Harney County, Oregon

Harney County is located in the of. Established in, the is  of , a military officer of the period, who was involved in the  and popular in the. The is. In, the county's population was 7,609.

Economy
Three industries, ranching, sheep raising, and timber, have traditionally provided the county's economic base. The railroad, which extended into the area in 1883, served as a catalyst to the cattle industry but later contributed to its decline by bringing farmers and sheep men to the area, thus creating increased competition for productive land. Harvesting and breeding of wild horses was lucrative for a period. Harney County shares the largest forest in the nation with. Its abundance of game, numerous campsites and excellent fishing have stimulated fast-growing recreational activities.

Although county lands were open to homesteading from 1862 to 1934, the U.S. still owns more than three million acres (12,000 km²), or 62% of the lands within the county boundaries. Facilitated on the national level by the of 1894, arid land in Harney County was donated to the state for irrigation and settlement, but all water development efforts failed, and eventually all land claims filed under the reclamation legislation were abandoned or nullified. was established in 1908 and expanded in 1936. The refuge now includes 159,872 acres (647 km²). Borax has been mined in the area, and uranium has been found on its south side.

Geography
Harney is the largest county in Oregon. According to the, the county has a total area of 26,486 (10,226 ). 26,248 km² (10,134 sq mi) of it is land and 239 km² (92 sq mi) of it is water, mostly as part of. The total area is 0.90% water.

is the county's most prominent geographical feature, rising 9700 feet above sea level and spanning many miles across a region that is otherwise fairly flat. To its southeast is the, the driest place in Oregon, and to the north lies , which contains and.

Adjacent Counties

 * - (west)
 * - (northwest)
 * - (northwest)
 * - (north)
 * - (east)
 * - (south)
 * - (southwest)

Demographics
As of the of 2000, there were 7,609 people, 3,036 households, and 2,094 families residing in the county. The was 0/km² (1/sq mi). There were 3,533 housing units at an average density of 0/km² (0/sq mi). The racial makeup of the county was 91.93%, 3.97% , 0.51% , 0.13% or , 0.07% , 1.30% from , and 2.09% from two or more races. 4.15% of the population were or  of any race. There is a small, but significant  community.

Approximately 75% of the population of Harney County lives in the Burns-Hines municipal district. is the only other localised population center, with less than 7% of the population of Harney County. and have no localised populations. The remaining population of Harney County is dispersed throughout the countryside, mostly dwelling on large ranches.

There were 3,036 households out of which 29.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.00% were living together, 6.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.00% were non-families. 25.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.94.

In the county, the population was spread out with 26.00% under the age of 18, 6.40% from 18 to 24, 26.60% from 25 to 44, 26.10% from 45 to 64, and 15.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 102.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.20 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $30,957, and the median income for a family was $36,917. Males had a median income of $27,386 versus $21,773 for females. The for the county was $16,159. About 8.60% of families and 11.80% of the population were below the, including 12.70% of those under age 18 and 13.90% of those age 65 or over.

History
The s living in this region at the time of the were the, who fought with the  and s peoples. was the first European to explore this area when he led a fur brigade for the in.

Harney County was carved out of the southern two-thirds of on,. A fierce political battle, with armed night riders who spirited county records from Harney to, ended with Burns as the county seat in 1890. The was created by executive order on,  and the Northern Paiute Indians within the Oregon state boundaries were settled there. The remaining Paiutes number around two hundred individuals and live in a small community just outside Burns. They call themselves the Burns Paiute Tribe and support themselves by operating a small casino and renting out tribal lands to local ranchers.