Lake County, Ohio

History

After the discovery of the New World, the land that became Lake County was originally part of the French colony of Canada (New France), which was ceded in 1763 to Great Britain and renamed Province of Quebec. In the late 18th century the land became part of the Connecticut Western Reserve in the Northwest Territory, then was purchased by the Connecticut Land Company in 1795.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 979 square miles (2,540 km²), of which 227 square miles (590 km²) is land and 752 square miles (1,950 km²) (77%) is water. It is the smallest county in Ohio by land area but the third-largest by total area. It borders Ontario across Lake Erie.

Adjacent counties

National protected area

Demographics

In 2010, 92.4% spoke English, 2.7% Spanish, and 1.4% Croatian.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 227,511 people, 89,700 households, and 62,520 families residing in the county. The population density was 997 people per square mile (385/km²). There were 93,487 housing units at an average density of 410 per square mile (158/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 95.40% White, 1.99% Black or African American, 0.11% Native American, 0.90% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.66% from other races, and 0.92% from two or more races. 1.70% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 18.5% were of German, 14.6% Italian, 12.7% Irish, 8.1% English, 6.2% Polish, 5.7% American and 5.4% Slovene ancestry according to Census 2000. 93.6% spoke English, 1.9% Spanish, and 0.8% Croatian as their first language.

There were 89,700 households out of which 31.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.10% were married couples living together, 10.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.30% were non-families. 25.60% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 3.03.

In the county, the population was spread out with 24.20% under the age of 18, 7.30% from 18 to 24, 29.70% from 25 to 44, 24.70% from 45 to 64, and 14.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 94.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $48,763, and the median income for a family was $57,134. Males had a median income of $40,916 versus $28,434 for females. The per capita income for the county was $23,160. About 3.50% of families and 5.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.50% of those under age 18 and 5.40% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 230,041 people, 94,156 households, and 62,384 families residing in the county. The population density was 1,011.2 inhabitants per square mile (390.4/km²). There were 101,202 housing units at an average density of 444.9 per square mile (171.8/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 92.5% white, 3.2% black or African American, 1.1% Asian, 0.1% American Indian, 1.6% from other races, and 1.5% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 3.4% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 26.4% were German, 18.9% were Irish, 16.4% were Italian, 11.5% were English, 7.6% were Polish, 5.4% were Hungarian, and 3.9% were American.

Of the 94,156 households, 29.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.5% were married couples living together, 11.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 33.7% were non-families, and 28.3% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.97. The median age was 42.3 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $54,896 and the median income for a family was $67,206. Males had a median income of $49,240 versus $36,906 for females. The per capita income for the county was $28,221. About 6.0% of families and 8.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.0% of those under age 18 and 4.4% of those age 65 or over.

Environment

Scorecard report from 2002 ranks Lake County among the worst 10% of counties in the U.S. in terms of cancer risk, developmental and reproductive toxicants, and other categories as well; this is comparable with most major cities and densely populated areas. Scorecard In 2004, this county ranked among the cleanest/best 10% of all counties in the U.S. in terms of the number of designated Superfund sites.

Lake County has a large public park system. Kirtland is home to the Holden Arboretum and the location of Gildersleeve Mountain. Headlands Beach State Park is located in Mentor. The Grand River is a state wild and scenic river and the Chagrin River is a state scenic river.

Transportation

Laketran is the transit agency servicing Lake County. Interstate 90 runs northeast/southwest through Lake County, roughly parallel to State Route 2; along with the north/south State Route 44 connecting the two together. These freeways make up the major traffic arteries in the county. There is currently no passenger rail service in Lake County, though Amtrak's New York City-Chicago "Lake Shore Limited" service schedules an eastbound and westbound train through Lake County nightly with stops at Cleveland and Erie. Railroad Main Line through-freight service is provided by CSXT (former Conrail, née-Penn Central, née-New York Central) and Norfolk Southern (née-Norfolk & Western, née-Nickel Plate Road). The recently formed Grand River Railroad, operating on former Baltimore & Ohio track, serves the Fairport Harbor area linking the Morton Salt plant with CSXT at Painesville.

Library services

Lake County is served by the following libraries:

Politics

Lake County is known as a "purple" or "swing" county within the state. A 2008 analysis of Ohio presidential election results from 1960 to 2004 found that no other county more closely follows the statewide Ohio voting pattern. Lake County doesn't always vote with the winner, but consistently is closer to the winner's Ohio vote percentage than any other Ohio county.

Townships

Census-designated place

Unincorporated communities