Montana, county records
Find the right office in Chouteau County. Court cases, deeds and parcels, sheriff and jail records, vital records and county filings, each linked to the office that keeps them.
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Every card below goes to the government office responsible for that record. Use the category buttons to narrow the list.
County court
The U.S. District Court for the District of Montana hears federal civil and criminal cases, with dockets and filings available through PACER. Montana state court cases come from the Montana Judicial Branch.
Open official site Montana Federal CasesProperty records
Obtain property tax info by contacting the Montana Cadastral Mapping page.
Open official site Montana Property RecordsVital records
Request birth and death certificates from the MT Dept. of Public Health and Human Services.
Open official site Montana Birth and Death Vital RecordsState records
Find active and inactive corporations by name from the Montana Secretary of State.
Open official site Montana Business & Corporation SearchState records
The Montana Department of Revenue holds unclaimed money and property, such as old bank accounts, wages, refunds and safe deposit box contents, and lets owners search and file claims online.
Open official site Montana Unclaimed PropertyPolice & jail
The Montana Department of Corrections offender search. Montana no longer publishes a separate death row page, so a person under a sentence of death is looked up here by name.
Open official site Montana Death Row inmatesState records
Montana historical records, manuscript collections and government records.
Open official site Montana Archival CollectionsLocal record guide
County profile
Sheriff & Law Enforcement. Chouteau County Sheriff's Office is responsible for law enforcement across Chouteau County's unincorporated areas.
Police Departments. Law enforcement in Chouteau County is primarily provided by Chouteau County Sheriff's Office and the municipal police departments of Fort Benton and Big Sandy.
Law Enforcement & Arrests. Law enforcement in Chouteau County is primarily provided by Chouteau County Sheriff's Office, headquartered at 1308 Franklin Street, Fort Benton, MT 59442. Chouteau County Detention Center, located adjacent to the Sheriff's Office, houses pre-trial detainees and sentenced misdemeanor offenders. For arrest records and booking information, requests must be made under Montana's public records laws, specifically the Montana Constitution Article II, Section 9, and the Montana Code Annotated (MCA) 2-6-102, which establish the public's right to examine government documents.
Arrest Records. Arrest records in Chouteau County are maintained by Chouteau County Sheriff's Office. Residents and attorneys can request arrest records through the Sheriff's Office, adhering to procedures outlined by the Montana Public Records Act.
Jail & Inmate Records. Inmate lookup services are available through the Sheriff's Office, allowing family members and attorneys to locate individuals currently held in custody.
Mugshots & Booking Photos. Mugshots in Chouteau County are taken and retained by Chouteau County Sheriff's Office during the booking process. These booking photos are part of the public record and can be accessed through the Sheriff's Office or via third-party services that compile public records.
1308 Franklin Street, Fort Benton, MT 59442 • Phone: 406-622-5451
Abandoned mine records
Where the workings are, and the office that holds the mine maps.
From the old mine records
The mine records hold 28 named mine sites inside the county, 8 of them worked out or abandoned; the old survey maps add 84 holes drawn inside the county, 8 of them shafts or tunnels. The minerals the records name are Clay; Uranium; Potassium.
A point in either file is a location, not a property line: the sheet shows the opening on the surface, not the rooms under it. The record that shows what runs under a parcel is the mine map. The OSMRE National Mine Map Repository holds scanned underground mine maps and answers requests for a named mine or an area.
Rows taken off the old survey maps open the USGS record of what sits at that spot, because no single feature on those maps has a page of its own. Rows from the mine records open their own USGS page.
Disclaimer: The mine information here is for general information only. Old mine records can be incomplete, outdated or wrong, and finding nothing here does not mean there is nothing there. Check with the mine map office named here before you rely on it, and have a qualified engineer look at any ground you are worried about. PublicRecordCenter.com assumes no responsibility or liability for any errors, omissions, or consequences arising from the use of this information.
Straight answers
Open only the answer you need.
Booking photos are kept by the agency that made the arrest, such as the Chouteau County Sheriff or a city police department in Chouteau County. Ask that agency for its record. Montana law (MCA 44-5-103) lists initial arrest records, including booking photographs, as public criminal justice information, and MCA 44-5-301 places no restrictions on its dissemination.
The Montana criminal history record comes from the Montana Department of Justice, Criminal Records and Identification Services. Name search of public criminal history online through Criminal History Online Public Record Search, or by mail to Montana Criminal Records, PO Box 201403, Helena, MT 59620-1403 with the full name, date of birth and a self addressed stamped envelope; fingerprint searches go to the same address. Fee: $15.00 for a name based request by mail; $20.00 for each online record search.
Search the Montana Sexual or Violent Offender Registry (Montana Department of Justice), or every state at once on the National Sex Offender Public Website run by the U.S. Department of Justice.
Register with the county election administrator (the county election office) or through the Montana Secretary of State. Montana has no online voter registration. Regular registration closes 30 days before the election; after that, late registration in person with the county election administrator is available (MCA 13-2-304).
Deeds and other recorded land documents in Chouteau County are kept by the Chouteau County Clerk and Recorder. Property values are set by the Montana Department of Revenue, and tax bills come from the county treasurer. Source: official state page.
Certified birth and death certificates for Montana come from the Montana DPHHS Office of Vital Records. You may visit any local County Clerk and Recorder's office in Montana to buy a birth or death certificate, no matter which Montana county the event occurred in (long form birth certificates come only from the State Vital Records Office in Helena or the listed offices). By mail with the application, payment and a copy of your ID to Montana Vital Records, PO Box 4210, Helena, MT 59604, or online or by phone through VitalChek or VitalRecordsOnline, the only third party vendors the state has contracted and approved. Fee: $16 for a certified birth certificate and $16 for a certified death certificate.
Business entity filings are searched with the Montana Secretary of State, Business Services. Local city and county offices provide all business licensing in Montana; the state provides professional licenses.
Same county
Use the city page when a record was created by a municipal police department or city office; use the county page for courts, deeds, vital records and jail custody.