Though controversy remains over the exact location of the center of Montana, the locals are perfectly willing to accept the claim of the Yogo Inn as being the center of the state. The reason for the controversy lies primarily in the irregular shape of the state, making it rather difficult to calculate its exact center.
The Yogo Inn's claim rests on the discovery during renovations of the inn in 1983 of an old document dated 1912 which declares Lewiston as the center of Montana.
The Centermark is in the tile floor surrounding the inn's indoor pool.
About the Inn
The Centermark was added to the hotel in 1983. As preparations were being made to pour the concrete floor for the addition, several interesting items were excavated that date back to the early 1900s. Among the artifacts found was a parchment document written by “W.S.”, an amateur history buff, draftsman and surveyor. An insignia in the lower right hand corner of this document includes a map of Montana and printed on the circle around it is “Montana’s Center – 1912, Lewistown.” Many local residents have long believed that Lewistown is the center of the state and here is a document that supports the claim.
The heart of the building that is now the Yogo Inn was originally built to house Lewistown's Milwaukee Road train depot in 1913. When train use went into a decline and the last passenger train left the depot in 1955, the building was purchased by the Community Hotel Company in 1960. The company decided to incorporate the depot into a new 60-room hotel that was formally dedicated in 1963. Additions were made to the facility and today the Yogo Inn is a full service hotel and convention center with 123 guest rooms and meeting and conference facilities able to accommodate 300 attendees.
The Yogo Inn is named after the famous Yogo Sapphire mined exclusively in Central Montana and the only American gem found in the crown jewels of England. For more history, see
Yogo Inn Background and History.
We are conveniently located in the exact center of the state and surrounded by four beautiful mountain ranges: the Judiths, the Moccasins, the Big Snowy Mountains and Little Snowy Mountains.
From the Yogo Inn