Benton County, Washington
Encyclopedia : B : BE : BEN : Benton County, Washington
Benton County is a county located in south central portion of the U.S. state of Washington. The Columbia River makes up the north, south, and east boundaries of the county. As of 2000, the population was 142,475. The county seat is Prosser, and its largest city is Kennewick. It was named after Missouri Senator Thomas Hart Benton.
Benton County was created out of Klickitat County on March 8, 1905.[link]
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 4,559 km² (1,760 mi²). 4,411 km² (1,703 mi²) of it is land and 148 km² (57 mi²) of it (3.24%) is water.Geographic features
Sites of interest
Major highways
Adjacent counties
- Grant County, Washington - north
- Franklin County, Washington - northeast
- Walla Walla County, Washington - east
- Umatilla County, Oregon - south/southeast
- Morrow County, Oregon - south/southwest
- Klickitat County, Washington - west/southwest
- Yakima County, Washington - west
Demographics
As of the census² of 2000, there were 142,475 people, 52,866 households, and 38,063 families residing in the county. The population density was 32/km² (84/mi²). There were 55,963 housing units at an average density of 13/km² (33/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 86.25% White, 0.93% Black or African American, 0.82% Native American, 2.20% Asian, 0.11% Pacific Islander, 7.01% from other races, and 2.69% from two or more races. 12.50% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.There were 52,866 households out of which 38.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.60% were married couples living together, 10.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.00% were non-families. 23.20% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.68 and the average family size was 3.17.
In the county, the population was spread out with 29.70% under the age of 18, 8.60% from 18 to 24, 28.50% from 25 to 44, 22.90% from 45 to 64, and 10.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 98.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.30 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $47,044, and the median income for a family was $54,146. Males had a median income of $45,556 versus $27,232 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,301. About 7.80% of families and 10.30% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.30% of those under age 18 and 6.90% of those age 65 or over.
County seat controversy
Kennewick is by far the largest city in the county, with just over 60,000 residents. Nearby Richland has 40,000 additional residents. (The remainder of the county also has about 40,000 residents.) In addition, virtually all non-farm jobs are located somewhere in the Tri-Cities, so that is where most residents of the other towns commute to.In contrast, the county seat, Prosser, has about 4,500 residents. Although all county offices are in Prosser, the vast majority of county officials reside in either Kennewick or Richland. There is an "auxiliary" courthouse in Kennewick that, because of its proximity to the majority of county residents, gets the vast majority of the cases and funding. Some, therefore, have called for the county seat to be moved to Kennewick; however, Prosser residents object every time the issue is brought to the ballot, claiming that, as the county government is Prosser's second-largest employer, its relocation would cripple the town's economy.
A Tri-Cities businessman is currently floating a petition regarding the county seat location. If placed on the ballot, it would move the county seat to Kennewick and save the county the millions of dollars it is planning to spend to refurbish the Prosser offices.
Census-recognized communities
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- Benton City (2,624)
- Finley (5,770)
- Highland (3,388)
- Kennewick (60,118)
- Prosser (4,838)
- Richland (38,708)
- West Richland (8,385)
Other communities
- Hanford (also known as Hanford Works, ghost town)
- Kiona
- White Bluffs (ghost town)
External links
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