Clark County, Washington

Clark County, Washington

Clark County Courthouse
Map of Washington highlighting Clark County
Location in the state of Washington
Map of the United States highlighting Washington
Washington's location in the U.S.
Founded August 20, 1845
Named for William Clark
Seat Vancouver
Largest city Vancouver
Area
 • Total 656 sq mi (1,699 km2)
 • Land 629 sq mi (1,629 km2)
 • Water 27 sq mi (70 km2), 4.1%
Population (est.)
 • (2014) 451,008
 • Density 717/sq mi (277/km²)
Congressional district 3rd
Time zone Pacific: UTC-8/-7
Website www.clark.wa.gov

Clark County is a county located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2010 census, the population was 425,363,[1] making it the fifth-most populous county in Washington. Its county seat and largest city is Vancouver.[2] It was the first county to be established in Washington, named after William Clark of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. It was created by the provisional government of Oregon Territory on August 20, 1845, and at that time covered the entire present-day state.[3]

Clark County is included in the Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is located across the Columbia River from Portland.

History

Clark County began as the District of Vancouver on July 27, 1844. It included all the land north of the Columbia River, west of the Rocky Mountains, and south of Alaska. In 1845 the provisional government changed its name to Vancouver County. At that time it stretched from the Columbia River to 54 degrees 40 minutes North Latitude in British Columbia. On June 15, 1846 the United States Senate approved the present boundary between the U.S. and Canada at the 49th Parallel.

On August 13, 1848, President James K. Polk signed an act creating the entire region as the Oregon Territory. On September 3, 1849, the Oregon Territorial Legislature modified the borders again and changed its name to Clarke County in honor of explorer William Clark. At this time it included all of present-day Washington and continued to be divided and subdivided until reaching its present area in 1880. It was not until 1925 that the spelling was corrected to its present form.[4]

In September 1902 the Yacolt Burn, the largest fire in state history, began in neighboring Skamania County and swept west along a 12-mile front to Yacolt, nearly engulfing the town. Salvaging the remaining timber was a lucrative industry for a time.

Geography and climate

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 656 square miles (1,700 km2), of which 629 square miles (1,630 km2) is land and 27 square miles (70 km2) (4.1%) is water.[5] It is the fifth-smallest county in Washington by land area.

Clark County is surrounded on two sides by the Columbia River and on the north by the North Fork of the Lewis River. The East Fork of the Lewis River and the Washougal River cut across the county. The largest stream arising solely within the county is Salmon Creek, which terminates at Vancouver Lake before eventually flowing into the Columbia River.

Like most of Oregon and Washington south of Puget Sound into the Willamette Valley the landscape and climate of Clark County are determined by its placement between the volcanic Pacific Coast and Cascade Ranges, where glaciation helped form a U-shaped valley which meets the river valley of the Columbia River as it leaves the Columbia River Gorge. Volcanic andisol soils are common, with fertile mollisols in the lower areas. The central and southwest areas of the county are generally flat floodplains, sculpted by torrents of prehistoric Lake Missoula. A series of dramatic floods known as the Missoula Floods took place 15,000 - 13,000 years ago, as several ice dams melted, forming a series of low steps such as the "Heights", "Mill Plain", "Fourth Plain" and "Fifth Plain". Clark County's Köppen climate classification is "Csb."

Many lakes border the river in the lowlands near Ridgefield, including Vancouver Lake. Eastern and northern Clark County contain forested foothills of the Cascade Mountains, rising to an elevation of 4,000 feet (1,200 m) on the border with Skamania County. Larch Mountain is the county's highest free-standing peak.

