Malta,
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| Downtown
Malta, Montana |
Malta
was one of the very first towns I ever saw in Montana.
During my first visit to Montana in 1996, when I was moving
to Idaho at the time, I visited this area of Montana just
to “see what was there.” As I traveled extensively
on the dirt and back roads that exist, I had managed to
avoid every town along the way, with the exception of a
quick pass through Fort Peck.
Probably
because I had spent 5 days out in the middle of no-where,
camped in the northern part of the Charles Russell
Wildlife Refuge, when I arrived in Malta it seemed liked “paradise
lost” to me. True, Malta is a small town, with a population
of only 2100 people. And the county Malta is located in,
Phillips County, is hardly bursting with people either (total
county population of 5100 people). Yet, after spending several
days in the boonies of the Montana prairie, Malta had everything
that someone longing for civilization could ever want.
Like
most of the “larger” eastern Montana towns,
Malta is pretty self-contained. While it is lacking in the
retail box stores and other big retail establishments, Malta
has all the basic stores a person needs, including a small
movie theatre. Several small restaurants are also in town,
some of which are pretty good. Moreover, Malta itself is
a pretty nice town. A great little park is located right
downtown.
 |
| Park
in Downtown Malta, Montana |
Similar to other eastern Montana towns, Malta has had to
deal with population decline due to the consolidation of
the agricultural industry. As such, you will find some empty
buildings in and around the downtown area. Moreover, Malta
and Phillips County in general has, at least so far, been
unsuccessful in attracting new businesses and industries
(unlike Glasgow has). The largest employer in the county
is the school system followed by county government.
For those in search of outdoor recreation, Malta is located
in a pretty nice location. The 15,000 acres Bowdoin National
Wildlife Refuge is located just to the east of town and provides
some splendid hunting and wildlife viewing opportunities.
More than half the refuge is considered wetlands. At the
refuge, 260 species of birds are present, making it an ideal
place for bird watching. Other wildlife present on the refuge
includes whitetail deer, upland birds and pronghorn antelope.
Malta
is also becoming known as the “dinosaur capital” of
Montana. The Phillips County Museum contains a large and
growing collection of dinosaur artifacts and is also home
to the Judith River Dinosaur Institute. Visitors to Malta
can sign up for dinosaur exploration tours with the Institute.
Overall,
Malta is an interesting town. Admittedly, it probably isn’t high on the list of attractions for tourists.
Moreover, many tourists probably don’t even see downtown
Malta since the downtown area is located on the “other
side of the tracks” from Highway 2. Yet, Malta is a
town worth seeing. It’s small, compact and it has some
nice parks, one of which is downtown.
You
can also see the complete assortment of Malta
Pictures,
too.
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