GLASGOW — The middle of nowhere is now somewhere.

Glasgow, once hailed as the most isolated community in the lower 48 states, along with five surrounding counties, saw nonresident visitation grow by 848,000 between 2018 and 2023, the largest jump across five tourism regions in 23 Eastern Montana counties.

The number highlights a recently released report by the Missoula-based Institute for Tourism and Recreation Research (ITRR), which also found nonresident visitor spending in Eastern Montana doubling, an increase of $510.7 million.

“I think the report gives us a lot of opportunity to see how great Eastern Montana is and everything it provides,” said Melissa Weddell, director of ITRR.

“It’s very exciting to see,” said Jaime Shanks, community development specialist for the Eastern Plains

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