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2003-08-17 Entering Cooke City from the East
Montana›Park County

Cooke CityMT

A town of 86, settled in 1957.

1 bordering townMap →
Photo: Ildar Sagdejev (Specious) · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo of Cooke City

Cooke City, MT · Photo: Ildar Sagdejev (Specious) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source ↗

Is Cooke City a good place to live?

Cooke City’s average trip to work is 5 minutes, below both Montana’s towns (17 minutes) and U.S. towns (25 minutes). Only 1 of the 43 Montana towns we compare have a lower July high than Cooke City. 87% of the land in Cooke City is conserved, above both Montana’s towns (9.2%) and U.S. towns (4.3%). Cooke City Store is on the National Register of Historic Places. Cooke City has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.

Small town

86 people, and everyone knows the way

In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.

Silver GateSilver GateCooke City
Cooke City Store
Cooke City Store · National Register of Historic Places
Cooke City’s story

69 years in pictures

The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1915 and 4 maps from 1956 on.

1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.

  • 1957Cooke City is settled
Explore the history →
Nearby attractions

Yellowstone National Park and 10 more within 40 miles

Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Cooke City. Close and well known come first.

All 17 attractions →
Sources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons
Photo credits

Yellowstone National Park: James St. John from Newark, Ohio, CC BY 2.0 · Beartooth Highway: Phil Armitage, Public domain · Granite Peak: jfisher2167, CC BY 2.0 · Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone: Brocken Inaglory, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Yellowstone Falls: Unknown, Public domain · Roosevelt Arch: Yellowstone National Park, Public domain

Getting set up

Moving to Cooke City: who provides what

Cooke City is unincorporated, so Park County and regional agencies provide most services.

PowerNorthWestern Energy14.4¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterCooke City Water DistrictNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
InternetProviders and speedsData pending · D4
Trash & county servicesPark CountyPark County provides services here
SchoolsCooke City Elementary School DistrictGardiner High School District2 districts serve Cooke City; which school depends on your address and gradeNCES
Register to voteIn personMontana has no online registration; you can register in person up to and including Election Day or by mail (postmarked 30 days before).vote.gov
Who runs elections herePark County Election AdministratorPark County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Apr 2025
ZIP code5902059020 100%Census 2020

EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.

The data

Ordered by what stands out in Cooke City.

Outdoors

Cooke City has set aside nearly a third of its land for conservation

14 miles of trail in 0 parks and preserves. The trail density in Cooke City is 1.5 miles per square mile.

86.6%conserved
86.6%
conserved · 5,254 of 6,069 acres
14 mi
of trails · 1.5 per sq mi

Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US

Schools

The schools Cooke City’s kids attend

Its public schools are run by the Cooke City Elementary District. Its one school is below.

SchoolLevelStudentsLetter
Cooke City SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–8Grades PK–83–

NCES · EDFacts

Natural hazards

The FEMA risk score in Cooke City is higher than in the typical Montana or U.S. town

Cooke City’s FEMA risk score is 90 of 100.

90risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
90Very high riskLowerHigher
AvalanchesInland floodingWildfire
1
federal disasters paid out here

FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA

Climate

Snowy winters and pleasant summers in Cooke City

Cooke City has cold, snowy winters and cool summers. July afternoons reach 73°, January nights drop to 9° and about 213 inches of snow falls in a winter.

213″snow a winter

Typical low → high °F

Winter9–29°
Spring23–46°
Summer39–69°
Fall25–48°
+1.8°
vs. the 20th-century average

NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020

Health

Cooke City stands out in Montana and nationally: a smaller share of its adults have been diagnosed with depression

Of the 42 Montana towns we compare, none has a lower share of adults who have been diagnosed with depression than Cooke City. 31% of Cooke City adults have obesity. Cooke City beats the Montana average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1.

Cooke CityMontana townsU.S. towns
Feel lonely (CDC PLACES)27%31%33%
Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES)30%32%36%
Depression (CDC PLACES)22%25%23%
Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES)73%72%79%
32 measures vs. Montana
0 better31 too close to call1 worse
What stands outCooke CityMT
More adults with heart disease8.8%6.6%
Cody Regional Health
53.4 mi away · emergency room
2 of 3
care shortages: primary care, mental health

CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA

Keep exploring

Everything we know about Cooke City

17pages on Cooke City
After high school

Colleges nearby

None within 15 miles of Cooke City; the nearest are

About Cooke City

Census-designated place in Montana, United States

Cooke City is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Park County, Montana, United States. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 77. Prior to 2010, it was part of the Cooke City-Silver Gate CDP. The community sits northeast of Yellowstone National Park on the Beartooth Highway, which leads east to Red Lodge, Montana, on a scenic route climbing to 10,947 feet (3,337 m) in elevation through the Beartooth Mountains and across the Beartooth Plateau. The town's chief industry is tourism, which during the winter includes skiing and snowmobiling. It is named for Jay Cooke, financier of the Northern Pacific Railroad.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)

Area
9.5 sq mi
Elevation
7,572 ft
ZIP code
59020

Questions about Cooke City

Short answers, built from the data on this page.

Is Cooke City, MT a good place to live?

Cooke City has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.