Canyon Creek Station on the Main Oregon Trail, Idaho

Elmore County is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 28,666. The largest city and

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

is Mountain Home. Elmore County comprises the Mountain Home, ID Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the

Boise Boise (, , ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho and is the county seat of Ada County. On the Boise River in southwestern Idaho, it is east of the Oregon border and north of the Nevada border. The downtown area's ...

-Mountain Home-

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, ID- OR

Combined Statistical Area Combined statistical area (CSA) is a United States Office of Management and Budget (OMB) term for a combination of adjacent metropolitan (MSA) and micropolitan statistical areas (µSA) across the 50 US states and the territory of Puerto Ric ...

History

Elmore County was established February 7, 1889, with its county seat at Rocky Bar. It is named after the Ida Elmore mines, the area's greatest

silver Silver is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂erǵ-, ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, whi ...

and

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

producer of the 1860s, located near Silver City in

Owyhee County Owyhee County ( ) is a county in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Idaho. As of the 2020 census, the population was 12,133. The county seat is Murphy, and its largest city is Homedale. In area it is the second-largest county in Ida ...

. While the

Oregon Trail The Oregon Trail was a east–west, large-wheeled wagon route and Westward Expansion Trails, emigrant trail in the United States that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon. The eastern part of the Oregon Trail spanned part of what ...

crossed the

Snake River The Snake River is a major river of the greater Pacific Northwest region in the United States. At long, it is the largest tributary of the Columbia River, in turn, the largest North American river that empties into the Pacific Ocean. The Snake ...

in Elmore County, at Three Island Crossing near

Glenns Ferry Glenns Ferry is a city in Elmore County, Idaho, United States. The population was 1,319 at the 2010 census. The city is adjacent to Interstate 84 and the Snake River. History Glenns Ferry was one of the most famous and treacherous river cro ...

, the significant early settlements of Elmore County were mining settlements located primarily in northern Elmore County surrounding the ghost town of Rocky Bar. Settlement at Rocky Bar commenced in 1863 with the settlement having 560 residents at the Territorial Census of that year. Nearby, Atlanta was settled in 1864. Elmore County north of the Snake River was originally part of Alturas County when it was created in 1864 and Rocky Bar became its county seat. The portion of Elmore County south of the Snake River was within Owyhee County until 1930. A small portion of Ada County was also annexed in 1948, bringing Elmore to its present boundary. The settlement at Rocky Bar was impacted by poor management by mining companies, mining lawsuits, and its geographic remoteness between 1869 and 1880. The Wood River experienced a surge in settlement at Hailey starting in 1880 that led to Rocky Bar's loss of the county seat to Hailey in 1882. Rocky Bar would briefly become a county seat upon the creation of Elmore County in 1889. A station on the overland stage route, originally named Rattlesnake, was moved west to the railroad line and became Mountain Home. On February 4, 1891, the county seat was moved to Mountain Home. Construction of

Mountain Home Air Force Base Mountain Home Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) installation in the western United States. Located in southwestern Idaho in Elmore County, the base is southwest of Mountain Home, which is southeast of Boise via Interstate ...

began in October 1942, southwest of Mountain Home. The base officially opened in August 1943 as a training base for

bomber A bomber is a military combat aircraft designed to attack ground and naval targets by dropping air-to-ground weaponry (such as bombs), launching aerial torpedo, torpedoes, or deploying air-launched cruise missiles. The first use of bombs dropped ...

s, and was an operational base under the

Strategic Air Command Strategic Air Command (SAC) was both a United States Department of Defense Specified Command and a United States Air Force (USAF) Major Command responsible for command and control of the strategic bomber and intercontinental ballistic missile ...

(SAC) through 1965. It became a fighter base in 1966 under

Tactical Air Command Tactical Air Command (TAC) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. It was a Major Command of the United States Air Force, established on 21 March 1946 and headquartered at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia. It was inactivated on 1 J ...

(TAC), which became

Air Combat Command Air Combat Command (ACC) is one of nine Major Commands (MAJCOMs) in the United States Air Force, reporting to Headquarters, United States Air Force (HAF) at the Pentagon. It is the primary provider of air combat forces for the Air Force, and i ...

(ACC) in 1992.

Anderson Ranch Dam Anderson Ranch Dam is an earth rockfill type dam in the western United States, on the South Fork of the Boise River in southwestern Idaho. In Elmore County northeast of Mountain Home, it is several miles north of U.S. Route 20 ...

is east of Mountain Home on the South Fork of the

Boise River The Boise River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. , accessed May 3, 2011 tributary of the Snake River in the Northwestern United States. It drains a rugged portion of the Sawtooth Range in sou ...

. At the time of its completion in 1950, it was the world's highest

earthfill dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, ...

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.8%) is water. Elmore County's highest point is Snowyside Peak at

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric heights''. The comb ...

