Yakima County, Washington

Yakima County, Washington
Location in the state of Washington
Washington's location in the U.S.
Founded	January 21, 1865
Seat	Yakima
Largest city	Yakima
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	4,312 sq mi (11,168 km²) 4,296 sq mi (11,127 km²) 15 sq mi (39 km²), 0.63%
PopulationEst.  - (2011)  - Density	247,141 56/sq mi (21.8/km²)
Time zone	Pacific: UTC-8/-7
Website	www.yakimacounty.us

Yakima County is the second most extensive county in the U.S. state of Washington. It is named after the Yakama tribe of Native Americans. In the 2010 census, its population was 243,231. The county seat is Yakima, which is also its largest city.

The Yakama Indian Reservation, the 15th largest reservation in America, covers 1,573 mi² (4,074 km²), comprising 36% of the county's total area. Its population was 31,799 in 2000, and its largest city is Toppenish.

Yakima County was formed out of Ferguson County on January 21, 1865. Ferguson County, no longer in existence, had been created from Walla Walla County on January 23, 1863.

Geography

Orchards near Selah

Mount Adams, highest point in Yakima County

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 4,312 square miles (11,170 km²), of which 4,296 square miles (11,130 km²) is land and 15 square miles (39 km²) (0.36%) is water. Yakima County is the second largest county in Washington by area. Yakima County is also widely known for being one of the most difficult places on earth to predict weather, because of the mountains that surround it. The total area covered by the county is larger than the states of Delaware and Rhode Island combined. The highest point in the county is Mount Adams, which is the second tallest peak in Washington and the third tallest in the entire Cascade Range.

Geographic features

Mountain Goats near the glaciers of Goat Rocks Wilderness

• Mount Adams, 12,281 feet (3,743 m)
• Gilbert Peak, 8,184 feet (2,494 m)
• Mount Aix, 7,766 feet (2,367 m)
• Tieton Peak, 7,724 feet (2,354 m)
• Cascade Mountains
• Rattlesnake Hills
• Horse Heaven Hills

Major rivers

• Yakima River
• Columbia River
• Naches River
• Tieton River
• Bumping River
• American River

National protected areas

• Wenatchee National Forest (part)
• Gifford Pinchot National Forest (part)
• Snoqualmie National Forest (part)

• Goat Rocks Wilderness
• Mount Adams Wilderness (part)
• Norse Peak Wilderness (part)
• William O. Douglas Wilderness

• Toppenish National Wildlife Refuge

Major roads

• Interstate 82
• U.S. Route 12
• U.S. Route 97

Adjacent counties

• Pierce County, Washington - northwest
• Lewis County, Washington - west
• Skamania County, Washington - southwest
• Kittitas County, Washington - north
• Klickitat County, Washington - south
• Grant County, Washington - northeast
• Benton County, Washington - east

Wines regions

Washington ranks second in the United States in the production of wine, behind only California. The Yakima Valley AVA was established in 1983 in the state's oldest agricultural region. It is Washington's third largest officially designated American Viticultural Area (AVA), and is responsible for more than 40% of the state's entire wine production.

Located within the larger Columbia Valley AVA, the Yakima Valley AVA is sub-divided into the three smaller wine regions, each with its own distinctive growing conditions. They are known as Red Mountain AVA, Snipes Mountain AVA, and Rattlesnake Hills AVA. Of the viticultural region's 665,000 acres (269,000 ha), nearly 11,120 acres (4,500 ha) were planted in 2008.

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1870	432		—
1880	2,811		550.7%
1890	4,429		57.6%
1900	13,462		204.0%
1910	41,709		209.8%
1920	63,710		52.7%
1930	77,402		21.5%
1940	99,019		27.9%
1950	135,723		37.1%
1960	145,112		6.9%
1970	144,971		−0.1%
1980	172,508		19.0%
1990	188,823		9.5%
2000	222,581		17.9%
2010	243,231		9.3%
Est. 2011	247,141		1.6%
U.S. Decennial Census 2011 estimate

As of the census of 2000, there were 222,581 people, 73,993 households, and 54,606 families residing in the county. The population density was 52 people per square mile (20/km²). There were 79,174 housing units at an average density of 18 per square mile (7/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 65.60% White, 0.97% Black or African American, 4.48% Native American, 0.95% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 24.43% from other races, and 3.48% from two or more races. 35.90% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 13.2% were of German, 6.4% United States or American, 5.9% English and 5.4% Irish ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 73,993 households out of which 39.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.8% were married couples living together, 12.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.2% were non-families. 21.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.96 and the average family size was 3.44.

