Lapwai is a city in Nez Perce County,

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...

, United States. Its population was 1,137 at the 2010 census, and it is the seat of government of the

Nez Perce Indian Reservation The Nez Perce (; autonym in Nez Perce language: , meaning 'we, the people') are an Indigenous people of the Plateau who still live on a fraction of the lands on the southeastern Columbia River Plateau in the Pacific Northwest. This region ha ...

History

First Presbyterian Church - Lapwai Idaho

The area that is today Lapwai was the home of Hin-ma-tute-ke-kaikt, also known as Big Thunder and later as James. It was here that Henry Spalding established a Protestant mission among the

Nez Perce The Nez Perce (; autonym in Nez Perce language: , meaning 'we, the people') are an Indigenous people of the Plateau who still live on a fraction of the lands on the southeastern Columbia River Plateau in the Pacific Northwest. This region h ...

in 1836. This was also the general region that Bill Craig settled, since his wife was James' daughter. The city's predecessor, Fort Lapwai, operated on the site from 1863 to 1884. The village of Lapwai was incorporated in 1911, with a model rural school. The word "Lapwai" means place of the

butterflies Butterflies are winged insects from the lepidopteran superfamily Papilionoidea, characterized by large, often brightly coloured wings that often fold together when at rest, and a conspicuous, fluttering flight. The oldest butterfly fossi ...

, as the area had thousands in early summer in earlier years. Lapwai is part of the Lewiston, ID- WA Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography

Lapwai is located at (46.404388, -116.804376)., at an

elevation The elevation of a geographic location (geography), ''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 equipotenti ...

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

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has a total area of , of which, is land and is water. Lapwai is located on the floor of a valley carved by Lapwai Creek, roughly 3 miles south of its confluence with the Clearwater River. The hills to the east and west of the city rise dramatically more than 600 feet in less than a mile from the city.

U.S. Route 95 U.S. Route 95 (US 95) is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway System, United States Highway in the western United States. It travels through the states of Arizona, California, Nevada, Oregon, and Idaho, staying inland ...

passes through Lapwai.

Transportation

Highway

- US 95 - to Lewiston (north & west) and Grangeville (southeast)

Railroad

The city is served by the BG&CM Railroad, a freight carrier which operates on the former Second Subdivision line of the

Camas Prairie Railroad Camas Prairie Railroad Company was a short line railroad in northern Idaho jointly owned and operated by Northern Pacific Railway and Union Pacific. Parts of the former railroad are now operated by the Great Northwest Railroad and the BG&CM Rai ...

Education

The public schools in Lapwai are operated by Lapwai School District #341, led by Lapwai High School.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2010, there were 1,137 people, 369 households, and 272 families living in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), 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 geog ...

was . There were 397 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 16.6%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.4%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 78.1% Native American, 0.1% Asian, 0.7% from other races, and 4.1% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 4.0% of the population. There were 369 households, of which 46.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.2% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 26.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 11.7% had a male householder with no wife present, and 26.3% were non-families. 22.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.08 and the average family size was 3.58. The median age in the city was 30.8 years. 31.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 10.9% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 23.9% were from 25 to 44; 24.6% were from 45 to 64; and 9.3% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.7% male and 51.3% female.

2000 census

At the 2000

, there were 1,134 people, 339 households, and 270 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 364 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 16.14%

, 0.53%

, 81.39% Native American, 0.62% from other races, and 1.32% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 4.32% of the population. There were 339 households, out of which 48.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.1% were

living together, 27.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 20.1% were non-families. 17.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.35 and the average family size was 3.68. In the city, the population was spread out, with 39.8% under the age of 18, 9.3% from 18 to 24, 26.6% from 25 to 44, 17.7% from 45 to 64, and 6.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 26 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.8 males. The median income for a household in the city was $26,800, and the median income for a family was $30,417. Males had a median income of $31,382 versus $22,109 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $10,159. About 20.5% of families and 23.7% 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 ...

, including 30.5% of those under age 18 and 10.2% of those age 65 or over.

Notable residents

Lillian Disney Lillian Marie Disney ( Bounds; February 15, 1899December 16, 1997) was an American ink artist at the Walt Disney Animation Studios and the wife of Walt Disney from 1925 until his death in 1966. Born in Spalding, Idaho, Disney graduated from hig ...

, wife of

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney ( ; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer, voice actor, and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the Golden age of American animation, American animation industry, he introduced several develop ...

Chaske Spencer Chaske Spencer is an American actor. He gained prominence through his role as List of Twilight characters#Sam Uley, Sam Uley in the ''The Twilight Saga (film series), Twilight'' films (2009–2012). For his performance in the BBC and Amazon Prim ...

, played Sam Uley in the Twilight series

References

External links

*
Lapwai School District #341

University of Idaho Library
- digital archives - Lapwai
University of Washington Libraries
- digital archives - Lapwai {{authority control * Seats of government of American Indian reservations Cities in Idaho Cities in Nez Perce County, Idaho Lewiston–Clarkston metropolitan area 1911 establishments in Idaho