Flora and fauna of the region include the normal ecological succession from lowland big leaf maple and western red cedar through Garry oak on up through fire-dependent species such as lodgepole pine and Douglas fir, as well as grand fir, silver fir and other species common to Gifford Pinchot National Forest. In addition to a wide variety of birds including great blue heron, raptors such as barred owl, osprey, red-tailed hawk and bald eagle, corvids (raven, crow, scrub and Steller's jay) and others, the native streams are home to various species of salmon and the Vancouver Trout Hatchery. Larger mammals include black-tailed deer, coyote, raccoon, skunk and invasive opossum; with sightings of lynx, bobcat, black bear, cougar and elk not uncommon, especially in the northern parts of the county. Common foods used by the indigenous people such as the Klickitat tribe and Chinook included salmon, huckleberry and Camassia quamash (after which the city of Camas, Washington is named).

Mount Hood, Mount Saint Helens and Mount Adams are all visible from Clark County, and cold winter winds through the Columbia River Gorge often bring freezing rain and a coating of glaze ice or clear ice known locally as a "silver thaw," especially in southeastern areas of the county closest to the gorge. The counterpart to this are warm winds from the southwest known locally as the "Pineapple Express".

Spring thaws can often swell county waterways, with two of the more destructive floods being those of the Columbia River in June 1894 and May, 1948. The 1948 Memorial Day flood almost topped the Interstate Bridge's support piers and completely destroyed nearby Vanport, Oregon. Construction of The Dalles Dam and destruction of Celilo Falls are credited with a decrease in such floods.

Significant windstorms in Clark County include the Columbus Day windstorm of October 12, 1962, and an April 6, 1972 tornado which rated F3 on the Fujita scale, striking a local school. A "Friday the 13th" storm in November 1981 brought winds up to 70 miles per hour (110 km/h), with other storms including the inauguration day storm of January 20, 1993, the Guadalupe Day storm of December 12, 1995 (with winds up to 95 miles per hour (153 km/h) at Washougal, Washington) and small tornado on January 10, 2008, which destroyed a boathouse at Vancouver Lake and caused damage to buildings in Hazel Dell before dissolving near Hockinson.[6]

Geographic features

Major highways

Former major highway

Adjacent counties

National protected areas

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop. %±
1850643—
18602,384270.8%
18703,08129.2%
18805,49078.2%
189011,709113.3%
190013,41914.6%
191026,11594.6%
192032,80525.6%
193040,31622.9%
194049,85223.7%
195085,30771.1%
196093,80910.0%
1970128,45436.9%
1980192,22749.6%
1990238,05323.8%
2000345,23845.0%
2010425,36323.2%
Est. 2014451,008[7]6.0%
U.S. Decennial Census[8]
1790–1960[9] 1900–1990[10]
1990–2000[11] 2010–2014[1]

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 425,363 people residing in the county. 85.4% were White, 4.1% Asian, 2.0% Black or African American, 0.9% Native American, 0.6% Pacific Islander, 2.9% of some other race and 4.0% of two or more races. 7.6% were Hispanic or Latino (of any race). 17.7% were of German, 8.7% English, 8.2% Irish and 5.2% American ancestry.[12]

As of the census[13] of 2000, there were 345,238 people, 127,208 households, and 90,953 families residing in the county. The population density was 550 people per square mile (212/km²). There were 134,030 housing units at an average density of 213 per square mile (82/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 88.82% White, 1.68% Black or African American, 0.84% Native American, 3.21% Asian, 0.37% Pacific Islander, 1.99% from other races, and 3.08% from two or more races. 4.71% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 17.7% were of German, 10.2% English, 8.6% Irish, 8.6% United States and 5.1% Norwegian ancestry according to the 2000 census. 88.8% spoke only English at home; 3.6% spoke Spanish and 1.9% Russian.

There were 127,208 households out of which 37.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.80% were married couples living together, 10.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.50% were non-families. 21.80% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.69 and the average family size was 3.15.

In the county, the population was spread out with 28.70% under the age of 18, 8.40% from 18 to 24, 30.80% from 25 to 44, 22.60% from 45 to 64, and 9.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 98.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $48,376, and the median income for a family was $54,016. Males had a median income of $41,337 versus $28,537 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,448. About 6.90% of families and 9.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.70% of those under age 18 and 6.80% of those age 65 or over.

