Beaufort County, North Carolina

Beaufort County is a located in the  of. As of 2000, the population was 44,958. Its is.

Geography
According to the, the county has a total area of 2,483 (959 ). 2,144 km² (828 sq mi) of it is land and 339 km² (131 sq mi) of it (13.64%) is water.

Adjacent Counties

 * (northeast)
 * (east)
 * (southeast)
 * (southwest)
 * (west)
 * (northwest)

Law and government
Beaufort County is a member of the regional council of governments.

Beaufort County is one of the proposed sites for a. This practice airfield would allow pilots to simulate landings on an. Construction, which has not yet begun, is controversial due to its potential impact.

Demographics
As of the of 2000, there were 44,958 people, 18,319 households, and 12,951 families residing in the county. The was 21/km² (54/sq mi). There were 22,139 housing units at an average density of 10/km² (27/sq mi). The racial makeup of the county was 68.44%, 29.03% or , 0.16% , 0.22% , 0.02% , 1.42% from , and 0.71% from two or more races. 3.24% of the population were or  of any race.

There were 18,319 households out of which 28.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.60% were living together, 13.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.30% were non-families. 25.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.89.

In the county the population was spread out with 23.40% under the age of 18, 7.70% from 18 to 24, 26.10% from 25 to 44, 26.90% from 45 to 64, and 15.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 91.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $31,066, and the median income for a family was $37,893. Males had a median income of $30,483 versus $21,339 for females. The for the county was $16,722. About 15.20% of families and 19.50% of the population were below the, including 27.60% of those under age 18 and 19.30% of those age 65 or over.