Charlo, Montana
census designated place in Lake County, Montana, United States
Charlo (Salish: sallu) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Lake County, Montana, United States. The population was 385 at the 2020 census.
The town was named in 1918 after the Salish leader Chief Charlo. Previously it had been called Big Flat, Charlotte, and Tabor.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 2.0 square miles (5.2 km2), of which 0.01 square miles (0.03 km2), or 0.58%, are water.
Charlo is located in southern Lake County and is 22 miles (35 km) south of Polson, the county seat. The CDP is within the Flathead Indian Reservation.
Charlo borders several protected areas, including the Herak Waterfowl Production area and Ninepipes Reservoir. These protected areas, along with seasonal flood irrigation, provide habitats for various native fauna such as white-tailed deer, pheasants, bald eagles, and western painted turtles.
Charlo is home to the Owl Research Institute which manages scientific research on Owls of all species.
The public source identifies “Charlo, Montana” as census designated place in Lake County, Montana, United States. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Charlo, Montana and census.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Charlo, Montana”, the useful work is to connect “census designated place in Lake County, Montana, United States” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
The strongest evidence will usually combine a dated visual record with documents produced by the authority responsible for the place. The source revision retrieved here is dated Apr 11, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q961050. Authority coordinates are 47.440, -114.173. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2020 and 1918.
Modern boundaries and familiar names can conceal earlier jurisdictions or structures that do not align with the present site. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Charlo, Montana”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Charlo, Montana primary sources, Charlo, Montana archive and Charlo research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Charlo, Montana”?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Charlo, Montana” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.