1. On April 17, 1876, Colonel John Gibbon's expeditionary force arrived at the confluence of the Big Hole and Beaverhead Rivers in Montana during the Nez Perce War. The campsite is now part of the Big Hole National Battlefield, a National Historic Landmark.

2. On April 17, 1905, the Montana State Capitol Building was completed in Helena, the capital of Montana. The building is a magnificent example of Greek neoclassical architecture and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

3. On April 17, 1968, a rather unusual weather phenomenon occurred in Montana when a snowstorm descended on the city of Billings. What made the storm remarkable was that it was a late-season hailstorm, which is an almost unheard-of occurrence in the area.

4. On April 17, 1970, the Montana Constitutional Convention ratified a new state constitution in the city of Billings. This constitution replaced the previous one, which had been in place since 1889, and remains in effect today.

5. On April 17, 1985, the University of Montana Grizzlies football team made history when it was selected as a participant in the NCAA Division I playoffs. This marked the first time in school history that the Grizzlies had been invited to the postseason tournament. The team ultimately fell to the University of Idaho Vandals in the first round.