Polebridge Ranger Station

About forestry service, 59928, Polebridge, MT, US, Montana

Polebridge is an unincorporated community in Flathead County, Montana, United States, 35 miles (56 km) northwest of Columbia Falls in the northwestern part of the state. This community was named in 1920 for the log bridge that formerly connected the "inner" North Fork Road in Glacier National Park to the "outer" North Fork Road which leads to Montana Secondary Highway 486, over the North Fork Flathead River. Polebridge is approximately 22 miles south of the Canada–United States border. The W.L. Adair General Mercantile Historic District is a National Register of Historic Places-listed historic district in Polebridge. It contains the Polebridge Mercantile, which has been in operation since 1914. The store is open from May through October. Residents do not have electricity or any form of communication other than mail or media other than newspapers. Candles and whale oil lamps are used for lighting at night. From May through October, the population is just under 100, but during the colder months it falls to the single digits. == History == In the mid to late 1800s, coal, oil, and mineral exploration made the North Fork area of Montana attractive to settlers resulting in a wagon road along the valley on east side of the North Fork Flathead River and bridge over the river, bringing in more settlers.