Law enforcement

The Clark County Sheriff's Office is the local, county-level law enforcement agency serving Clark County, Washington. The sheriff's office was established in 1849 and is the oldest law enforcement organization in the state of Washington. Sheriff Chuck Atkins and Undersheriff Mike Cooke lead the Clark County Sheriff's Office.[14]

A patrol car of the Clark County Sheriff's Department.

Politics

Clark County is a swing county in U.S. presidential elections that recently has voted slightly more Republican than the state and nation as a whole. For example, while President Obama carried Clark County by a few hundred votes representing a fraction of a percent, he ran behind his national showing of a 3% margin. George W. Bush carried the county twice, by 52% to 47% over John Kerry in 2004 and by 49% to 46% over Al Gore in 2000. Clark County usually votes for the winning presidential candidate. It voted for Ronald Reagan twice and for Bill Clinton twice. The last two presidential elections where Clark County did not vote for the national winner were 1968, when it voted for Humphrey over Nixon, and 1988, when it voted for Dukakis over Bush.

Democratic U.S. Senator Patty Murray has not carried Clark County since her first election in 1992, managing only 46% against Dino Rossi in 2010,[15] and narrowly losing to George Nethercutt in 2004, and former Congresswoman and Clark County resident Linda Smith in 1998.

The current elected officials are;

Assessor - Peter Van Nortwick (R)

Auditor - Greg Kimsey (R)

Clerk - Scott Weber (R)

Councilors -County Chair(At Large) Marc Boltd (NP)

-District 1 Jeanne Stewart(R)

-District 2 Julie Olson(R)

-District 3 David Madore(R)

-District 4 Tom Mielke(R)

Prosecuting Attorney - Tony Golik (D)

Sheriff - Chuck E. Atkins (R)

Treasurer - Doug Lasher (D).

Clark County Youth Commission

The Clark County Youth Commission (CCYC) is a citizen advisory board to the Clark County Board of Commissioners (BOCC) in Clark County, Washington. The Youth Commission consists of approximately thirty 11- to 19-year-old youth from around the county, each school district in the county having two representatives. Since its establishment in 1998, the CCYC has given input to the BOCC and other county departments and organizations on various issues important to youth. In the past, the group worked on a fireworks policy and an economic development plan for the county.

In addition to helping shape county policy, the Youth Commission takes on a youth-driven project each year to promote or combat an issue. Past youth-driven projects include a Civil Rights Open House at the Youth House, a benefit concert for Invisible Children, and Freedom's Answer. Each year, the Youth Commission also hosts a Clark County Youth Achievement Celebration at Skyview High School to honor youth around the county.[16]

Communities

Cities

Towns

Census-designated places

Unincorporated communities

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 7, 2014.
  2. ↑ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved 2011-06-07.
  3. ↑ Hanable, William S. (February 4, 2004). "Clark County — Thumbnail History".
  4. ↑ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved July 4, 2015.
  5. ↑ "Region has long history of damaging windstorms," by Don Hamilton, The Columbian, January 11, 2008, p. A5.
  6. ↑ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2014". Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  7. ↑ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 7, 2014.
  8. ↑ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved January 7, 2014.
  9. ↑ "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 7, 2014.
  10. ↑ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 7, 2014.
  11. ↑ "American FactFinder"
  12. ↑ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2011-05-14.
  13. ↑ "Sheriff - Clark County Washington." Clark County Washington - government services. Clark County, Washington, n.d. Web. 10 July 2010. <http://www.co.clark.wa.us/sheriff/index.html>.
  14. ↑ "Washington Secretary of State". Retrieved 2013-03-27.
  15. ↑ Youth Commission - Youth Program - Community Services - Clark County Washington

Further reading

External links

 Cowlitz County
Skamania County
   Clark County, Washington  
Columbia County, Oregon Multnomah County, Oregon

Coordinates: 45°46′N 122°29′W / 45.77°N 122.48°W / 45.77; -122.48

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