Owyhee County, Idaho

Owyhee County, Idaho
Reynolds Creek Experimental Watershed in the Owyhee Mountains about 50 miles southwest of Boise.
Seal
Location in the state of Idaho
Idaho's location in the U.S.
Founded	December 31, 1863
Named for	lost Hawaiian trappers
Seat	Murphy
Largest city	Homedale
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	7,696.71 sq mi (19,934 km²) 7,677.98 sq mi (19,886 km²) 18.72 sq mi (48 km²), 0.24%
Population  - (2000)  - Density	10,644 1.4/sq mi (0.5/km²)
Time zone	Mountain: UTC-7/-6
Website	www.owyheecounty.net

Owyhee County is a county located in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Idaho. In area it is the second largest county in Idaho, behind Idaho County. As of the 2000 Census, Owyhee County had a population of 10,644 (2008 estimate: 10,877).^[1] The county seat is Murphy,^[2] and its largest city is Homedale.^[3]

Owyhee County is part of the Boise City–Nampa, Idaho Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

On December 31, 1863, Owyhee County became the first county organized by the Idaho Territorial Legislature. In the north, Nez Perce and Idaho counties predate Owyhee County as parts of the Washington Territory, but they were not recognized by the Idaho Territory until February 1864.

Owyhee County originally included "that terri-tory lying south of the Snake River and west of the summit of the Rocky Mountains."^[4] including present-day Twin Falls, Cassia and Power Counties. It assumed its present boundaries in 1879.

The name Owyhee: "Owyhee" and "Hawaii" are two different spellings for the same word. When Captain James Cook discovered what he named the Sandwich Islands (known more recently as the Hawaiian Islands) in 1778, he found them inhabited by Native Hawaiians who Anglo-Americans referred to as "Owyhees." Noted for their hardy physique and maritime skills, numerous Native Hawaiians were hired as crew members aboard European and American vessels. Many "Owhyhees" sailed on to the American Northwest coast and found employment along the Columbia, where they joined trapping expeditions or worked at some of the fur trade posts.

Three Native Hawaiians ("Owyhees") joined Donald Mackenzie's Snake expedition, which went out annually into the Snake country for the North West Company--a Montreal organization of Canadian fur traders. Incidentally, the three Hawaiians left the main party during the winter of 1819-20 to explore the then unknown terrain of what since has been called the Owyhee River and mountains; they were presumed dead and no further information regarding their whereabouts has been found. In memory of the Native Hawaiians who disappeared in the area, British fur trappers started to call the region "Owyhee," and the name stuck.^[5][6]

Owyhee County's history is inextricably linked to the mining boom that dominated Idaho in the second half of the 19th Century. Silver City and Ruby City are among the state's most noteworthy ghost towns from the period. At its height in the 1880s, Owyhee County was among the most populous places in Idaho. Today it is among the least populous, at 1.4 persons per square mile (0.5 per km²).

Geography

According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 7,696.71 square miles (19,934.4 km²), of which 7,677.98 square miles (19,885.9 km²) (or 99.76%) is land and 18.72 square miles (48.5 km²) (or 0.24%) is water.^[7]

Nearly all of the county is high intermountain desert, with plentiful sagebrush and basalt canyons. The Owyhee Mountains in the west dominate the landscape, with Hayden Peak reaching 8,403 feet (2561 m) above sea level. The lowest elevation is at the county's northwest corner, where the Snake River is just above 2,000 feet (610 m) at the Oregon border. The Snake forms most of the county's northern border from Oregon to just west of Glenns Ferry in Elmore County. A tributary of the Snake is the Bruneau River, which flows north from Nevada through the eastern section of the county. The Owyhee River starts in the southwestern part of the county and flows westward into Oregon; it eventually enters the Snake at the state border south of Nyssa.

Adjacent counties

• Canyon County - (north 1)
• Ada County - (north 2)
• Elmore County - (north 3)
• Twin Falls County - (east)
• Elko County, Nevada - (south)
• Humboldt County, Nevada - (southwest)
• Malheur County, Oregon - (west)

National protected areas

• Bruneau - Jarbidge Rivers Wilderness
• Deer Flat National Wildlife Refuge (part)
• Little Jacks Creek and Big Jacks Creek Wilderness
• North Fork Owyhee and Pole Creek Wilderness
• Owyhee River Wilderness
• Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area (part)

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1900	3,804		—
1910	4,044		6.3%
1920	4,694		16.1%
1930	4,103		−12.6%
1940	5,652		37.8%
1950	6,307		11.6%
1960	6,375		1.1%
1970	6,422		0.7%
1980	8,272		28.8%
1990	8,392		1.5%
2000	10,644		26.8%
Est. 2008	10,877		2.2%
sources:[1][8]

As of the census^[9] of 2000, there were 10,644 people, 3,710 households, and 2,756 families residing in the county. The population density was 1.4 person per square mile (0.5/km²). There were 4,452 housing units at an average density of 1 per square mile (0/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 76.87% White, 0.15% Black or African American, 3.21% Native American, 0.47% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 16.50% from other races, and 2.72% from two or more races. 23.10% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 14.3% were of American, 12.5% German, 10.4% English and 8.1% Irish ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 3,710 households out of which 37.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.20% were married couples living together, 8.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.70% were non-families. 21.80% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.85 and the average family size was 3.35.

In the county the population was spread out with 31.90% under the age of 18, 8.50% from 18 to 24, 26.50% from 25 to 44, 20.90% from 45 to 64, and 12.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 109.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 107.60 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $28,339, and the median income for a family was $32,856. Males had a median income of $25,146 versus $20,718 for females. The per capita income for the county was $13,405. About 14.20% of families and 16.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.80% of those under age 18 and 12.10% of those age 65 or over.

Cities

• Bruneau
• Givens Hot Springs
• Grand View
• Homedale
• Marsing
• Murphy
• Riddle
• Silver City
• Dickshooter

Newspaper

• The Owyhee Avalanche County newspaper

Gallery

• 

  Wild Horses of Saylor Creek

• 

  Round-up south of Bruneau

• 

  Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Owyhee County, Idaho

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Owyhee County QuickFacts, U.S. Census Bureau, 2009-02-20, accessed 2009-06-15
2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. Retrieved 2011-06-07. 
3. ^ Historic Homedale
4. ^ History of the Avalanche
5. ^ idaho.gov - about Owyhee County - accessed 2009-06-15
6. ^ 3rd1000.com Owyhee
7. ^ "Census 2000 U.S. Gazetteer Files: Counties". United States Census. http://www.census.gov/tiger/tms/gazetteer/county2k.txt. Retrieved 2011-02-13. 
8. ^ census.gov Idaho population by county, 1900-90 - accessed 2009-05-19
9. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 

Further reading

• A historical, descriptive and commercial directory of Owyhee County, Idaho, January 1898 (1898)

External links

• Owyhee County website
• National Register of Historic Places for Owyhee County
• Owyhee County Historical Society
• County newspaper: The Owyhee Avalanche

Coordinates: 42°34′N 116°10′W / 42.56°N 116.17°W / 42.56; -116.17