |publisher=University Press of Colorado |year=1996 |isbn=0-87081-382-X |location=Niwot, Colorado |pages=253}}</ref> a new town north of Gardiner<ref name=":2" /> that grew up around the rail line terminus.<ref name=":1" /> The terminus would have been in Gardiner itself, but land disputes made that impossible until 1902.<ref name=":1" /> Despite this, Gardiner continued to grow, spurred on strongly by the speculation that the railroad terminus would eventually arrive.<ref name=":1" />

On February 9, 1880, a territorial post office was established just outside the park boundary.<ref name="Haines" /> Park County was created in 1887, and county officials both hired a constable and built the first jail in Gardiner.<ref name=":0" /> Unfortunately, this jail burned down in 1898, making it impossible to lock up drunks and criminals.<ref name=":0" />
[[File:GardinerMT OldJail.jpg|thumb|Gardiner Jail (the second one)]]
The first trains finally arriving in Gardiner in 1902, filled with tourists, arrived to views of prostitutes showing off in front of the train windows.<ref name=":0" /> According to a local newspaper account, "Monday night there was almost continuous yelling and shooting from midnight to daylight. Women of ill-fame live in the central part of town and exhibit themselves daily on the streets in bedroom wrappers and make a show of themselves in doors and windows on arrival of the train."<ref name=":0" /> A new jail was ready by mid-September 1903.<ref name=":0" />

The arrival of the railroad caused the town to flourish, continuing to serve tourists and local soldiers.<ref name=":1" />

Later, as automobiles became more important, the town adapted to serve them.<ref name=":1" />

=== Modern history ===
Railway service at [[Gardiner station]] was eventually discontinued,<ref name=":1" /> specifically in 1948.{{Citation needed|date=October 2025}} Its role was taken on by the state highway passing through the town.<ref name=":1" />

==Geography==

[[File:Devils Slide (8037171934).jpg|thumb|[[Devil's Slide (Montana)|Devil's Slide]], north of Gardiner]]

According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the CDP has a total area of {{convert|3.9|sqmi|km2}}, of which {{convert|3.8|sqmi|km2}} is land and {{convert|0.1|sqmi|km2}} (2.32%) is water.

Gardiner acts as a [[gateway community]] for Yellowstone National Park.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |last2= |first2= |title=The History of Gardiner project - Yellowstone National Park (U.S. National Park Service) |url=https://www.nps.gov/yell/blogs/the-history-of-gardiner-project.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250228104718/https://www.nps.gov/yell/blogs/the-history-of-gardiner-project.htm |archive-date=2025-02-28 |access-date=2025-04-22 |website=www.nps.gov |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Gateway Communities - Gardiner |url=https://yellowstone.net/gateways/gardiner/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250115100035/https://yellowstone.net/gateways/gardiner/ |archive-date=2025-01-15 |access-date=2025-04-22 |website=yellowstone.net |language=en-US}}</ref>

It is located at the confluence of the Gardiner River and the Yellowstone River.<ref>Apple Maps, accessed October 2025.</ref>

==Climate==

According to the [[Köppen Climate Classification]] system, Gardiner has a [[cold semi-arid climate]], abbreviated "BSk" on climate maps.

{{Weather box
|location = Gardiner, Montana, 1991&ndash;2020 normals, extremes 1956&ndash;present
|single line = Yes
|collapsed = yes
|Jan record high F = 58
|Feb record high F = 62
|Mar record high F = 70
|Apr record high F = 88
|May record high F = 92
|Jun record high F = 100
|Jul record high F = 103
|Aug record high F = 102
|Sep record high F = 97
|Oct record high F = 87
|Nov record high F = 70
|Dec record high F = 62

|Jan avg record high F = 47.3
|Feb avg record high F = 50.7
|Mar avg record high F = 63.0
|Apr avg record high F = 72.7
|May avg record high F = 81.9
|Jun avg record high F = 90.8
|Jul avg record high F = 95.8
|Aug avg record high F = 94.7
|Sep avg record high F = 89.6
|Oct avg record high F = 76.8
|Nov avg record high F = 59.8
|Dec avg record high F = 48.1
|year avg record high F = 96.6

|Jan high F = 34.7
|Feb high F = 38.4
|Mar high F = 48.5
|Apr high F = 57.2
|May high F = 66.9
|Jun high F = 77.4
|Jul high F = 87.2
|Aug high F = 86.0
|Sep high F = 75.5
|Oct high F = 59.8
|Nov high F = 43.7
|Dec high F = 33.8
|year high F =

|Jan mean F = 25.8
|Feb mean F = 28.3
|Mar mean F = 36.9
|Apr mean F = 44.5
|May mean F = 53.0
|Jun mean F = 61.9
|Jul mean F = 70.2
|Aug mean F = 68.9
|Sep mean F = 59.9
|Oct mean F = 47.1
|Nov mean F = 33.8
|Dec mean F = 25.3
|year mean F =

