2020 census As of the
2020 census, the county had a population of 51,881. The median age was 42.5 years. 23.7% of residents were under the age of 18 and 20.8% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 99.2 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 96.9 males age 18 and over. The racial makeup of the county was 95.1%
White, 0.6%
Black or African American, 0.2%
American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
Asian, 0.1%
Native Hawaiian and
Pacific Islander, 0.7% from some other race, and 3.1% from
two or more races.
Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.7% of the population. 28.3% of residents lived in urban areas, while 71.7% lived in rural areas. There were 20,925 households in the county, of which 28.1% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 51.9% were married-couple households, 18.0% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 23.0% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 28.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The population density was . There were 22,730 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 97.8% white, 0.4% black or African American, 0.3% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 0.4% from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.2% of the population. Of the 20,929 households, 31.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.7% were married couples living together, 9.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 29.9% were non-families, and 25.9% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.50, and the average family size was 3.00. The median age was 40.8 years.
2000 census As of the
census of 2000, there were 53,309 people, 20,419 households, and 14,905 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 21,583 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 98.09%
White, 0.39%
Black or
African American, 0.17%
Native American, 0.25%
Asian, 0.02%
Pacific Islander, 0.34% from
other races, and 0.74% from two or more races. 0.86% of the population were
Hispanic or
Latino of any race. 43.1% were of
German, 20.1%
American, 8.1%
English, 6.8%
Irish and 5.8%
French ancestry according to
Census 2000. There were 20,419 households, out of which 33.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.00% were
married couples living together, 8.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.00% were non-families. 23.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56, and the average family size was 3.03. In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.30% under the age of 18, 7.80% from 18 to 24, 27.50% from 25 to 44, 23.20% from 45 to 64, and 15.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.30 males. The median income for a household in the county was $39,307, and the median income for a family was $45,735. Males had a median income of $32,933 versus $23,339 for females. The
per capita income for the county was $18,670. About 6.00% of families and 8.00% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 10.10% of those under age 18 and 9.20% of those age 65 or over. ==Economy==