Potlatch, Idaho
| Potlatch, Idaho | |
|---|---|
| — City — | |
 |
|
| Coordinates: 46°55′18″N 116°53′54″W / 46.92167°N 116.89833°WCoordinates: 46°55′18″N 116°53′54″W / 46.92167°N 116.89833°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Idaho |
| County | Latah |
| Area | |
| • Total | 0.3 sq mi (0.9 km2) |
| • Land | 0.3 sq mi (0.9 km2) |
| • Water | 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2) |
| Elevation | 2,546 ft (776 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 804 |
| • Density | 2,310/sq mi (935/km2) |
| Time zone | Pacific (PST) (UTC-8) |
| • Summer (DST) | PDT (UTC-7) |
| ZIP code | 83855 |
| Area code(s) | 208 |
| FIPS code | 16-64900 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0397063 |
| Website | potlatch.com |
Potlatch is a city in Latah County, Idaho, United States, in the north central part of the state. The population was 804 at the 2010 census.
Contents |
[edit] History
Potlatch was founded in 1905 as a company town by the Potlach Corporation.[1] The townsite was chosen because of proximity to Potlatch Corporation's large holdings of western white pine on the Palouse River. Potlatch was chosen as the mill site. When the mill was built, it was one of the largest sawmills in the US and was the largest white pine sawmill in the world. The Potlatch Corporation built 250 buildings in the town for the workers and their families, including a department store, opera house, apartment buildings, train station and depot.[1] Many of the houses were designed and built by the Potlatch Corporation, then later sold as kit homes with assembly instructions.
Potlatch also was once the hub for one of the largest private lumber rail networks built in the United States. Most of its rail stations or depots were named after the Ivy League schools, such as Harvard and Princeton.
In 1981 the mill was shut down, shortly after the town was sold to the residents.[1]
[edit] Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 0.3 square miles (0.78 km2), all of it land.
[edit] Demographics
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1910 | 750 |
|
|
| 1920 | 1,505 | 100.7% | |
| 1930 | 1,500 | −0.3% | |
| 1940 | 1,409 | −6.1% | |
| 1950 | 1,105 | −21.6% | |
| 1960 | 880 | −20.4% | |
| 1970 | 871 | −1.0% | |
| 1980 | 819 | −6.0% | |
| 1990 | 790 | −3.5% | |
| 2000 | 791 | 0.1% | |
| 2010 | 804 | 1.6% | |
| source:[2][3] | |||
As of the census[4] of 2000, there were 791 people, 332 households, and 222 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,355.7 people per square mile (898.3/km²). There were 357 housing units at an average density of 1,063.2 per square mile (405.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 96.59% White, 0.88% Native American, 0.25% Asian, 1.26% from other races, and 1.01% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.39% of the population.
There were 332 households out of which 34.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.5% were married couples living together, 12.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.1% were non-families. 28.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.96.
In the city the population was spread out with 30.0% under the age of 18, 6.6% from 18 to 24, 27.4% from 25 to 44, 21.1% from 45 to 64, and 14.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 95.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.7 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $28,021, and the median income for a family was $35,385. Males had a median income of $30,833 versus $21,964 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,449. About 11.1% of families and 15.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.1% of those under age 18 and 11.4% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Notable people
- Guyle Fielder - former NHL player
- Pat Shea - former NHL player
- Malcolm Renfrew - chemist
[edit] Further reading
- Petersen, Keith C. Company Town Potlatch, Idaho, and the Potlatch Lumber Company. Moscow: Latah County Historical Society.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Schwantes, Carlos (1996). The Pacific Northwest: An Interpretive history. University of Nebraska Press.
- ^ Moffatt, Riley. Population History of Western U.S. Cities & Towns, 1850-1990. Lanham: Scarecrow, 1996, 97.
- ^ "Subcounty population estimates: Idaho 2000-2007" (CSV). United States Census Bureau, Population Division. 2009-03-18. http://www.census.gov/popest/cities/files/SUB-EST2007-16.csv. Retrieved 2009-04-28.
- ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
|
|||||||||||||||||
