Imagine my surprise to find out that Montana was the “star” of Final Jeopardy on Friday!
I’ve noted Montana appearances on J! several times in recent years – there was even once an entire category devoted to our beloved state!
But our beloved Treasure State appearing on Final Jeopardy? COOL!
The answer: “The 2020 Census gave Montana a second U.S. House seat; its most populous county, this one that attracts tourists, grew 11%.”
Well, the most populous county in Montana is Yellowstone County, right? Billings has more people than any other town in Montana, and everybody knows it.
BUT – “this one that attracts tourists” – um. When you think of “tourist destinations” in Montana, Billings and/Yellowstone County aren’t really top-of-mind. Most people think of Glacier National Park, maybe the Flathead/Kalispell area, and of course Yellowstone National Park.
But Glacier National Park spans Glacier County – which is nowhere near the most populous county in Montana; and Flathead County – which does indeed rank as one of the most populous counties in Montana, but definitely not the MOST.
OK, let’s think of “tourist = Yellowstone National Park.” That leads you to Gallatin County – whose population has really boomed in recent years. Bozeman as a town has grown a lot, but still has nowhere near as many people as Billings – but Gallatin County as a whole, including Belgrade, Bridger area, Big Sky, Three Forks, West Yellowstone, etc? Hmmm…is it possible that it has surpassed Yellowstone County?
So…I chose Gallatin County. And I chose wrong. The correct answer is indeed Yellowstone County – still the most populous county in Montana.
The clue/answer itself included some fluff information: Montana gaining a second House seat – irrelevant. The county in question grew by 11% – mostly irrelevant, because other counties grew by much larger percentages – so including that number kinda sorta implies that it grew at a faster rate than the other 55 counties.
What it boils down to is this: What Montana county has the most people? If it had been phrased like that, maybe my response would have changed – but throwing in the “tourism” and the % increase just sent me down the wrong path, unfortunately.
As for the game – I was thrilled that Cris got the answer right – he is already a J! legend, and I hope his streak continues – he has a bit of the James H. vibe. The other two contestants answered with BOZEMAN (not a county) and FLATHEAD (decent try).
But back to Final Jeopardy: yes, I was disappointed that I got it wrong – but then Ken said something bizarre: Yellowstone County is part of where Yellowstone National Park is located.
NOOOOOO! First, that is just 100% wrong. There are zero parts of Yellowstone National Park in Yellowstone County. A few people over at /r/jeopardy also called it out. But Ken’s comment came after the contestants wrote their answers, so it had no impact on the game.
Second, I am truly baffled that Ken Jennings – one of my few idols, and the truly absolute J! GOAT – got that wrong.
As for the most-populous counties in Montana as of 2020:
Yellowstone: 167,146
Gallatin: 122,713
Missoula: 119,533
Flathead: 108,454
Cascade: 84,511
Yellowstone County grew by 11% between Census periods – but Gallatin County grew by more than 32%, and Flathead County grew by more than 20%. Some county-specific data that uses more current info right here.
