Pierce County, Washington

   

Image:Map of Washington highlighting Pierce County.png

Pierce County is the second most populous county in the State of Washington. It was named for U.S. President Franklin Pierce. As of 2000, the population is 700,820. The county seat is Tacoma, on Commencement Bay.

Pierce County is notable for being home to the Mount Rainier volcano, the tallest mountain in the Cascade Range. Its most recent recorded eruption was between 1820 and 1854. As of 2004, there is no imminent risk of eruption, but geologists expect that the volcano will erupt again. If this should happen, parts of Pierce County would be at risk from lahars, lava, or pyroclastic flows. Therefore, the Mount Rainier Volcano Lahar Warning System was established in 1998 to assist in the evacuation of the Puyallup River valley in case of eruption.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 4,679 km² (1,806 mi²). 4,348 km² (1,679 mi²) of it is land and 330 km² (128 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 7.06% water.

Geographic features

Mount Rainier hazard map
Enlarge
Mount Rainier hazard map

Major Highways

Adjacent counties

Demographics

As of the census2 of 2000, there are 700,820 people, 260,800 households, and 180,212 families residing in the county. The population density is 161/km² (417/mi²). There are 277,060 housing units at an average density of 64/km² (165/mi²). The racial makeup of the county is 78.39% White, 6.95% Black or African American, 1.42% Native American, 5.08% Asian, 0.85% Pacific Islander, 2.20% from other races, and 5.11% from two or more races. 5.51% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 260,800 households out of which 35.90% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.80% are married couples living together, 11.80% have a female householder with no husband present, and 30.90% are non-families. 24.30% of all households are made up of individuals and 7.60% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.60 and the average family size is 3.10.

In the county, the population is spread out with 27.20% under the age of 18, 9.80% from 18 to 24, 31.30% from 25 to 44, 21.50% from 45 to 64, and 10.20% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 34 years. For every 100 females there are 98.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 96.70 males.

The median income for a household in the county is $45,204, and the median income for a family is $52,098. Males have a median income of $38,510 versus $28,580 for females. The per capita income for the county is $20,948. 10.50% of the population and 7.50% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 13.20% of those under the age of 18 and 7.20% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

Cities and towns

External links


 
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