Stevens County
From Heritage
Stevens County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. It was named for Washington's first territorial governor, Isaac I. Stevens. When the new Washington territory was formed on March 2, 1853, Stevens applied to President Pierce for the governorship. The Stevens Territory represented an area covering what are now 13 counties in eastern Washington, all of northern Idaho and much of western Montana. Stevens County was created on January 20, 1863.[1] As of 2000, the population was 40,066. The county seat is at Colville, which is also the county's largest city.
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Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 6,580 km² (2,541 mi²). 6,419 km² (2,478 mi²) of it is land and 161 km² (62 mi²) of it (2.45%) is water.
Geographic features
Adjacent counties
- Pend Oreille County, Washington - east
- Spokane County, Washington - southeast
- Lincoln County, Washington - southwest
- Ferry County, Washington - west
It also shares its northern border with the Kootenay Boundary Regional District of British Columbia, Canada.
Demographics
As of the census² of 2000, there were 40,066 people, 15,017 households, and 11,022 families residing in the county. The population density was 6/km² (16/mi²). There were 17,599 housing units at an average density of 3/km² (7/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 90.05% White, 0.28% Black or African American, 5.66% Native American, 0.48% Asian, 0.16% Pacific Islander, 0.68% from other races, and 2.70% from two or more races. 1.84% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 15,017 households out of which 34.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.40% were married couples living together, 8.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.60% were non-families. 22.00% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 3.08.
In the county, the population was spread out with 28.70% under the age of 18, 6.40% from 18 to 24, 24.90% from 25 to 44, 27.10% from 45 to 64, and 12.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 99.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.60 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $34,673, and the median income for a family was $40,250. Males had a median income of $35,256 versus $23,679 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,895. About 11.50% of families and 15.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.80% of those under age 18 and 11.90% of those age 65 or over.
Census-recognized communities
Other communities
Ghost Towns
There is a map of 119 old towns in Stevens County on the MapMetrics web site. Many of them have links to web pages with pictures and stories about those towns. These are being translated into Wiki Markup Language. You can seach a list of these towns on this Wiki. As town pages are added to the Wiki, link will be added to this page. Ghost Towns.
Notable residents
- Kittie May Ellis, (1869-1963), American diarist
