Branch County, Michigan

Branch County
Branch County
County
	Location within the U.S. state of Michigan
	Michigan's location within the U.S.
	Coordinates: 41°55′N 85°03′W / 41.92°N 85.05°W
Country	United States
State	Michigan
Founded	1829
Seat	Coldwater
Area
• Total	507 sq mi (1,310 km2)
• Water	12 sq mi (30 km2) 2.33%
Population (2000)
• Total	45,787
• Density	90/sq mi (35/km2)
Website	co.branch.mi.us

Branch County is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the population was 45,787. The county seat is Coldwater Template:GR.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 519 square miles (1,345 km²), of which, 507 square miles (1,314 km²) of it is land and 12 square miles (31 km²) of it (2.33%) is water.

Adjacent counties

Demographics

As of the 2000 census, ^[1] there were 45,787 people, 16,349 households, and 11,575 families residing in the county. The population density was 90 people per square mile (35/km²). There were 19,822 housing units at an average density of 39 per square mile (15/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 93.37% White, 2.63% Black or African American, 0.47% Native American, 0.42% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 1.39% from other races, and 1.69% from two or more races. 2.98% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 25.8% were of German, 14.3% American, 11.9% English, 8.1% Irish and 7.2% Polish ancestry according to Census 2000. 94.2% spoke English, 2.8% Spanish and 1.9% German as their first language.

There were 16,349 households out of which 33.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.00% were married couples living together, 9.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.20% were non-families. 24.20% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 3.08.

In the county the population was spread out with 25.50% under the age of 18, 8.40% from 18 to 24, 29.80% from 25 to 44, 23.10% from 45 to 64, and 13.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 102.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.00 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $38,760, and the median income for a family was $44,777. Males had a median income of $32,098 versus $22,579 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,552. About 6.00% of families and 9.30% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.70% of those under age 18 and 7.20% of those age 65 or over.

Government

The county government operates the jail, maintains rural roads, operates the major local courts, keeps files of deeds and mortgages, maintains vital records, administers public health regulations, and participates with the state in the provision of welfare and other social services. The county board of commissioners controls the budget but has only limited authority to make laws or ordinances. In Michigan, most local government functions — police and fire, building and zoning, tax assessment, street maintenance, etc. — are the responsibility of individual cities and townships.