Iron County, Michigan

Iron County, Michigan

Location in the state of Michigan

Michigan's location in the U.S.
Founded April 3, 1885 [1]
Seat Crystal Falls
Area
 - Total
 - Land
 - Water

1,211.02 sq mi (3,137 km²)
1,166.36 sq mi (3,021 km²)
44.67 sq mi (116 km²), 3.69%
Population
 - (2000)
 - Density

13,138
10/sq mi (4/km²)
Website www.iron.org

Iron County is a county in the Upper Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the population was 11,817.[1] The county seat is Crystal Falls[2].

Contents

History

Iron County was organized in 1885 from territory taken from Marquette and Menominee Counties. In 1890 the population of the county was 4,432.[3]

Geography

According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 1,211.02 square miles (3,136.5 km2), of which 1,166.36 square miles (3,020.9 km2) (or 96.31%) is land and 44.67 square miles (115.7 km2) (or 3.69%) is water.[4]

Highways

US Highways

Michigan State Trunklines

Federal Forest Highways

Adjacent counties

National protected area

Demographics

As of the census[5] of 2000, there were 13,138 people, 5,748 households, and 3,615 families residing in the county. The population density was 11 people per square mile (4/km²). There were 8,772 housing units at an average density of 8 per square mile (3/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 96.28% White, 1.10% Black or African American, 1.02% Native American, 0.20% Asian, 0.24% from other races, and 1.16% from two or more races. 0.64% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 14.5% were of German, 13.3% Italian, 12.9% Finnish, 11.0% Polish, 10.4% Swedish, 6.7% English and 5.5% French ancestry according to Census 2000. 96.0% spoke English and 1.1% Spanish as their first language.

There were 5,748 households out of which 23.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.40% were married couples living together, 8.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.10% were non-families. 33.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 19.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.19 and the average family size was 2.76.

In the county the population was spread out with 20.60% under the age of 18, 6.00% from 18 to 24, 22.80% from 25 to 44, 25.30% from 45 to 64, and 25.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 97.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $28,560, and the median income for a family was $37,038. Males had a median income of $28,791 versus $21,077 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,506. About 7.10% of families and 11.30% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.40% of those under age 18 and 8.10% of those age 65 or over.

Government

The county government operates the jail, maintains rural roads, operates the major local courts, keeps files of deeds and mortgages, maintains vital records, administers public health regulations, and participates with the state in the provision of welfare and other social services. The county board of commissioners controls the budget but has only limited authority to make laws or ordinances. In Michigan, most local government functions — police and fire, building and zoning, tax assessment, street maintenance, etc. — are the responsibility of individual cities and townships.

Iron County elected officials

(information as of January 2007)

Cities, villages, and townships

Cities

Villages

Unincorporated communities

Townships

Schools

See also

References

  1. ^ "2010 US census",
  2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. Retrieved 2011-06-07. 
  3. ^ Michigan Department of State (1893). Michigan and Its Resources, pp. 241-42. Robert Smith & Co.
  4. ^ "Census 2000 U.S. Gazetteer Files: Counties". United States Census. http://www.census.gov/tiger/tms/gazetteer/county2k.txt. Retrieved 2011-02-13. 
  5. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 

Further reading

External links