Editing Kalispell, Montana (section)

===Railroad expansion and incorporation===
[[File:Montana - Kalispell - NARA - 23941947 (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|Aerial view of Kalispell, 1925]]
As the Great Northern Railroad built its continent-spanning railroad line in the 19th century, a need for a [[Divisional point]] in the Flathead Valley was identified. Using his own capital, Charles Edward Conrad, a businessman and banker from [[Fort Benton, Montana]], formed the Kalispell Townsite Company with three other men, all from Great Northern board of directors.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://flathead.mt.gov/courthouse/history.php|title=History of the Courthouse|publisher=County of Flathead|access-date=December 5, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120426022232/http://flathead.mt.gov/courthouse/history.php|archive-date=April 26, 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> The town took its name from [[Pend d'Oreilles|the local native tribe]], adding an extra "L" for good measure. "Kalispell" is a [[Salishan languages|Salish]] word meaning "flat land above the lake".<ref name="flatheadwatershed"/>

The townsite was quickly [[plat]]ted, and lots began selling by the spring of 1891. Kalispell was officially incorporated as a city in 1892,<ref>{{cite web |title=Brief History of the Flathead Valley |url=http://www.fcvb.org/historyoftheflathead.php |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060706150927/http://www.fcvb.org/historyoftheflathead.php |archive-date=July 6, 2006 |access-date=November 23, 2011 |publisher=Flathead Convention & Visitor Bureau}}</ref> and Conrad built a large [[Charles E. Conrad Mansion|mansion]] there in 1895.<ref name="Conrad Mansion">{{cite web|url=http://www.conradmansion.com/index.html|title=Conrad Mansion Museum|access-date=October 4, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161005151914/http://www.conradmansion.com/index.html|archive-date=October 5, 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref> Since that time, the city has continued to grow in population, reaching 19,927 in 2010. This growth persisted despite the railroad being rerouted from its original route over Haskell Pass, via Kalispell and Marion, Montana, to a more circuitous but flatter route via Whitefish and Eureka already in 1904.