|Jan low F = 16.9
|Feb low F = 18.1
|Mar low F = 25.4
|Apr low F = 31.8
|May low F = 39.2
|Jun low F = 46.4
|Jul low F = 53.2
|Aug low F = 51.7
|Sep low F = 44.2
|Oct low F = 34.4
|Nov low F = 24.0
|Dec low F = 16.8
|year low F =

|Jan avg record low F = -4.2
|Feb avg record low F = -4.1
|Mar avg record low F = 6.2
|Apr avg record low F = 18.8
|May avg record low F = 26.2
|Jun avg record low F = 35.0
|Jul avg record low F = 44.4
|Aug avg record low F = 41.6
|Sep avg record low F = 31.2
|Oct avg record low F = 18.6
|Nov avg record low F = 3.3
|Dec avg record low F = -5.2
|year avg record low F = -14.0

|Jan record low F = -30
|Feb record low F = -31
|Mar record low F = -16
|Apr record low F = 4
|May record low F = 11
|Jun record low F = 25
|Jul record low F = 30
|Aug record low F = 30
|Sep record low F = 12
|Oct record low F = -8
|Nov record low F = -23
|Dec record low F = -30

|precipitation colour = green
|Jan precipitation inch = 0.77
|Feb precipitation inch = 0.63
|Mar precipitation inch = 0.91
|Apr precipitation inch = 0.92
|May precipitation inch = 1.97
|Jun precipitation inch = 1.89
|Jul precipitation inch = 1.33
|Aug precipitation inch = 0.98
|Sep precipitation inch = 1.24
|Oct precipitation inch = 1.48
|Nov precipitation inch = 0.96
|Dec precipitation inch = 0.81
|year precipitation inch =

|Jan snow inch = 4.5
|Feb snow inch = 3.2
|Mar snow inch = 2.3
|Apr snow inch = 1.9
|May snow inch = 0.7
|Jun snow inch = 0.1
|Jul snow inch = 0.0
|Aug snow inch = 0.0
|Sep snow inch = 0.0
|Oct snow inch = 0.5
|Nov snow inch = 4.9
|Dec snow inch = 4.1
|year snow inch =

|unit precipitation days = 0.01 in
|Jan precipitation days = 5.1
|Feb precipitation days = 4.8
|Mar precipitation days = 5.1
|Apr precipitation days = 6.3
|May precipitation days = 8.1
|Jun precipitation days = 8.2
|Jul precipitation days = 6.5
|Aug precipitation days = 5.7
|Sep precipitation days = 5.1
|Oct precipitation days = 6.4
|Nov precipitation days = 6.5
|Dec precipitation days = 5.8

|unit snow days = 0.1 in
|Jan snow days = 3.0
|Feb snow days = 2.4
|Mar snow days = 1.9
|Apr snow days = 1.5
|May snow days = 0.5
|Jun snow days = 0.1
|Jul snow days = 0.0
|Aug snow days = 0.0
|Sep snow days = 0.1
|Oct snow days = 0.5
|Nov snow days = 2.4
|Dec snow days = 2.8

|source 1 = NOAA<ref name=NOAA>
{{cite web
|url = https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/services/data/v1?dataset=normals-monthly-1991-2020&stations=USC00243378&format=pdf&dataTypes=MLY-TMAX-NORMAL,MLY-TMIN-NORMAL,MLY-TAVG-NORMAL,MLY-PRCP-NORMAL,MLY-SNOW-NORMAL
|publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
|title = U.S. Climate Normals Quick Access
|access-date = August 5, 2022
}}
</ref>
|source 2 = National Weather Service<ref name = NOWData>
{{cite web
|url = https://www.weather.gov/wrh/climate?wfo=byz
|publisher = National Weather Service
|title = NOAA Online Weather Data
|access-date = August 5, 2022
}}
</ref>
}}

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|align=left
|2000= 851
|2010= 875
|2020= 833
|align-fn=center
|footnote=[https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html U.S. Decennial Census]
}}

As of the [[census]] of 2000, there were 851 people residing in Gardiner. The population density was {{convert|224.9|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. The racial makeup of was 97.30% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 0.35% [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 1.41% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 0.24% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], 0.12% from [[Race (United States Census)|other races]], and 0.59% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] people of any race were 0.47% of the population.<ref name="GR2">{{cite web |title=U.S. Census website |url=https://www.census.gov |access-date=January 31, 2008 |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]}}</ref>

There were 435 households, of which 22.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.0% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, and 51.5% were non-families. 43.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.96 people and the average family size 2.73.<ref name="GR2" />

In 2000, 20.8% were under the age of 18, 2.9% from 18 to 24, 40.5% from 25 to 44, 28.0% from 45 to 64, and 7.8% who were 65 years of age or older.<ref name="GR2" />

