Washington County, Oregon

U.S. County|

 county  = Washington County|
 state = Oregon |
 seal =  |
 map = Map of Oregon highlighting Washington County.svg |
 map size = 250 |

founded = September 3, 1849 | seat = Hillsboro | area = 1,881 km² (726 mi²) |

 area land  = 1,874 km² (724 mi²) |
 area water = 7 km² (3 mi²) |
 area percentage = 0.36% |
 census yr = 2000|
 pop = 445,342 |
 density = 238 |
 web = www.co.washington.or.us |}}

Washington County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oregon. Originally called Twality, the Territorial Legislature renamed this county for the first president of the United States, George Washington on September 3, 1849. As of the 2000 census, Washington County is home to 445,342 residents. The county seat is Hillsboro.

Economy

Washington County is centered on a fertile plain that attracted farmers before the first wagon trains. In 1997, orchards covered 8,403 acres (34 km²) of the county's lands and 1,163 acres (4.7 km²) were devoted to vineyards.

The development of a large electronics industry during the last two decades is the dominating factor of the economy of this county. Intel, Oregon's largest private employer, has here its largest concentration of employees outside of its California home. Agriculture is still a major industry in Washington County, as are lumber, manufacturing, and food processing.

Washington County is the location for the corporate headquarters of Nike, the only corporation based in Oregon large enough to be included in the Fortune 500 list. Until it was acquired by IBM, Sequent Computer Systems was headquartered right next door to Nike. The facility is now host to a number of software groups for IBM, including one of its Linux Technology Centers.

Geography

Located to the west of Portland, this county has a total area of 1,881 km² (726 mi²). 1,874 km² (724 mi²) of it is land and 7 km² (3 mi²) of it (0.36%) is water.

Adjacent Counties

* Tillamook County, Oregon - (west)
* Columbia County, Oregon - (north)
* Multnomah County, Oregon - (east)
* Clackamas County, Oregon - (southeast)
* Yamhill County, Oregon - (south)
* Clatsop County, Oregon - (northwest)

Major highways

*Interstate 5
*Interstate 205
*U.S. Highway 26
*Oregon Highway 99W
*Oregon Highway 217

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there were 445,342 people, 169,162 households, and 114,015 families residing in the county. The population density was 238/km² (615/mi²). There were 178,913 housing units at an average density of 95/km² (247/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 82.19% White, 1.15% Black or African American, 0.65% Native American, 6.68% Asian, 0.30% Pacific Islander, 5.86% from other races, and 3.17% from two or more races. 11.17% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 169,162 households out of which 35.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.50% were married couples living together, 9.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.60% were non-families. 24.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.70% 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 3.14.

In the county, the population was spread out with 26.90% under the age of 18, 9.30% from 18 to 24, 34.10% from 25 to 44, 20.90% from 45 to 64, and 8.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 99.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.00 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $52,122, and the median income for a family was $61,499. Males had a median income of $43,304 versus $31,074 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,969. About 4.90% of families and 7.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.30% of those under age 18 and 5.30% of those age 65 or over.

History

The Provisional Legislature created Washington County as Twality District on July 5, 1843, as one of the original four districts of the Oregon territory along with Clackamas, Champooick (later Marion), and Yamhill counties. Columbia, later known as Hillsboro, was selected as the county seat in 1850. Washington County obtained its present boundaries in 1854 with the creation of Columbia County to the north and Multnomah County to the east.

The construction of Canyon Road to Beaverton helped Portland to consolidate its position as the primary port of Oregon, and defeat the rival efforts of settlements as Oregon City and Milwaukie.

Washington county has been a stronghold of the Republican Party, who have consistently registered a majority of voters as members ever since its creation, despite Washington County's evolution from a farming economy to a suburb of Portland.

In November of 2004, the County and the city of Beaverton agreed to a plan where the city would annex both unincorporated residential neighborhoods as well as high-value areas of land. This would result with Cedar Hills, Garden Home, Raleigh Hills, West Slope being incorporated by 2010, and the communities of Aloha, Bethany, and Cedar Mill at some point after that.