South Side in Billings in Yellowstone County, Montana — The American West (Mountains)

The College Life

Billings' Universities

Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, September 15, 2020

1. The College Life Marker

Captions: (upper left) Looking east toward Billings Polytechnic Institute, 1926. At the time; the college was outside the city limits. Students quarried local stone to help construct several of the early buildings on campus.; (bottom left) Rocky Mountain College homecoming at Daylis Stadium, a locally shared school sports venue, 1955.; (bottom center L) Green Gold Cereal Milling in the basement of Prescott Hall, Billings Polytechnic Institute, 1934. Students received hands on work experience at the college.; (bottom center R) Campus life at Eastern Montana College, 1966-1967. In 1965, Eastern Montana College became a four-year college.; (bottom right) Eastern Montana College of Education campus, 1959. Formerly Eastern Montana Normal School, it was renamed in 1949 to Eastern Montana College of Education.; (upper right) Incoming student wearing the freshman beanies in front of the Alterowitz Gym at Eastern Montana College 1960s.

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The College Life. Billings' Universities. Billings is home to two accredited colleges: Rocky Mountain College, a private liberal arts school, and Montana State University Billings, a state university. , ROCKY MOUNTAIN COLLEGE , Rocky Mountain College is a merger of colleges from Billings, Helena, and Deer Lodge. In Billings, Lewis and Ernst Eaton created Billings Polytechnic Institute vocational school in 1908 using local quarried sandstone for the early buildings. The campus was located northwest of Billings, between Poly Drive and Rimrock Road. By the 1920s, the students could master a trade while earning money at the campus dairy farm, grain fields, cereal mill, stone quarry, machine shop, or gardens. Students even produced their own food for the cafeteria. In 1927, Billings Polytechnic Institute purchased the Billings Billings Business College. , By 1918, the Intermountain Union College of Helena had absorbed the assets of the College of Montana in Deer Lodge. A violent earthquake in 1935 damaged the college beyond repair and the Intermountain College "moved" to Billings and shared the campus with Billings Polytechnic Institute. Billings Polytechnic Institute and Intermountain Union College merged to form Rocky Mountain College in 1947. Today, Rocky Mountain College is the only four-year liberal arts college with Protestant affiliation in Montana. , MONTANA STATE UNIVERSITY BILLINGS , Established in 1925 as the Eastern Montana Normal School, the college prepared students to become teachers. Local elementary schools initially provided space for classroom instruction until the establishment of a larger campus on the north edge of downtown Billings. The college was renamed in 1949 to Eastern Montana College of Education and then Eastern Montana College in 1965. , The college merged with Montana State University in 1994 and became Montana State University Billings. Currently, the university offers associate, bachelor, and master degrees through the University's five colleges. City College at MSU Billings also offers a variety of 2-year Associate degree programs on a separate campus. With 5,000 students, they are the third largest campus population in the Montana university system.

Billings is home to two accredited colleges: Rocky Mountain College, a private liberal arts school, and Montana State University Billings, a state university.

ROCKY MOUNTAIN COLLEGE
Rocky Mountain College is a merger of colleges from Billings, Helena, and Deer Lodge. In Billings, Lewis and Ernst Eaton created Billings Polytechnic Institute vocational school in 1908 using local quarried sandstone for the early buildings. The campus was located northwest of Billings, between Poly Drive and Rimrock Road. By the 1920s, the students could master a trade while earning money at the campus dairy farm, grain fields, cereal mill, stone quarry, machine shop, or gardens. Students even produced their own food for the cafeteria. In 1927, Billings Polytechnic Institute purchased the Billings Billings Business College.
By 1918, the Intermountain Union College of Helena had absorbed the assets of the College of Montana in Deer Lodge. A violent earthquake in 1935 damaged the college beyond repair and the Intermountain College "moved" to Billings and shared the campus with Billings Polytechnic Institute. Billings Polytechnic Institute and Intermountain Union College merged to form Rocky Mountain College in 1947. Today, Rocky Mountain College is the only four-year liberal arts college with Protestant affiliation

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in Montana.

MONTANA STATE UNIVERSITY BILLINGS
Established in 1925 as the Eastern Montana Normal School, the college prepared students to become teachers. Local elementary schools initially provided space for classroom instruction until the establishment of a larger campus on the north edge of downtown Billings. The college was renamed in 1949 to Eastern Montana College of Education and then Eastern Montana College in 1965.
The college merged with Montana State University in 1994 and became Montana State University Billings. Currently, the university offers associate, bachelor, and master degrees through the University's five colleges. City College at MSU Billings also offers a variety of 2-year Associate degree programs on a separate campus. With 5,000 students, they are the third largest campus population in the Montana university system.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Education. A significant historical year for this entry is 1908.

Location. 45° 47.017′ N, 108° 29.949′ W. Marker is in Billings, Montana, in Yellowstone County. It is in the South Side. Marker can be reached from Montana Avenue (Business Interstate 90) near North 23rd Street, on the right when traveling east. The marker is found on the fence paralleling the railroad tracks. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 2310 Montana Avenue, Billings MT 59101, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers.

Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, September 15, 2020

2. The College Life Marker

The marker is located on the fence line.

At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Billings Clinic: Healthcare on the Frontier (here, next to this marker); Coal in the Treasure State (here, next to this marker); Ranching on the Plains (here, next to this marker); Houses of Ill Repute (a few steps from this marker); All We Need is Some Water (within shouting distance of this marker); Northern Pacific Depot "Union Station" (within shouting distance of this marker); Teddy Roosevelt Visits the Depot - 1918 (within shouting distance of this marker); Black Gold (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Billings.

Credits. This page was last revised on February 16, 2023. It was originally submitted on March 15, 2021, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 140 times since then and 20 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on March 15, 2021, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.