Founded 1866 Largest city Wahoo Time zone Central: UTC-6/-5 Population 20,929 (2013) Unemployment rate 2.6% (Apr 2015) | Named for Alvin Saunders Congressional district 1st Area 1,968 km² County seat Wahoo University John F. Kennedy College | |
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Website www.saunderscounty.ne.gov Cities Wahoo, Ashland, Yutan, Mead, Cedar Bluffs, Ceresco Points of interest Strategic Air Comman, Cellar 426, Memphis Lake State Recreatio, Saunders County Historical, Lake Wanahoo State Rec | ||
Saunders County is a county in the U.S. state of Nebraska. As of the 2010 census, the population was 20,780. Its county seat is Wahoo.
Contents
- Map of Saunders County NE USA
- History
- Geography
- Major highways
- Adjacent counties
- Demographics
- Cities
- Census designated place
- References
Map of Saunders County, NE, USA
Saunders County is included in the Omaha-Council Bluffs, NE-IA Metropolitan Statistical Area.
In the Nebraska license plate system, Saunders County is represented by the prefix 6 (the county had the sixth-largest number of vehicles registered in the state when the license plate system was established in 1922).
History
Saunders County was established by an 1856 act of the Nebraska Territorial Legislature and later organized in 1866; its boundaries were redefined in 1858. The county was originally named after John C. Calhoun; in 1862, during the American Civil War, it was renamed after Nebraska territorial governor Alvin Saunders.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of 760 square miles (2,000 km2), of which 750 square miles (1,900 km2) is land and 9.6 square miles (25 km2) (1.3%) is water.
Major highways
Adjacent counties
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 19,830 people, 7,498 households, and 5,443 families residing in the county. The population density was 26 people per square mile (10/km²). There were 8,266 housing units at an average density of 11 per square mile (4/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 98.49% White, 0.11% Black or African American, 0.29% Native American, 0.22% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.35% from other races, and 0.55% from two or more races. 1.03% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 7,498 households out of which 34.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.60% were married couples living together, 6.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.40% were non-families. 23.60% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.90% 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 3.11.
In the county, the population was spread out with 27.90% under the age of 18, 6.30% from 18 to 24, 27.60% from 25 to 44, 22.90% from 45 to 64, and 15.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 99.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.10 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $42,173, and the median income for a family was $49,443. Males had a median income of $33,309 versus $22,922 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,392. About 5.30% of families and 6.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.30% of those under age 18 and 7.00% of those age 65 or over.