Boundary County is the northernmost

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

of the U.S. state of

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), ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 12,056. The

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

and largest city is Bonners Ferry. Boundary County was created by the Idaho Legislature on January 23, 1915. It is so named because it borders

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, and is therefore the only county in Idaho with an international border. It is also only one of three counties in the United States that borders two states and a foreign country, the others being Coös County, New Hampshire, and Erie County, Pennsylvania; these three counties additionally make up the entirety of the international border of their respective states, the only three counties nationwide to do so.

History

Boundary County was formed on January 23, 1915, from Bonner County. It was named Boundary County because it lies on the border of Canada, Washington and Montana. Boundary County has seven election precincts: Bonners Ferry, Copeland, Kootenai, Moyie, Naples, North Bonners Ferry, and Valley View. All contain part of Bonners Ferry City except Copeland, Moyie, and Naples precincts. Moyie Springs was incorporated in 1947. Settlement of the area started with the establishment of Bonners Ferry on the Kootenai River in 1864. Settlement was limited to the ferry operation until about 1890. The town of Bonners Ferry was established in 1893. At that point settlement was still sparse with small ranching and mining operations, but an expanding timber economy. By 1900, other areas started to develop with the Boulder (now Kootenai), Boundary (now Copeland), and Naples precincts first listed in the U.S. Census of that year. The Moyie precinct first appeared in the 1910 census. In 1980, convicted spy Christopher John Boyce found refuge in Boundary County, for a few months, after his escape from the Lompoc Federal Correctional Complex. He stayed at the home of Gloria Ann White. Boyce sustained himself during his stay with a series of bank robberies in the surrounding area, allegedly with technical assistance from White. In 1992, Boundary County was the scene of the Ruby Ridge siege by 350–400 armed federal agents against Randy Weaver and his family. In April 2024, the city council of Bonners Ferry, the county seat of Boundary County, unanimously passed a resolution to continue flying the Canadian flag at its visitor center, despite state restrictions that threatened to remove all foreign flags from government properties. The resolution was seen as a symbolic gesture honoring the region’s historic and economic ties with neighboring British Columbia, especially amid growing tensions over state-level efforts to restrict certain displays of international symbols on public grounds.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.7%) is water.

Adjacent counties

* Lincoln County,

Montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ...

– east/Mountain Time Border * Bonner County – south * Pend Oreille County, Washington – west *

Regional District of Central Kootenay The Regional District of Central Kootenay (RDCK) is a regional district in the province of British Columbia, Canada. As of the 2016 census, the population was 59,517. The area is 22,130.72 square kilometres. The administrative centre is locat ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

– north

National protected areas

* Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail (part) * Kaniksu National Forest (part) * Kootenai National Forest (part) * Kootenai National Wildlife Refuge

Transportation

Highways

* US 2 * US 95 * SH-1

Airports

Boundary County Airport is a county-owned, public-use

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial Aviation, air transport. They usually consist of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surf ...

located two nautical miles (3.7 km) northeast of the

central business district A central business district (CBD) is the Commerce, commercial and business center of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides wit ...

of Bonners Ferry.

Demographics

2000 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 2000, there were 9,871 people, 3,707 households, and 2,698 families living in the county. 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 4,095 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 95.24%

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 ...

, 0.16%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

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 ...

, 2.02% Native American, 0.58% Asian, 0.07%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, 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 th ...

, 0.86% from other races, and 1.07% from two or more races. 3.39% of the population were

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. 21.4% were of German, 12.9% American, 12.7% English, 9.9% Irish and 6.4% Norwegian ancestry. There were 3,707 households, out of which 34.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.40% 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, 7.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.20% were non-families. 23.10% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 3.07. In the county, the population was spread out, with 29.20% under the age of 18, 6.90% from 18 to 24, 24.40% from 25 to 44, 26.20% from 45 to 64, and 13.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 101.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.60 males. The median income for a household in the county was $31,250, and the median income for a family was $36,440. Males had a median income of $31,209 versus $18,682 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 county was $14,636. About 11.50% of families and 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 ...

, including 19.50% of those under age 18 and 11.40% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 10,972 people, 4,421 households, and 2,976 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 5,175 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 94.8% white, 1.7% American Indian, 0.6% Asian, 0.3% black or African American, 0.1% Pacific islander, 0.5% from other races, and 2.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 3.7% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 22.5% were German, 12.8% were English, 11.2% were Irish, 7.4% were American, 5.9% were Norwegian, 5.4% were Dutch, and 5.1% were Scottish. Of the 4,421 households, 29.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.0% were married couples living together, 7.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 32.7% were non-families, and 27.5% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.00. The median age was 42.8 years. The median income for a household in the county was $37,712 and the median income for a family was $43,562. Males had a median income of $36,125 versus $26,076 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,011. About 15.7% of families and 18.8% of the population were below the

, including 22.0% of those under age 18 and 13.4% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Like most of Idaho, Boundary County is solidly Republican. The last Democratic presidential candidate to carry the county was Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964. Boundary County is part of Idaho Legislative District 1. As of 2024, it is represented in the Idaho Legislature by Senator Jim Woodward and Representatives Mark Sauter and Cornel Rasor.

Media

Television

A local translator district provides broadcast television stations from Spokane, WA.

Radio

KBFI, 1450 AM - Bonners Ferry has been home to KBFI AM 1450 since 1983. It is owned by local licensee Radio Bonners Ferry, Inc, owned by Blue Sky Broadcasting, Inc. While licensed to Bonner's Ferry and its transmitter site is there, KBFI shares studios and offices with its sister stations ( KSPT, KIBR, and KPND), at 327 Marion Avenue in Sandpoint, Idaho. KSBF, 88.9 FM - Owned and operated by Bonners Ferry Baptist Church, KSBF began broadcasting in 2024, and is an affiliate of the Fundamental Broadcasting Network. KQFR, 90.7 FM - On September 7, 2022, KQFR, 90.7 FM began broadcasting. Affiliated with "Cornerstone Christian School," KQFR airs a Christian format and is licensed to Moyie Springs.

Newspapers

Bonners Ferry is served by a single newspaper and several online news outlets. The weekly ''Bonners Ferry Herald'', owned by Hagadone Publishing is the official paper of record.

Communities

Cities

* Bonners Ferry * Moyie Springs

Unincorporated communities

* Copeland * Eastport * Good Grief *

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

* Porthill * Curley Creek

Education

There is one school district in Boundary County: Boundary County School District 101. It is in the catchment area, but not the taxation zone, for North Idaho College. - See area 1 in:

References

External links

Boundary County websiteBonners FerryBoundary County AirportKootenaiValleyTimes.com
{{coord, 48.79, -116.45, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-ID_source:UScensus1990 1915 establishments in Idaho Idaho counties Populated places established in 1915