2020 census As of the
2020 census, the county had a population of 55,638. Of the residents, 18.6% were under the age of 18 and 19.8% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 41.7 years. For every 100 females there were 103.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 101.9 males. 34.4% of residents lived in urban areas and 65.6% lived in rural areas. The racial makeup of the county was 79.7% White, 0.4%
Black or African American, 6.0%
American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
Asian, 0.1%
Native Hawaiian and
Pacific Islander, 4.1% from some other race, and 9.0% from
two or more races.
Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 12.6% of the population. There were 23,487 households in the county, of which 25.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 23.2% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 28.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. There were 28,198 housing units, of which 16.7% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 67.2% were owner-occupied and 32.8% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.1% and the rental vacancy rate was 7.3%.
2000 census As of the
2000 census, there were 43,941 people in the county, organized into 17,342 households and 10,890 families. The
population density was . There were 20,765 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 87.31%
White, 5.78%
Native American, 0.40%
Asian, 0.31%
Black or
African American, 0.05%
Pacific Islander, 3.90% from
other races, and 2.25% from two or more races. 10.40% of the population were
Hispanic or
Latino of any race. There were 17,342 households, out of which 29.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.90% were
married couples living together, 8.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.20% were non-families. 24.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.92. In the county, the population was spread out, with 22.70% under the age of 18, 13.90% from 18 to 24, 29.00% from 25 to 44, 25.10% from 45 to 64, and 9.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 103.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.10 males. The median income for a household in the county was $40,159, and the median income for a family was $50,446. Males had a median income of $32,486 versus $24,666 for females. The
per capita income for the county was $21,534. 11.70% of the population and 6.70% of families were below the
poverty line. Out of the total population, 9.30% of those under the age of 18 and 7.70% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line. ==Communities==