Manatee County, Florida

Manatee County
	Manatee County, Florida
	; Seal
	; Seal
	; Location in the state of Florida
	; Florida's location in the U.S.
Founded	9 January 1855
Seat	Bradenton
Area; - Total; - Land; - Water	; 892.75 sq mi (2,312 km²); 741.03 sq mi (1,919 km²); 151.72 sq mi (393 km²), 16.99%
Population; - (2010); - Density	; 322,833; 436/sq mi (168.22/km²)
Website	www.mymanatee.org

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Manatee County is a county in the U.S. state of Florida. Its 2010 population was 322,833.^[1] Its county seat and largest city is Bradenton. Manatee County is a part of the North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota Metropolitan Statistical Area and along with Sarasota County to the south and several counties to the north is often considered part of the Tampa Bay Area.

[edit] History

The area now known as "Manatee County" was inhabited by Native Americans for thousands of years. The southern mouth of the Manatee River is the likely landing site for the De Soto Expedition and is the location of the U.S. National Park Service's DeSoto National Memorial.

Manatee County was created in 1855. It was named for the Florida manatee (commonly called a "sea cow" though it is distantly related to the elephant), which is endangered and the state's official marine mammal.

Every January, the Manatee County Fair takes place at the fairgrounds.

[edit] Geography

According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 892.75 square miles (2,312.2 km²), of which 741.03 square miles (1,919.3 km²) (or 83.01%) is land and 151.72 square miles (393.0 km²) (or 16.99%) is water.^[2]

[edit] Adjacent counties

Hillsborough County, Florida – north (narrow strip of Hillsborough County separates Manatee County from Pinellas County)
Polk County, Florida – northeast corner
Hardee County, Florida – east
DeSoto County, Florida – southeast
Sarasota County, Florida – south

[edit] National protected areas

A Great Egret in Myakka River State Park

[edit] Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1860	854	—
1870	1,931	126.1%
1880	3,544	83.5%
1890	2,895	−18.3%
1900	4,663	61.1%
1910	9,550	104.8%
1920	18,712	95.9%
1930	22,502	20.3%
1940	26,098	16.0%
1950	34,704	33.0%
1960	69,168	99.3%
1970	97,115	40.4%
1980	148,442	52.9%
1990	211,707	42.6%
2000	264,002	24.7%
2010	322,833	22.3%
^[3]^[4]^[5]

As of the census^[6] of 2000, there were 264,002 people, 112,460 households, and 73,773 families residing in the county. The population density was 356/sq mi (138/km²). There were 138,128 housing units at an average density of 186/sq mi (72/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 86.36% White, 8.19% Black or African American, 0.28% Native American, 0.90% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 2.84% from other races, and 1.39% from two or more races. 9.30% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 2005 Census estimates show the racial composition of the county as being 77.6% non-Hispanic whites, 11.8% Latino, 8.7% African-American and 1.3% Asian. (Source=http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/12/12081.html)

In 2000 there were 112,460 households out of which 23.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.70% were married couples living together, 9.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.40% were non-families. 28.40% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.78.

In the county the population was spread out with 20.70% under the age of 18, 6.50% from 18 to 24, 24.60% from 25 to 44, 23.30% from 45 to 64, and 24.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 93.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $38,673, and the median income for a family was $46,576. Males had a median income of $31,607 versus $25,007 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,388. About 7.10% of families and 10.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.30% of those under age 18 and 6.20% of those age 65 or over.