MILES CITY

city, seat of Custer county, eastern Montana, U.S., at the junction of the Yellowstone and Tongue rivers. It was founded in 1877 and was named for a U.S. army officer who had campaigned in the area, General Nelson A. Miles. After the arrival of the Northern Pacific Railway (1881), it became a market for cattle, sheep, wool, and farm crops. Saddles are made, and roundups and rodeos are annual events. The city is the seat of Miles Community College (1939) and of the State Industrial School for Boys. The Range Riders Museum, a bird refuge, and fish hatchery are nearby. Inc. 1887. Pop. (1990) 8,461.