| Somerset County, Maine | |
Location in the state of Maine |
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Maine's location in the U.S. |
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| Founded | 1809 |
|---|---|
| Seat | Skowhegan |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
4,095.37 sq mi (10,607 km²) 3,926.50 sq mi (10,170 km²) 168.87 sq mi (437 km²), 4.12% |
| Population - (2010) - Density |
52,228 13/sq mi (5.13/km²) |
Somerset County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maine. As of 2010, the population was 52,228. Its county seat is Skowhegan[1].
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Somerset County was established on March 1, 1809 [2][3] from portions of Kennebec County and was named after Somerset County in England.[4]
Somerset County is part of Maine's 2nd congressional district.
In 1992 Somerset County was one of three counties in the state (the others being Knox and Piscataquis) where Ross Perot received over 38% of the vote and won.[5] In 2008 Barack Obama received 51.9% of the vote.[6]
| Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of August 2011[7] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unenrolled | 13,083 | 35.90% | |||
| Republican | 11,144 | 30.58% | |||
| Democratic | 11,007 | 30.20% | |||
| Green Independent | 1,201 | 3.29% | |||
| Total | 36,435 | 100% | |||
According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 4,095.37 square miles (10,607.0 km2), of which 3,926.50 square miles (10,169.6 km2) (or 95.88%) is land and 168.87 square miles (437.4 km2) (or 4.12%) is water.[8]
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There are 27 towns and 6 plantations in Somerset County.
| District #1 | District #2 | District #3 |
|---|---|---|
| Anson & North Anson | Fairfield | Canaan |
| Athens | Madison | Cornville |
| Bingham | Mercer | Detroit |
| Brighton (plantation) | Norridgewock | Pittsfield |
| Cambridge | Smithfield | Skowhegan |
| Caratunk | Solon | |
| Dennistown (plantation) | ||
| Embden | ||
| Harmony | ||
| Hartland | ||
| Highland Plantation | ||
| Jackman | ||
| Moose River | ||
| Moscow | ||
| New Portland | ||
| Palmyra | ||
| Pleasant Ridge Plantation | ||
| Ripley | ||
| St. Albans | ||
| Starks | ||
| The Forks (plantation) | ||
| West Forks (plantation) |
Somerset County's unorganized territories, listed as four political subdivisions composed of a total of 82 townships,[10] are currently part of County District #1.
Central Somerset (2 townships)
Northeast Somerset (17 townships)
Northwest Somerset (20 townships)
Seboomook Lake (43 townships)
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1810 | 12,910 |
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| 1820 | 21,787 | 68.8% | |
| 1830 | 35,787 | 64.3% | |
| 1840 | 33,912 | −5.2% | |
| 1850 | 35,581 | 4.9% | |
| 1860 | 36,753 | 3.3% | |
| 1870 | 34,611 | −5.8% | |
| 1880 | 32,333 | −6.6% | |
| 1890 | 32,627 | 0.9% | |
| 1900 | 33,849 | 3.7% | |
| 1910 | 36,301 | 7.2% | |
| 1920 | 37,171 | 2.4% | |
| 1930 | 39,111 | 5.2% | |
| 1940 | 38,245 | −2.2% | |
| 1950 | 39,785 | 4.0% | |
| 1960 | 39,749 | −0.1% | |
| 1970 | 40,597 | 2.1% | |
| 1980 | 45,028 | 10.9% | |
| 1990 | 49,767 | 10.5% | |
| 2000 | 50,888 | 2.3% | |
| 2010 | 52,228 | 2.6% | |
| [11][12][13] | |||
As of the census[14] of 2000, there were 50,888 people, 20,496 households, and 14,121 families residing in the county. The population density was 13 people per square mile (5/km²). There were 28,222 housing units at an average density of 7 per square mile (3/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 98.00% White, 0.24% Black or African American, 0.41% Native American, 0.34% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.11% from other races, and 0.89% from two or more races. 0.46% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 20.9% were of English, 17.7% French, 15.1% United States or American, 11.5% Irish and 8.8% French Canadian ancestry according to Census 2000. 96.2% spoke English and 2.9% French as their first language.
There were 20,496 households out of which 31.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.20% were married couples living together, 10.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.10% were non-families. 24.60% 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 2.44 and the average family size was 2.87.
In the county the population was spread out with 24.70% under the age of 18, 7.00% from 18 to 24, 28.70% from 25 to 44, 25.30% from 45 to 64, and 14.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 96.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.30 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $30,731, and the median income for a family was $36,464. Males had a median income of $29,032 versus $20,745 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,474. About 11.10% of families and 14.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.40% of those under age 18 and 12.50% of those age 65 or over.
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