Map
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Location in the state of
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!style="background:#efefef;"| Area - Total - Land - Water
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According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 9,670 km² (3,734 mi²). 9,526 km² (3,678 mi²) of it is land and 145 km² (56 mi²) of it (1.50%) is water.
As of the census2 of 2000, there were 7,651 people, 3,208 households, and 2,252 families residing in the county. The population density was 1/km² (2/mi²). There were 8,084 housing units at an average density of 1/km² (2/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 96.43% White, 0.69% Native American, 0.30% Asian, 0.04% Black or African American, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 1.10% from other races, and 1.40% from two or more races. 1.96% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 3208 households out of which 28.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.90% were married couples living together, 5.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.80% were non-families. 24.80% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.81.
In the county the population was spread out with 23.70% under the age of 18, 4.40% from 18 to 24, 24.90% from 25 to 44, 32.20% from 45 to 64, and 14.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 105.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 104.40 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $36,927, and the median income for a family was $42,283. Males had a median income of $31,113 versus $21,777 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,246. About 6.20% of families and 9.30% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.10% of those under age 18 and 5.60% of those age 65 or over.
