Lame Deer, Montana
8 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1954 and the latest in 1980. It stands in the Northern Cheyenne Reservation census division. It lies in ZIP code area 59043. It stands on Alderson Creek. The Survey maps it on the Lame Deer quadrangle. 1,897 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 3,327 feet above sea level.
On record in Lame Deer
Buildings and businesses the archive holds for this place. Each opens its own page, with the source record it came from.
On the National Register 1 record
- Head Chief-Young Mule Chargelisted 2024
Population over time
3 figuresLame Deer fell from 2,018 to 1,897 between 2000 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate, and an estimate published within five years of a census is left out. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.
| Year | People | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 2,018 | |
| 2010 | 2,052 | +34 (+2%) |
| 2020 | 1,897 | -155 (-8%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
5 surveys from 8 printed sheetsMatched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.
- 1954 USGS Hardin quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1957 USGS Hardin quadrangle1:250000
- 1958 USGS Hardin quadrangle1:250000
- 1958 USGS Lame Deer quadrangle1:24000, 3 printings
- 1980 USGS Lame Deer quadrangle1:100000
Fires near this place
704 since 1992Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 704 fires within 5 miles of Lame Deer between 1992 and 2020, burning about 4,114 acres in total. 155 started naturally. 72 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Reported cause | Fires |
|---|---|
| Natural | 155 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 135 |
| Fireworks | 99 |
| Debris and open burning | 91 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 72 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 68 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 35 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 19 |
| Other causes | 15 |
| Smoking | 9 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 5 |
| Railroad operations and maintenance | 1 |
The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 September 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | under an acre | Northern Cheyenne Agency | BADGER |
| 9 September 2001 | Misuse of fire by a minor | under an acre | Northern Cheyenne Agency | BAPTIST |
| 9 September 2000 | Smoking | 1.0 acres | Northern Cheyenne Agency | MATCH BOOK |
| 9 September 1994 | Natural | 1.1 acres | Northern Cheyenne Agency | ALDEN |
| 8 September 2019 | Recreation and ceremony | under an acre | Northern Cheyenne Agency | COWBOY CAMP |
| 8 September 2015 | Other causes | under an acre | Northern Cheyenne Agency | EAST SIDE 3 |
| 7 September 1996 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 1.0 acres | Northern Cheyenne Agency | ICECREAM |
| 6 September 2013 | Natural | 1.0 acres | Northern Cheyenne Agency | BUFFALO |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
4 within 5 milesRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 4 workings within 5 miles of Lame Deer: 3 unknowns, 1 occurrence. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Bentonite. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clay Pit | Bentonite | Occurrence | ||
| Gravel Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Unknown | ||
| Gravel Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Unknown | ||
| Gravel Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Unknown |
Storms near this place
42 since 1994Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Lame Deer in 42 storm reports between 1994 and 2025: 23 thunderstorm wind, 16 hail, 2 flood, 1 flash flood. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | Mesonet bafm8 Badger Peak. |
| July 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | Reported by local mesonet weather station. |
| July 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | Gust estimated by trained spotter. |
| July 2025 | Hail | Lame Deer | - | Hail 1 inch in diameter. |
| July 2019 | Hail | Lame Deer | - | The hail covered the ground. |
| June 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | The public reported a semi-truck blown over on Highway 212 near Lame Deer. |
| May 2014 | Hail | Lame Deer | - | Hen egg size hail did damage to cars and car windshields on Birney Divide. |
| February 2012 | Flood | Lame Deer | - | County officials reported that minor flooding occurred across portions of Southern Rosebud County. Up to an inch of rain had fallen along with several inches of snow over the higher hills. The rain falling on frozen ground, combined with snow melt, resulted in minor flooding of low lying areas. Several ice jams were reported on Rosebud, Lame Deer and Muddy Creeks resulting in water over the roads in some locations, as well as the main road in the town of Birney. In addition, an ice jam was reported on the Tongue River and Hanging Woman Creek north and west of Birney. One rancher had to rescue calves from a flooded area. Another rancher had a chicken coup flooded killing 4 hens, as well as a stranded horse. |
| May 2011 | Flood | Lame Deer | - | Highway 212 was closed on Lame Deer Divide due to the road sliding down a hill. Significant lowland flooding was also reported along Rosebud Creek. Sandbagging efforts were required on the Tongue River to avoid flooding of homes in the St Labre and Ashland areas. |
| August 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | An estimated thunderstorm wind gust of 60 mph was reported 15 miles south of Colstrip. |
| July 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | Wind gusts were estimated at 60 mph in Lame Deer. |
| June 2007 | Flash Flood | Lame Deer | - | Lame Deer was under 3 to 4 feet of water, with homes flooded, people stranded, and a propane tank floating in the street. |
| July 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | Power lines and trees down. Severe wind gusts occurred for a period of 20 minutes. |
| July 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | Measure by RAWS |
| June 2006 | Hail | Lame Deer | - | Windows broken out of house |
| June 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | Shingles blown off roof |
| June 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | Car port with 18 inch anchors blown over and crops flattened |
| June 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | Shingles blown off roof |
| July 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | RAWS station at Badger Peak reported a wind gust of 62 mph. |
| July 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | 73 mph thunderstorm wind gust from a RAWS station at Badger Peak. |
| August 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| May 2023 | Hail | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| May 2021 | Hail | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| May 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| July 2019 | Hail | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| July 2018 | Hail | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| August 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| July 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| May 2014 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| May 2014 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| May 2014 | Hail | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| June 2013 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| July 2013 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| June 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| May 2007 | Hail | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| June 2005 | Hail | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| May 2003 | Hail | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| June 2002 | Hail | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| June 2002 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| July 2001 | Hail | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| June 1996 | Hail | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
| April 1994 | Hail | Lame Deer | - | no account filed |
Nearest settlements
The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.
| Map | Place | Distance | Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jimtown | 4.0 miles | 7 | |
| Saints Rest (historical) | 5.3 miles | 7 | |
| Wood Place | 14.6 miles | 8 | |
| Birney Day School | 17.8 miles | 9 | |
| Colstrip | 18.2 miles | 6 | |
| Castle Rock (historical) | 18.9 miles | 6 | |
| Ashland | 21.1 miles | 9 | |
| Birney | 22.3 miles | 7 |
Elsewhere
Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.
| Wikipedia article on Lame Deer | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q960936 | The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0). |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 773196. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.




