Lake County, Montana

Lake County
County
Location within the U.S. state of Montana
Montana's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 47°39′N 114°05′W
Country	United States
State	Montana
Founded	1923
Seat	Polson
Largest city	Polson
Area
• Total	1,654 sq mi (4,280 km2)
• Land	1,494 sq mi (3,870 km2)
• Water	160 sq mi (400 km2)  9.67%
Population  (2000)
• Total	26,507
• Density	20/sq mi (7/km2)
Website	www.lakecounty-mt.org

Lake County is a county located in the U.S. state of Montana. As of 2000, the population was 26,507. Its county seat is PolsonTemplate:GR.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,654 square miles (4,283 km²), of which, 1,494 square miles (3,869 km²) of it is land and 160 square miles (414 km²) of it (9.67%) is water. Over two-thirds (67.7%) of the county's land lies within the Flathead Indian Reservation.

Adjacent Counties

• Flathead County, Montana - north & east
• Missoula County, Montana - east & south
• Sanders County, Montana - west

Demographics

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 26,507 people, 10,192 households, and 7,215 families residing in the county. The population density was 18 people per square mile (7/km²). There were 13,605 housing units at an average density of 9 per square mile (4/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 71.38% White, 0.12% Black or African American, 23.79% Native American, 0.30% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.67% from other races, and 3.70% from two or more races. 2.52% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 19.7% were of German, 8.8% Irish, 7.8% English, 5.4% Norwegian and 5.4% American ancestry according to Census 2000. 94.3% spoke English, 1.6% Salish and 1.2% Spanish as their first language.

There were 10,192 households out of which 33.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.80% were married couples living together, 11.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.20% were non-families. 24.50% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 3.02.

In the county the population was spread out with 28.10% under the age of 18, 8.00% from 18 to 24, 24.50% from 25 to 44, 24.90% from 45 to 64, and 14.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 96.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.10 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $28,740, and the median income for a family was $34,033. Males had a median income of $27,009 versus $19,162 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,173. About 14.00% of families and 18.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.20% of those under age 18 and 8.30% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

• Polson
• Ronan

Town

• Arlee
• Charlo
• Dayton
• Dixon
• Elmo
• Evaro
• Pablo
• Rollins
• Ronan
• Saint Ignatius
• Somers

Census-designated places

• Arlee
• Big Arm
• Charlo
• Dayton
• Elmo
• Finley Point
• Jette
• Kerr
• Kicking Horse
• Kings Point
• Niarada
• Pablo
• Ravalli
• Rocky Point
• Rollins
• Turtle Lake
• Woods Bay