The median income for a household was $30,125, and the median income for a family was $46,071. Men had a median income of $30,240 versus $17,614 for women. About 8.2% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 4.8% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.<ref name="GR2" />

==Education==
[[Gardiner Public Schools]] has a single educational building. Its divisions are:<ref name=About>{{cite web|url=http://www.gardiner.org/about.html|title=About|publisher=[[Gardiner Public Schools]]|access-date=January 19, 2020}}</ref>

*Gardiner School (grades K-6; 101 students)
*Gardiner 7-8 School (grades 7–8; 44 students)
*[[Gardiner High School (Montana)|Gardiner High School]] (grades 9–12; 85 students)

The CDP is in both Gardiner Elementary School District<!--ELM 11820--> and Gardiner High School District<!--SEC 11850-->,<ref name=SDMaps2020Census>{{cite web|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st30_mt/schooldistrict_maps/c30067_park/DC20SD_C30067.pdf|title=2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Park County, MT|publisher=[[U.S. Census Bureau]]|access-date=2024-10-04}} - [https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st30_mt/schooldistrict_maps/c30067_park/DC20SD_C30067_SD2MS.txt Text list]</ref> the two components of the Gardiner Public Schools school district.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://apps.opi.mt.gov/SchoolDirectory/frmdirectorydistrictpdf.aspx|title=Directory of Montana Schools|publisher=[[Montana Office of Public Instruction]]|date=2024-03-13|access-date=2024-10-04|pages=203/317}}</ref>

A library in Gardiner opened in the 20th century.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nps.gov/yell/learn/historyculture/upload/MSC187MamLibrary.pdf|title=Mammoth Community Library Records 1940-2003|publisher=[[National Park Service]]|access-date=2024-10-05}}</ref>

==Infrastructure==
[[Gardiner Airport]] is a public use airport located two miles (3.7&nbsp;km) northwest of town.

==Media==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! AM radio
! FM radio
! Television
|-
| [[KBOZ (AM)|KBOZ]] 1090
| [[KOBB-FM]] 93.7
| [[KTVM]] 6 [[NBC]]
|-
| [[KOBB (AM)|KOBB]] 1230
| [[KMMS-FM]] 94.7
| [[KBZK]] 7 [[CBS]]
|-
|KPRK 1340
|[[KISN (FM)|KISN]] 96.7
|[[KUSM]] 9 [[Public Broadcasting Service|PBS]]
|-KEMC/KBMC-FM 103.9
|[[KMMS (AM)|KMMS]] 1450
|[[KOZB]] 97.5
|
|-
|
|[[KBOZ-FM]] 99.9 Gardiner Field, Montana was reported destroyed by an "enemy A-bomb" in the movie ''[[Invasion, U.S.A. (1952 film)|Invasion U.S.A.]]''
|
|-
|
|[[KXLB]] 100.7
|
|-
|
|[[KZMY]] 103.5
|
|-
|
|[[KBZM]] 104.7
|
|-
|
|[[KSCY]] 106.9
|
|-
|}

==Gallery==
<gallery class="center" widths="180px">
File:McCartneysHotelMammoth.jpg|McCartney's Hotel, precursor of the Gardiner settlement
File:Gardiner 1887.jpg|Gardiner, Park County, Montana, looking northeast, 1887. A one-sided street backed up to rocky foothills.
File:NorthernPacificDepotGardiner-Haynes.jpg|Northern Pacific Railway Terminal postcard, [[F. Jay Haynes]]
File:Yellowstone North Gate.jpg|[[Roosevelt Arch|Roosevelt Arch at Yellowstone's north entrance]]
File:Parks' Fly Shop Gardiner Montana.jpg|Parks' Fly Shop, 2nd Street, 2009
File:Gardiner Park St.jpg|Park Street, October 2009 with Roosevelt Arch
File:Gardiner Blue Goose.jpg|Red's Blue Goose
File:TinkersCemetaryYNPGardinerMT2009.jpg|Tinker's Cemetery, just north of town in Yellowstone National Park
File:YellowstoneHeritageAndResearchCenter2009.jpg|Yellowstone Heritage and Research Center<ref>[https://www.nps.gov/yell/historyculture/collections.htm Yellowstone Heritage and Research Center]</ref>
</gallery>

==See also==
*[[Angling in Yellowstone National Park]]
*[[The Summit Lighthouse]] - international headquarters located in Gardiner
*[[North Entrance Road Historic District]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*{{Commons category-inline|Gardiner, Montana}}
*{{Wikivoyage inline|Gardiner (Montana)|Gardiner, Montana}}

{{Park County, Montana}}
{{Mammoth Hot Springs}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Census-designated places in Park County, Montana]]
[[Category:Census-designated places in Montana]]
[[Category:1880 establishments in Montana Territory]]