Within the state of Montana, the city of Billings is the largest city. Billings is in fact the largest metro area within 800 km or 500 miles and is the major city for the Billings Metropolitan Area. This trade area consists of more than a half a million individuals making it the biggest metropolitan area between Denver and Calgary and between Sioux Falls, South Dakota and Spokane, Washington.
The city of Billings is located in the south-central region of the state of Montana. It is the county seat of Yellowstone County. In the year 2010 the county had a population of 147,972. Billings had a population of around 104,170 in the 2010 Census, making it Montana's only city to surpass 100,000. The city of Billings continues to have the largest growth out of whichever city in the state of Montana and is experiencing a strong economy and rapid growth.
Fortunately, Billings has been able to avoid the majority of the severe economic slump which hit most of the country including the housing bust. This is mostly due to the Bakken oil play located within eastern Montana and western North Dakota. This is currently the biggest discovery of oil in the United States history. The Heath shale oil play is situated just north of Billings. This industry is projected to escalate the already rapid growth rate of the city of Billings.
During 1882, the city of Billings was dubbed the "Magic City", due to the growth as a founding railroad. The city got its name from Frederick H. Billings, a former president of the Northern Pacific Railroad. The city of Billings is the distribution and trade center for most of the state of Montana, Northern Wyoming and western parts of South and North Dakota. As among the biggest trade areas within the entire USA, the city of Billings has also become the retail destination for much of the same region. There are much more hotel accommodations in Billings than in any region within a 5-state area. This makes it an ideal city to host concerts, a variety of conventions and sporting events.
In Montana, there are lots of attractions, like for example: Yellowstone National Park, Pompey's Pillar, Zoo Montana, Pictograph Cave, the Beartooth Highway, Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument, the Bighorn National Recreational Area and the Red Lodge Mountain Resort.
An important part of the city's economic success has to do with the geographic location of the city. It is situated in the centre of a huge area bordered by Denver, Colorado to the south, Calgary, Alberta, Canada to the north, Minneapolis, Minnesota towards the east and Seattle, Washington towards the west.
Billings future was established as a pretty significant trade and distribution hub as the city of Billings was mostly established as major railway hub. There are over a half million businesses and people served by the Billings trade area. Numerous corporate and regional headquarters are situated in the area. In addition, as there is no sales tax in the state of Montana, the city of Billings is a retail destination for a lot of North Dakota, Wyoming, South Dakota, along with most of Montana. Billings is likewise an energy center since it sits amongst huge natural oil and gas fields in addition to being situated on the biggest coal reserves within the United States.