Baker City, Oregon
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Baker City, Oregon |
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| Coordinates: | |
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| County | Baker County |
| Incorporated | 1870 |
| Mayor | Charles Hoffman |
| Area | |
| - City | 17.9 km² (6.9 sq mi) |
| - Land | 17.9 km² (6.9 sq mi) |
| - Water | 0.0 km² (0.0 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 1051.86 m (3,451 ft) |
| Population | |
| - City (2000) | 9,860 |
| - Density | 247.8/km² (642.1/sq mi) |
| Time zone | Pacific (UTC-8) |
| - Summer (DST) | Pacific (UTC-7) |
| Website: www.bakercity.com | |
Baker City is a city and the county seat of Baker County, Oregon. This city was named after its county. The population was 9,860 at the 2000 census.
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[edit] History
Although a post office was established on March 27, 1866, Baker City was not incorporated until 1874. The city and county were named in honor of the English-born politician Edward Dickinson Baker. In 1911 the city dropped "City" from its name, but restored it in the late 1980s in recognition of its history and to further encourage tourism.
Baker City hosts many annual festivals including Miners Jubilee, which celebrates the mining history of the area, and the filming of the Lee Marvin and Clint Eastwood film, Paint Your Wagon in the town. The Elkhorn Classic bicycle race is also now based out of Baker City and the town also hosts the Oregon Scholastic Activities Association Class 1A girls and boys basketball tournaments every year at Baker High School.
Baker City is also the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese for the state of Oregon east of the Cascade Mountains. While the diocese has been sued by about two dozen individuals claiming that they had been sexually abused by priests, it is not affected by the archdiocese of Portland filing for bankruptcy on July 6, 2004.
[edit] Geography
Baker City is located at (44.776721, -117.832617)GR1. Interstate 84 runs along the eastern edge of Baker City, while U.S. Highway 30 passes through its downtown area. Oregon State Route 7 leaves Baker City to the south to the town of Sumpter and beyond. Oregon State Route 86 heads north and east past the National Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center and on to the towns of Richland and Halfway.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 17.9 km² (6.9 mi²), all land.
The town sits in a gorgeous valley between the Wallowa Mountains and the Elkhorn Range, with the Powder River running right through downtown on its way to the Snake River.
[edit] Demographics
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 9,860 people, 4,010 households, and 2,602 families residing in the city. The population density was 550.9/km² (1,427.5/mi²). There were 4,435 housing units at an average density of 247.8/km² (642.1/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 95.14% White, 0.30% African American, 1.10% Native American, 0.56% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 1.04% from other races, and 1.80% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.54% of the population.
There were 4,010 households out of which 28.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.2% were married couples living together, 10.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.1% were non-families. 30.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.92.
In the city the population was spread out with 24.5% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 25.4% from 25 to 44, 23.6% from 45 to 64, and 19.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 93.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $29,020, and the median income for a family was $34,790. Males had a median income of $26,638 versus $20,313 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,179. About 10.7% of families and 16.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.1% of those under age 18 and 14.9% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Sister City
Baker City has one sister city [1], as designated by Sister Cities International:
[edit] External links
- Baker City Web Page
- The Baker City Herald
- Oregon Blue Book entry for Baker City
- Baker City photos and information at Western Mining History
- Maps and aerial photos
- Street map from Google Maps, or Yahoo! Maps, or Windows Live Local
- Satellite image from Google Maps, Windows Live Local, WikiMapia
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
