Cumberland County, Maine

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For other places with the same name, see Cumberland County.

Cumberland County, Maine

Map
Location in the state of Maine
Maine's location in the U.S.
Statistics
Founded	1760
Seat	Portland
Area - Total - Land - Water	1,217 sq mi (3,152 km²) 836 sq mi (2,165 km²) 381 sq mi (987 km²), 31.34%
Population - (2000) - Density	265,612 318/sq mi (123/km²)
Website: www.cumberlandcounty.org

Cumberland County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maine. As of 2000, the population was 265,612. Its county seat is Portland^[1], and is the most populous of the sixteen Maine counties, as well as the most affluent. Cumberland County has the deepest and second largest body of water in the state, Sebago Lake, which supplies tap water to most of the county. The county is the economic and industrial center of the state having the resources of the Port of Portland, the Maine Mall and having corporate headquarters of major companies such as Fairchild Semiconductor, IDEXX Laboratories, UnumProvident and TD Banknorth.

Cumberland County is part of the Portland–South Portland–Biddeford, Maine Metropolitan Statistical Area.

1 Geography
- 1.1 Adjacent counties
- 1.2 Major highways
2 Demographics
3 Government
4 In popular culture
5 Cities and towns
6 Notes and references
7 External links

[edit] Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,217 square miles (3,152 km²), of which, 836 square miles (2,164 km²) of it is land and 381 square miles (988 km²) of it (31.34%) is water.

[edit] Adjacent counties

[edit] Major highways

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^[2] of 2000^[3] , there were 265,612 people, 107,989 households, and 67,709 families residing in the county. The population density was 318 people per square mile (123/km²). There were 122,600 housing units at an average density of 147 per square mile (57/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 95.74% White, 1.06% Black or African American, 0.29% Native American, 1.40% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.35% from other races, and 1.13% from two or more races. 0.95% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 107,989 households out of which 30.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.10% were married couples living together, 9.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.30% were non-families. 28.40% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.95.

In the county the population was spread out with 23.30% under the age of 18, 8.40% from 18 to 24, 31.30% from 25 to 44, 23.60% from 45 to 64, and 13.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 93.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.20 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $44,048, and the median income for a family was $54,485. Males had a median income of $35,850 versus $27,935 for females. The per capita income for the county was $23,949. About 5.20% of families and 7.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.10% of those under age 18 and 7.40% of those age 65 or over.

19.6% were of English, 15.5% Irish, 9.6% French, 7.8% United States or American, 7.7% Italian, 6.3% French Canadian and 5.9% German ancestry according to Census 2000. 94.4% spoke English and 2.1% French as their first language.

[edit] Government

The three districts of Cumberland County

Cumberland county is represented by county commissioners and the daily operations are run by a county manager. The county has several responsibilities, including running a Sheriff's department, the Cumberland County Jail, and a county court system. Cumberland County also has its own treasury department, emergency management agency and also has a district attorney office. The county also has a stake in the Cumberland County Civic Center (an entertainment facility), as well as programs in local economic development and tourism.

Cumberland County is divided into three districts of equal population, each of which elects one county commissioner. The sheriff is elected countywide and runs the Cumberland County Sheriff's office and the Cumberland County Jail.

[edit] In popular culture

The fictional town of 'Salem's Lot, featured in the vampire novel of the same name by Stephen King, is situated in Cumberland County, King makes passing reference to other nearby towns and cities, including Portland, Falmouth, and Westbrook. Jerusalem's Lot (long name) is featured in the short story The Worm Mysteries, also by Stephen King.