Lincoln County, New Mexico

Lincoln County is a located in the  of. In 2000, its population was 19,411. Its is, while its largest community is.

History
It was once the largest county in the United States. In the late the so-called  broke out between s and the owners of the county's largest general store. William Bonney, better known as, became involved on the side of the ranchers after his friend and employer was killed. In the end, Bonney killed the deputy that killed his friend, another deputy, and the county sheriff. Several other people were slain in the conflict, which included the other leader of the rancher faction. His death ended the conflict. In, the new territorial governor, retired Union General offered an amnesty to the combatants in order to bring a long-lasting truce between the factions.

Geography
According to the, the county has a total area of 12,513 (4,831 ). 12,512 km² (4,831 sq mi) of it is land and 1 km² (0 sq mi) of it (0.01%) is water.

Adjacent counties

 * - north
 * - north
 * - northeast
 * - east
 * - south
 * - southwest
 * - west

Demographics
As of the of 2000, there were 19,411 people, 8,202 households, and 5,634 families residing in the county. The was 2/km² (4/sq mi). There were 15,298 housing units at an average density of 1/km² (3/sq mi). The racial makeup of the county was 83.60%, 0.35% or , 1.95% , 0.27% , 0.06% , 11.28% from , and 2.48% from two or more races. 25.63% of the population were or  of any race.

There were 8,202 households out of which 26.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.60% were living together, 9.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.30% were non-families. 26.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.80.

In the county the population was spread out with 22.70% under the age of 18, 6.00% from 18 to 24, 23.20% from 25 to 44, 30.20% from 45 to 64, and 17.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 95.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.30 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $33,886, and the median income for a family was $40,035. Males had a median income of $27,323 versus $19,923 for females. The for the county was $19,338. About 10.80% of families and 14.90% of the population were below the, including 24.70% of those under age 18 and 8.70% of those age 65 or over.