Lincoln County, Montana

Lincoln County, Montana
Lincoln County is a county located in the U.S. state of Montana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 19,677. Its county seat is Libby. The county was founded in 1909 and named for President Abraham Lincoln. The county lies on Montana's north border and thus shares the US-Canadian border with the Canadian province of British Columbia.
This heavily wooded and mountainous county once was part of Flathead County until residents of Libby and Eureka petitioned the state legislature for separation. Libby won an election over Eureka to host the county seat.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.7%) is water. The county borders the Canadian province of British Columbia to the north. The lowest point in the state of Montana is located on the Kootenai River in Lincoln County, where it flows out of Montana and into Idaho. Upstream, Libby Dam backs up huge Lake Koocanusa (combination name of Kootenai, Canada, USA) into Canada's British Columbia.
Adjacent counties and county-equivalents
Regional District of Central Kootenay, British Columbia – northwest
Regional District of East Kootenay, British Columbia – north
Flathead County – east
Sanders County – south
Bonner County, Idaho – southwest/Pacific Time Border
Boundary County, Idaho – northwest/Pacific Time Border
National protected areas
Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail (part)
Flathead National Forest (part)
Kaniksu National Forest (part)
Kootenai National Forest (part)
Economics
Top employers
In 2003, the top employers are listed in the table below.
Demographics
2020 census
As of the census of 2020, there were 19,677 people.
2010 census
As of the census of 2010, there were 19,687 people, 8,843 households, and 5,608 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 11,413 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 95.9% white, 0.9% American Indian, 0.3% Asian, 0.1% black or African American, 0.4% from other races, and 2.3% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 2.3% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 31.5% were German, 15.7% were Irish, 15.3% were English, 10.2% were Norwegian, and 3.3% were American.
Of the 8,843 households, 23.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.0% were married couples living together, 7.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 36.6% were non-families, and 30.6% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.20 and the average family size was 2.72. The median age was 48.9 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $30,823 and the median income for a family was $39,600. Males had a median income of $40,944 versus $24,965 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,626. About 13.7% of families and 18.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 28.2% of those under age 18 and 12.1% of those age 65 or over.
Communities
Cities
Libby (county seat)
Troy
Towns
Eureka
Rexford
Census-designated places
Bull Lake
Fortine
Happys Inn
Indian Springs
Midvale (former)
Pioneer Junction
Stryker
Sylvanite
Trego
West Kootenai
White Haven
Yaak
Other unincorporated communities
Dodge Summit
Jennings
Kootenai Falls
Roosville
Tobacco
Yarnell
Politics
For its first eighty years, Lincoln County was a Democratic-leaning area that would vote Republican only during large GOP landslides. Only four Republicans were to win the county in the seventeen Presidential elections between its inaugural election in 1912 and 1976. However, like many timber-dependent counties, it has become overwhelmingly Republican since that time. The last Democrat to carry Lincoln County was Michael Dukakis during the drought-influenced 1988 election. Since then, no Democrat has reached 35 percent of the county's vote.
See also
List of lakes in Lincoln County, Montana
List of mountains in Lincoln County, Montana (A-L)
List of mountains in Lincoln County, Montana (M-Z)
National Register of Historic Places listings in Lincoln County MT
Notes
References
External links
Lincoln County, Montana
1909 establishments in Montana
Populated places established in 1909