Buchanan County
Buchanan County is a county located in the state of
Missouri. As of 2000, the population is 85,998. Its county seat is Saint Joseph.
The county was originally named Roberts County, after settler Hiram Roberts,
renamed in 1839 for U.S. Senator, later President James Buchanan. The county
along with Andrew and De Kalb counties in Missouri and Doniphan County, Kansas is
included in the St. Joseph Metropolitan Statistical Area, which has an estimated
population of 122,934 in the year 2003.
Cities in this county include: St. Joseph, Agency, Rushville, Easton, De Kalb, Lewis and Clark Village, Faucett, Taos, and Winthrop.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,074 km˛ (415 mi˛). 1,061 km˛ (410 mi˛) of it is land and 13 km˛ (5 mi˛) of it is water. The total area is 1.17% water.
As of the census of 2000, there were 85,998 people, 33,557 households, and 21,912 families residing in the county. There were 36,574 housing units. The racial makeup of the county was 92.73% White, 4.36% Black or African American, 0.42% Native American, 0.45% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.65% from other races, and 1.37% from two or more races. 2.43% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 33,557 households out of which 30.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.30% were married couples living together, 12.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.70% were non-families. 28.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.98.
In the county the population was spread out with 24.30% under the age of 18, 11.00% from 18 to 24, 28.50% from 25 to 44, 21.20% from 45 to 64, and 15.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 96.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.90 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $34,704, and the median income for a family was $42,408. Males had a median income of $31,697 versus $21,827 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,882. 12.20% of the population and 8.50% of families were below the poverty line. 15.00% of those under the age of 18 and 9.60% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.