In the county, the population was spread out with 31.8% under the age of 18, 9.8% from 18 to 24, 27.5% from 25 to 44, 19.7% from 45 to 64, and 11.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 99.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.1 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $34,828, and the median income for a family was $39,746. Males had a median income of $31,620 versus $24,541 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,606. About 14.8% of families and 19.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.2% of those under age 18 and 11.3% of those age 65 or over.

Census-recognized communities

• Ahtanum
• Eschbach
• Gleed
• Grandview
• Granger
• Harrah
• Mabton
• Moxee
• Naches
• Satus
• Selah
• Summitview
• Sunnyside
• Terrace Heights
• Tieton
• Toppenish
• Union Gap
• Wapato
• White Swan
• Yakima
• Zillah

Other communities

• Birchfield 46°34′37″N 120°26′04″W
• Brownstown 46°24′15″N 120°36′25″W
• Buena 46°25′43″N 120°18′48″W
• Byron 46°11′16″N 119°52′28″W
• Cliffdell 46°56′46″N 121°04′08″W
• Cougar Valley 47°01′10″N 120°21′29″W
• Cowiche 46°40′11″N 120°42′44″W
• Donald 46°28′35″N 120°23′48″W
• East Selah 46°39′52″N 120°29′16″W
• Fruitvale 46°37′04″N 120°33′11″W
• Goose Prairie 46°53′42″N 121°16′01″W
• Harwood 46°34′56″N 120°39′22″W
• Nile 46°49′14″N 120°52′22″W
• Outlook 46°19′52″N 120°05′28″W
• Parker 46°30′03″N 120°27′55″W
• Pinecliff 46°53′57″N 121°00′47″W
• Pomona 46°41′25″N 120°29′14″W
• Rimrock 46°39′51″N 121°07′30″W
• Sawyer 46°27′23″N 120°21′41″W
• Tampico 46°32′06″N 120°52′02″W
• Weikel 46°37′57″N 120°40′02″W

Historical communities

• Alfalfa 46°19′29″N 120°12′20″W
• Artesian 46°33′07″N 120°21′16″W
• Ashue 46°24′15″N 120°27′34″W
• Belma 46°14′38″N 119°58′44″W
• Blackrock 46°30′41″N 119°59′52″W
• Emerald 46°18′09″N 120°04′53″W
• Empire 46°13′54″N 120°04′24″W
• Farron 46°26′16″N 120°31′17″W
• Flint 46°26′46″N 120°20′43″W
• Fort Simcoe 46°20′33″N 120°50′22″W
• Givens Corner 46°15′03″N 119°59′57″W
• Gromore 46°35′18″N 120°41′53″W
• Holtzinger 46°40′39″N 120°43′14″W
• Jonathan 46°25′43″N 120°18′48″W
• Liberty 46°21′20″N 120°08′46″W
• Lichty 46°17′33″N 119°57′11″W
• Midvale 46°17′03″N 120°00′52″W
• Nass 46°20′19″N 120°08′46″W
• Plainview 46°04′37″N 120°01′14″W
• Spitzenberg 46°36′53″N 120°36′15″W
• Venner 46°24′17″N 120°30′07″W
• Waneta 46°16′49″N 119°58′04″W
• Wenas 46°52′21″N 120°46′26″W
• Wiley City 46°33′05″N 120°38′57″W
• Yethonat 46°24′16″N 120°23′47″W

Sources:

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Yakima County, Washington

Further reading

• William Denison Lyman, History of the Yakima Valley, Washington: Comprising Yakima, Kittitas, and Benton Counties. In Two Volumes. Chicago: S.J. Clarke Publishing Co., 1919. Volume 1 | Volume 2

External links

• Yakima County, official county site
• Yakima Valley Visitors Bureau
• Washington Wine Commission