Teton County, Wyoming

History

Teton County was created February 15, 1921 with land from Lincoln County and organized the following year. The county was named for the Teton Range. The county was created because the inhabitants lived too far away from Kemmerer, the county seat of Lincoln County. The creation of the county required a special act of the Wyoming Legislature, because the area was too poor and had too few people to qualify for county status under the normal requirements.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 4,216 square miles (10,920 km²), of which 3,995 square miles (10,350 km²) is land and 221 square miles (570 km²) (5.2%) is water.

Adjacent counties

Teton County, Wyoming and Teton County, Idaho, are two of twenty-two counties or parishes in the United States with the same name to border each other across state lines. The others are Big Horn County, Montana and Big Horn County, Wyoming; Bristol County, Massachusetts and Bristol County, Rhode Island; Escambia County, Alabama and Escambia County, Florida; Kent County, Delaware and Kent County, Maryland; Park County, Montana and Park County, Wyoming; Pike County, Illinois and Pike County, Missouri; Sabine County, Texas and Sabine Parish, Louisiana; San Juan County, New Mexico and San Juan County, Utah; Union Parish, Louisiana and Union County, Arkansas; and Vermilion County, Illinois and Vermillion County, Indiana (both these counties are named for the Vermilion River, despite their different spellings).

National protected areas

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 18,251 people, 7,688 households, and 4,174 families residing in the county. The population density was 5 people per square mile (2/km²). There were 10,267 housing units at an average density of 3 per square mile (1/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 93.59% White, 0.15% Black or African American, 0.53% Native American, 0.54% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 3.93% from other races, and 1.22% from two or more races. 6.49% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 19.2% were of German, 14.2% English, 11.7% Irish and 6.7% American ancestry.

There were 7,688 households out of which 25.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.30% were married couples living together, 5.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 45.70% were non-families. 27.30% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.89.

Age range in the county was well distributed with 19.90% under the age of 18, 9.80% from 18 to 24, 38.30% from 25 to 44, 25.00% from 45 to 64, and 6.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 114.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 115.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $54,614, and the median income for a family was $63,916. Males had a median income of $34,570 versus $29,132 for females. The per capita income for the county was $38,260. About 2.80% of families and 6.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.70% of those under age 18 and 4.40% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 21,294 people, 8,973 households, and 4,938 families residing in the county. The population density was 5.3 inhabitants per square mile (2.0/km²). There were 12,813 housing units at an average density of 3.2 per square mile (1.2/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 88.4% white, 1.1% Asian, 0.5% American Indian, 0.2% black or African American, 0.1% Pacific islander, 8.1% from other races, and 1.6% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 15.0% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 22.2% were German, 14.9% were English, 13.0% were Irish, and 11.1% were American.

Of the 8,973 households, 25.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.7% were married couples living together, 5.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 45.0% were non-families, and 29.2% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.89. The median age was 36.9 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $70,271 and the median income for a family was $90,596. Males had a median income of $40,594 versus $36,715 for females. The per capita income for the county was $42,224. About 5.1% of families and 8.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.5% of those under age 18 and 0.8% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Previously a staunchly Republican county, which produced Governor and U.S. Senator Clifford Hansen, Teton has become the most Democratic county in Wyoming, which is one of the most Republican states in the nation. The only Republican presidential candidate since 1992 to win Teton County was George W. Bush in 2000. In the 2008 election, Barack Obama carried Teton County by a 23.6% margin over John McCain, with McCain winning statewide by a 32.2% margin over Obama, his widest margin in any state. Albany County, which includes the University of Wyoming at Laramie, was the only other county in the state to have backed Obama. In 2004, Teton was the only Wyoming county won by John F. Kerry over George W. Bush. In the 2016 election, Hillary Clinton beat Donald Trump by 60.1%–32.2%. The county has, however, voted at times for Republican candidates for the governorship and United States Senate.

The state's current Republican governor, Matt Mead, was born and reared in Teton County, as was his mother, Mary Mead, Clifford Hansen's daughter and the 1990 Republican gubernatorial nominee.

Town

Unincorporated communities