Utica, Montana
Utica is an unincorporated community in west-central Judith Basin County, Montana, United States. It is approximately 40 miles (64 km) from Lewistown[3] at the intersections of Pig Eye Road, Montana Route 239 (the "Utica highway"), and Montana Route 541. Yogo sapphires were found near Utica in the mid-1890s.[4] Judith River Ranger Station is near town. The town itself now consists only of a church and a museum, plus a few houses. Notable residentsOne of Utica's most famous local residents was the western painter C.M. Russell, who at the time was a young cowhand hired by a local rancher and gold miner named Jake Hoover.[5] Russell stated that he learned most of his frontier skills from Hoover,[6] and the two men remained lifelong friends.[5] He featured Utica in the 1907 painting A Quiet Day In Utica,[7][8] which was originally known as Tinning a Dog. Hoover; local businesswoman Mollie Ringold, a former slave;[9] store owner Charles Lehman and Russell himself are all depicted in the painting, seen standing between the hitching post and door of the general store.[8][10][11] Demographics
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