Tillamook County, Oregon

Tillamook County is located in the of. The is  for the , a  tribe who were living in the area in the early  at the time of  settlement. In, the county's population was 24,262. The is.

Agriculture
Dairy farms dominate the county's fertile valleys, and it is the home of the, the county's largest business and private employer. Tillamook dairy products are available throughout the west and the rest of the country.

Timber
The state of Oregon owns 44% of the land inside the county boundaries, mostly as part of the. The State Forest was created as a result of the 355,000 acre (1440 km²). The reforested burn is rapidly maturing, and there is local expectation that it will assist in the recovery of the local timber industry. Three lumber mills currently operate in Tillamook County, one at Garibaldi, one in Tillamook, and one south of Tillamook at the former Naval Air Station.

Tourism
The County's scenic coastline, which includes four bays and nine rivers, helps the tourist industry. U.S. Route 101, traveling the length of the Oregon Coast, brings many travelers through the county by car and bike. The coast also provides locations for vacation homes for inhabitants of nearby and the.

Tillamook County is the first in the continental United States to be declared ready for a. This designation was given by the after the county paid $15,000 for 27 warning sirens and an emergency radio system.

Geography
According to the, the county has a total area of 3,452 (1,333 ). 2,855 km² (1,102 sq mi) of it is land and 597 km² (231 sq mi) of it (17.30%) is water. At 3,706 feet (1130 m) in elevation, is the highest point in the county and the highest in the.

Adjacent counties

 * - north
 * - east/northeast
 * - east/southeast
 * - southeast
 * - south

Demographics
As of the of 2000, there were 24,262 people, 10,200 households, and 6,793 families residing in the county. The was 8/km² (22/sq mi). There were 15,906 housing units at an average density of 6/km² (14/sq mi). The racial makeup of the county was 93.86%, 0.22% or , 1.19% , 0.65% , 0.21% , 1.89% from , and 1.98% from two or more races. 5.13% of the population were or  of any race.

There were 10,200 households out of which 24.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.80% were living together, 7.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.40% were non-families. 27.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.33 and the average family size was 2.82.

In the county, the population was spread out with 22.20% under the age of 18, 6.50% from 18 to 24, 23.50% from 25 to 44, 28.00% from 45 to 64, and 19.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 100.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.10 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $34,269, and the median income for a family was $40,197. Males had a median income of $31,509 versus $21,555 for females. The for the county was $19,052. About 8.10% of families and 11.40% of the population were below the, including 13.40% of those under age 18 and 8.10% of those age 65 or over.

History
Tillamook County, the twelfth county in Oregon to be organized, was established on, , when the Territorial Legislature approved an act to create the new county out of an area previously included in , and  Counties. Boundary changes were enacted with Clatsop County (1855, 1870, and 1893), with in 1893,  (1893, 1898), and with Yamhill County in 1887.

The behind Tillamook was the scene of a repeated series of s called the  between 1933 and 1951. In 1948, a state ballot approved the sale of bonds to buy the burned-over areas and have the state rehabilitate the lands. The state lands were renamed the by governor  on,. By the end of the twentieth century, the replanted growth was considered mature enough to be commercially harvested.

The Tillamook airbase for was commissioned on, , as U.S. . The two hangars were closed after  and sold. One of the hangars was destroyed by a fire in 1992 and only two posts now remain. The surviving blimp hangar is a local landmark and the location of the.

The U.S. was a  air defense installation from 1956 to 1980. Located south of Tillamook, at the top of 3154 foot high, Air Force radars operated by the and the  were essential parts of the nation's integrated air defenses. The large s protecting the radars from adverse weather effects could be seen silhouetted against the sky from most of Tillamook County.

Development along to the north of Tillamook during the last part of the 20th century has blocked part of the  of the, contributing to repeated winter flooding in the city.

Other settlements and

 * Cape Falcon
 * Siskeyville
 * South Prairie
 * South Prairie