Everything about Benton County Oregon totally explained
Benton County is a
county located in the
U.S. state of
Oregon. The
county was named after
Thomas Hart Benton, a
U.S. senator who advocated U.S. control over the
Oregon Country. In 2000, the county's population was 78,153. It is coextensive with the Corvallis
Metropolitan Statistical Area. Its
county seat is
Corvallis.
Economy
Along with
Oregon State University,
agriculture,
lumber,
wood products, and some printing technology research and development form the economic base of the county. A substantial portion of the nation's research in
forestry, agriculture,
engineering,
education and
the sciences takes place at OSU.
Geography
According to the
U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 679
square miles (1,759
km²), of which, 676 square miles (1,752 km²) of it's land and 3 square miles (6 km²) of it (0.37%) is water.
Adjacent counties
Demographics
As of the
census of 2000, there were 78,153 people, 30,145 households, and 18,237 families residing in the county. The
population density was 116 people per square mile (45/km²). There were 31,980 housing units at an average density of 47 per square mile (18/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 89.16%
White, 0.84%
Black or
African American, 0.79%
Native American, 4.49%
Asian, 0.24%
Pacific Islander, 1.92% from
other races, and 2.56% from two or more races. 4.66% of the population were
Hispanic or
Latino of any race. 18.2% were of
German, 11.6%
English, 8.9%
Irish and 7.0%
American ancestry. 91.1% spoke
English, 4.1%
Spanish and 1.0%
Chinese as their first language.
There were 30,145 households out of which 28.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.40% were
married couples living together, 7.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.50% were non-families. 26.10% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.95.
In the county, the population was spread out with 21.30% under the age of 18, 20.20% from 18 to 24, 26.70% from 25 to 44, 21.40% from 45 to 64, and 10.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 99.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.80 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $41,897, and the median income for a family was $56,319. Males had a median income of $42,018 versus $29,795 for females. The
per capita income for the county was $21,868. About 6.80% of families and 14.60% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 10.60% of those under age 18 and 4.90% of those age 65 or over.
Benton County has the lowest church attendance per capita of any county in the nation (25% attendance).
History
Founding
Benton County was created from
Polk County by an act of the Provisional Government of Oregon in 1847. The county was created out of an area originally inhabited by the
Klickitat, who rented it from the
Kalapuyas for use as hunting grounds. All Indian claims to land within Benton County were ceded in the
Treaty of Dayton in 1855.
At that time, the boundaries began at the intersection of Polk County and the
Willamette River, extended south as far as the
California border and as far west as the
Pacific Ocean. Later, portions of Benton County were taken to form
Coos,
Curry,
Douglas,
Jackson,
Josephine,
Lane and
Lincoln Counties, leaving Benton County in its present form.
The city of Marysville, later renamed Corvallis, was made the county seat in 1851. In 1862 Corvallis became the site of the Oregon State Agricultural College, known today as
Oregon State University.
21st century same-sex marriage controversy
Following their decision that the
Oregon Constitution required them to issue
marriage licenses to same-sex couples, a decision
Oregon Attorney General Hardy Myers opposed in a letter to them, the Benton County Commissioners voted to stop issuing marriage licenses a week later on
March 22,
2004. Although the County Court in
Multnomah County, Oregon ruled on the matter
April 20, the county didn't resume issuing marriage licenses. A
Monroe couple sued the county
June 23,
2006 to force it to resume issuing marriage licenses; the hearing was scheduled for
July 12,
2006.
Politics
The current Benton County Sheriff is Diana Simpson. She was elected on
November 7 2006 as the first woman sheriff of Benton County and the first elected female sheriff in Oregon.
Communities
Incorporated cities
Adair Village
Albany, (small portion, most in Linn County)
Corvallis
Monroe
Philomath
Unincorporated communities
Further Information
Get more info on 'Benton County Oregon'.
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