Bessemer, Michigan
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bessemer is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 2,148. It is the county seat of Gogebic County6.
The city is situated within Bessemer Township, but is politically independent. It is on US 2 with Ironwood several miles to the west and Wakefield several miles to the east. The Big Powderhorn, Blackjack and Indianhead ski areas are located within a few miles of Bessemer. Cross-country skiing and snowmobiling are also very popular in this area known as Big Snow country because of heavy snowfall influenced by nearby Lake Superior.
[edit] Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 14.2 km² (5.5 mi²), all land.
[edit] Demographics
As of the census2 of 2000, there were 2,148 people, 976 households, and 569 families residing in the city. The population density was 151.6/km² (392.9/mi²). There were 1,179 housing units at an average density of 83.2/km² (215.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 96.88% White, 0.14% African American, 1.21% Native American, 0.42% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.42% from other races, and 0.88% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.70% of the population.
There were 976 households out of which 25.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.1% were married couples living together, 9.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.6% were non-families. 38.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 21.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.17 and the average family size was 2.88.
In the city the population was spread out with 23.0% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 24.4% from 25 to 44, 23.3% from 45 to 64, and 22.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 96.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.3 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $27,639, and the median income for a family was $36,739. Males had a median income of $28,958 versus $21,708 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,499. About 8.6% of families and 12.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.0% of those under age 18 and 7.9% of those age 65 or over.