, located in the northeast corner of the county in the

Sawtooth Wilderness The Sawtooth Wilderness is a federally-protected wilderness area that covers of the state of Idaho. Managed by the U.S. Forest Service in the U.S. Department of Agriculture, it was designated the Sawtooth Primitive Area in 1937 to preserve the ...

. The lowest

elevation The elevation of a geographic location is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface (see Geodetic datum § Vert ...

in the county is the

in the southwest corner, at less than .

Adjacent counties

* Boise County - north *

Ada County Ada County is located in the southwestern part of Idaho, United States. As of the 2021 United States census estimate, the county had a population of 511,931, making it by far the state's most populous county; it is home to 26.8% of the state's p ...

- west *

- south *

Twin Falls County Twin Falls County is a county in the south central part of the U.S. state of Idaho. As of the 2020 Census, the county had a population of 90,046, making it the fifth-most populous county in Idaho. The county seat and largest city is Twin Falls ...

- southeast * Gooding County - east * Camas County - east * Blaine County - northeast * Custer County - northeast

Major highways

* * * * * * * * *

National protected areas

Boise National Forest Boise National Forest is a National Forest covering of the U.S. state of Idaho. Created on July 1, 1908, from part of Sawtooth National Forest, it is managed by the U.S. Forest Service as five units: the Cascade, Emmett, Idaho City, Low ...

(part) *

Sawtooth National Forest Sawtooth National Forest is a United States National Forest, National Forest that covers 2,110,408 acres (854,052 ha) in the U.S. states of Idaho (~96 percent) and Utah (~4 percent). Managed by the U.S. Forest Service in the United States Depart ...

(part) *

Sawtooth National Recreation Area The Sawtooth National Recreation Area (SNRA) is a national recreation area in central Idaho, United States that is managed as part of Sawtooth National Forest. The recreation area, established on August 22, 1972, is managed by the U.S. Forest Ser ...

(part) **

(part) *

Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area The Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area has one of the densest populations of nesting raptors. The National Conservation Area (NCA) is located south of Boise, Idaho along of the Snake River, and is managed by the B ...

(part)

Demographics

2000 census

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of 2000, there were 29,130 people, 9,092 households, and 6,846 families living in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

was 10 people per square mile (4/km²). There were 10,527 housing units at an average density of 3 per square mile (1/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 85.37%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

, 3.25%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.89% Native American, 1.66%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.19%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...

, 5.39% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 3.25% from two or more races. 11.99% of the population were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race. 16.8% were of

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

, 12.0%

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

, 9.2%

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

and 8.3%

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

ancestry. There were 9,092 households, out of which 43.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.10% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 7.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.70% were non-families. 20.70% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.76 and the average family size was 3.21. In the county, the population was spread out, with 28.00% under the age of 18, 13.90% from 18 to 24, 36.00% from 25 to 44, 15.00% from 45 to 64, and 7.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females there were 123.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 130.60 males. The median income for a household in the county was $35,256, and the median income for a family was $37,823. Males had a median income of $26,248 versus $21,309 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the county was $16,773. About 8.80% of families and 11.20% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 15.00% of those under age 18 and 10.80% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census

As of the

2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servin ...

, there were 27,038 people, 10,140 households, and 7,135 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 12,162 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 82.2% white, 2.8% Asian, 2.7% black or African American, 1.0% American Indian, 0.4% Pacific islander, 6.8% from other races, and 4.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 15.2% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 20.4% were

, 13.5% were

, 12.4% were

, and 9.0% were

. Of the 10,140 households, 38.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.6% were married couples living together, 9.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 29.6% were non-families, and 23.8% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.11. The median age was 30.0 years. The median income for a household in the county was $43,089 and the median income for a family was $50,840. Males had a median income of $34,126 versus $25,999 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,388. About 9.2% of families and 12.0% of the population were below the

, including 19.3% of those under age 18 and 7.8% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

* Mountain Home

Census-designated place

* Hammett *

Unincorporated communities

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

Dixie Dixie, also known as Dixieland or Dixie's Land, is a nickname for all or part of the Southern United States. While there is no official definition of this region (and the included areas shift over the years), or the extent of the area it cover ...

*Featherville *

King Hill Stuart King Hill (November 8, 1936 – July 14, 2012) was an American football quarterback in the National Football League who played for the Chicago / St. Louis Cardinals, Philadelphia Eagles, and Minnesota Vikings. Football career After attend ...

*Pine *Tipanuk

Ghost town

* Rocky Bar

Politics

Education

School districts include: * Bliss Joint School District 234 * Bruneau-Grand View Joint School District 365 * Glenns Ferry Joint School District 192 * Mountain Home School District 193 * Prairie Elementary School District 191

References

External links

County website

{{authority control Idaho counties 1889 establishments in Idaho Territory Populated places established in 1889

History

Geography

Adjacent counties

Major highways

National protected areas

Demographics

2000 census

2010 census

Communities

Cities

Census-designated place

Unincorporated communities

Ghost town

Politics

Education

See also

References

External links