Montrose was founded in 1871, spurred by the building of the railroad through that territory. The town was named after Montrose, in Scotland. A post office called Montrose has been in operation since 1870. Among the early industries represented in the newly incorporated town were a flour mill, a grain elevator, several grain warehouses, a bank, two hotels, two hardware and implement stores, two furniture stores, three dry goods stores, four blacksmiths, two barber shops, three millinery shops, two newspapers, and a livery stable. The Montrose Savings Bank was organized June 4, 1895 and began operating the following day. The first directors were R.H. Dugan, E.W. Blew, O.P. Wilson, Henry Welling, Nick Erhart, Joseph DeBold and W.S. Winkler. The C.M. and Vina Clark House and St. Ludger Catholic Church are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Geography
Montrose is located at . According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of, all land.
As of the census of 2010, there were 384 people, 192 households, and 101 families living in the city. The population density was. There were 224 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the city was 98.2% White, 1.3% African American, and 0.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.8% of the population. There were 192 households of which 19.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.5% were married couplesliving together, 13.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 2.6% had a male householder with no wife present, and 47.4% were non-families. 43.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 21.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.00 and the average family size was 2.68. The median age in the city was 47.7 years. 18% of residents were under the age of 18; 6.2% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 21.6% were from 25 to 44; 31.8% were from 45 to 64; and 22.4% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 46.9% male and 53.1% female.
2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 417 people, 199 households, and 111 families living in the city. The population density was 726.4 people per square mile. There were 219 housing units at an average density of 381.5 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 98.80% White, 0.48% Native American, 0.24% Asian, and 0.48% from two or more races. There were 199 households out of which 24.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.2% were married couples living together, 9.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.2% were non-families. 39.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.10 and the average family size was 2.77. In the city the population was spread out with 22.1% under the age of 18, 7.4% from 18 to 24, 25.7% from 25 to 44, 21.3% from 45 to 64, and 23.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 103.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.8 males. The median income for a household in the city was $21,563, and the median income for a family was $32,500. Males had a median income of $26,667 versus $18,125 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,062. About 14.0% of families and 16.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.4% of those under age 18 and 13.3% of those age 65 or over.
