Pend Oreille County, Washington

Infobox U.S. County
county = Pend Oreille County
state = Washington




map size = 225
founded = March 1, 1911
seat = Newport | area_total_sq_mi =1425
area_land_sq_mi =1400
area_water_sq_mi =25
area percentage = 1.76%
census yr = 2000
pop = 11732
density_km2 =3
web = www.co.pend-oreille.wa.us
|

Pend Oreille County (Pronounced "pond-er-ay" [http://www.co.pend-oreille.wa.us/] or in IPAEng|ˈpɑndəreɪ) is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. It is named after the Pend d'Oreilles tribe, whose name is French for "earring" (literally "hangs in the ear"). As of 2000, the population is 11,732. The county seat is at Newport, which is also the county's largest city.

Pend Oreille County was created out of Stevens County on March 1, 1911.cite web |title=Milestones for Washington State History — Part 3: 1901 to 1950|url=http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=5381| date=March 6, 2003|publisher=HistoryLink.org]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,425 square miles (3,692 km²), of which, 1,400 square miles (3,627 km²) of it is land and 25 square miles (65 km²) of it (1.76%) is water.

Major highways

*U.S. Route 2

Adjacent counties

*Boundary County, Idaho east
*Bonner County, Idaho east
*Spokane County, Washington south
*Stevens County, Washington west

It also shares its northern border with British Columbia, Canada.
*Central Kootenay Regional District, British Columbia

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 11,732 people, 4,639 households, and 3,261 families residing in the county. The population density was 8 people per square mile (3/km²). There were 6,608 housing units at an average density of 5 per square mile (2/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 93.53% White, 0.14% Black or African American, 2.88% Native American, 0.63% Asian, 0.20% Pacific Islander, 0.57% from other races, and 2.04% from two or more races. 2.05% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 21.1% were of German, 13.2% English, 10.2% United States or American, 9,2% Irish and 5.7% Norwegian ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 4,639 households out of which 29.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.50% were married couples living together, 8.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.70% were non-families. 25.00% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 2.98.

In the county, the population was spread out with 26.30% under the age of 18, 5.50% from 18 to 24, 23.80% from 25 to 44, 29.50% from 45 to 64, and 14.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 100.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.60 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $31,677, and the median income for a family was $36,977. Males had a median income of $36,951 versus $20,693 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,731. About 13.60% of families and 18.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.60% of those under age 18 and 6.40% of those age 65 or over.

Census-recognized communities

*Cusick
*Ione
*Metaline
*Metaline Falls
*Newport

Other communities

*Diamond Lake
*Jared
*Ruby
*Tiger
*Usk

References