ISLAND COUNTY, WASHINGTON

'Island County' is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. In 2000, its population was 71,558. Its county seat is Coupeville, while its largest city is Oak Harbor.
Its name reflects the fact that it consists of two large islands, Whidbey and Camano, and seven smaller islands (Baby, Ben Ure, Deception, Kalamut, Minor, Smith, and Strawberry. Island County was created out of Thurston County on December 22, 1852, by the legislature of Oregon Territory^[1], and is the eighth-oldest county in Washington. It originally encompassed what are now Snohomish, Skagit, Whatcom, and San Juan Counties.

Contents

Geography

Geographic features

Adjacent counties

Demographics

Politics

Communities

Incorporated cities and towns

Census-designated places (CDPs)

Other communities

References

External Links

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,340 km² (517 mi²). 540 km² (208 mi²) of it is land and 800 km² (309 mi²) of it (59.71%) is water.

Geographic features

★ Puget Sound

★ Strait of Juan de Fuca

★ Whidbey Island

★ Camano Island

Adjacent counties

★ Snohomish County, Washington - east

★ Kitsap County, Washington - southwest

★ Jefferson County, Washington - west

★ San Juan County, Washington - northwest

★ Skagit County, Washington - north

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there were 71,558 people, 27,784 households, and 20,254 families residing in the county. The population density was 133/km² (343/mi²). There were 32,378 housing units at an average density of 60/km² (155/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 87.17% White, 2.36% Black or African American, 0.97% Native American, 4.19% Asian, 0.44% Pacific Islander, 1.43% from other races, and 3.44% from two or more races. 3.97% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 16.2% were of German, 11.2%English, 9.9% Irish, 7.2% United States or American and 6.0% Norwegian ancestry according to Census 2000. 92.5% spoke English, 2.5% Spanish and 2.2% Tagalog as their first language.
There were 27,784 households out of which 33.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.20% were married couples living together, 7.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.10% were non-families. 21.50% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 2.93.
In the county, the population was spread out with 25.50% under the age of 18, 8.50% from 18 to 24, 28.00% from 25 to 44, 23.70% from 45 to 64, and 14.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 100.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.90 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $45,513, and the median income for a family was $51,363. Males had a median income of $35,331 versus $25,612 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,472. About 5.10% of families and 7.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.80% of those under age 18 and 4.40% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Island County is divided in many ways between its north and south. While the north (Oak Harbor) is conservative - [George W. Bush]] received almost 65 percent of the 2004 vote and carried all precincts - all southern and central precincts voted for John Kerry. This is probably accounted for by the presence of Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, located north of Oak Harbor. The south-central area (Coupeville, Langley) voted over 60 percent for Kerry. Camano Island has a Republican lean and went for Bush with 52 percent of the vote in 2004, but is much less polarized than the rest of the county.

Communities

Incorporated cities and towns

★ Coupeville

★ Langley

★ Oak Harbor

Census-designated places (CDPs)

★ Ault Field (Proper name for Naval Air Station Whidbey Island)

★ Camano

★ Clinton

★ Freeland

Other communities

★ Arrow Head Beach

★ Austin

★ Baby Island Heights

★ Bayview

★ Bells Beach

★ Beverly Beach

★ Cama Beach

★ Camp Grande

★ Camp Lagoon

★ Cavelero Beach

★ Columbia Beach

★ Cornell

★ Glendale

★ Greenbank

★ Indian Beach

★ Keystone

★ Lona Beach

★ Mabana

★ Madrona Beach

★ Maxwelton

★ Mountain View Beach

★ Pebble Beach

★ Penn Cove Park

★ Possession

★ Prarie Center (area located within the southern section of the town of Coupeville)

★ Rodena Beach

★ San De Fuca

★ Saratoga

★ Smith Prarie

★ Sunlight Beach

★ Sunny Shore Acres

★ Sunset Beach

★ Terrys Corner

★ Tyee Beach

★ Utsalady

★ Woodland Beach

References

1. [Reinartz, Kay. http://www.metrokc.gov/kc150/historical%20overview.pdf ''History of King County Government 1853-2002''] King County Government website

External Links

★ County Web Site

★ Island County Guide - An online, local business and community resource

★ Island Transit (free public transportation in Island County)