Butte County is a rural

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 ...

located 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 so ...

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 2,574, making it the third-least populous county in Idaho. Its

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 Arco. The county was established in 1917 from parts of Bingham, Blaine, and Jefferson counties. The county gained territory in the Clyde area from Custer County in 1937 to reach its present boundary.

History

The first settlement in Butte County occurred about south of the present town site of Arco in 1878. The settlement was then known by the names of Kennedy Crossing and Lower Crossing of the Lost River and was located in eastern Alturas County. Once the post office was established in 1879, the settlement became known as Arco. The ghost town of Era was settled in 1885. Settlement of Antelope, Martin and Island (now Moore) also occurred prior to 1890. Alturas County established precincts for all five Butte County settlements existing at the 1890 census, containing a combined population of 389. The settlements became part of Blaine County in 1895. Blaine County created precincts for all of the settlements except Martin and added a precinct for Clyde. At the 1900 census, the five precincts totaled 714 residents, increasing to 1787 in 1910. Construction of a railroad from Blackfoot to Mackay resulted in relocation of the town of Arco to its present site in 1901. Butte County was established on February 6, 1917, with Arco as its county seat. Butte County included parts of Blain, Jefferson, and Bingham counties, and was named for the three Snake River Plain

butte In geomorphology, a butte ( ) is an isolated hill with steep, often vertical sides and a small, relatively flat top; buttes are smaller landforms than mesas, plateaus, and table (landform), tablelands. The word ''butte'' comes from the French l ...

s that served as landmarks to trappers and pioneers traveling the area, Big Southern Butte, Middle Butte, and East Butte. Butte County is included in the Idaho Falls metropolitan area. Much of the eastern part of the county is the vast

Idaho National Laboratory Idaho National Laboratory (INL) is one of the national laboratories of the United States Department of Energy and is managed by the Battelle Energy Alliance. Historically, the lab has been involved with nuclear research, although the labora ...

, which extends eastward into neighboring counties.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.1%) is water. The Little Lost River is located in Butte County. Its waters, along with the Big Lost River, disappear from the surface to flow underground into the Snake River Plain aquifer in Butte County. The county was named for the volcanic buttes that rise from the desert plain; the largest is Big Southern Butte, located in the southern part of the county. It rises above the desert floor and was used as a landmark by pioneers. The southwestern portion of the county includes the visitor center at the Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve, which extends south and west into three other counties.

Adjacent counties

* Custer County - northwest * Lemhi County - northwest * Clark County - northeast * Jefferson County - east * Bingham County - southeast * Blaine County - southwest

Highways

US 20 U.S. Route 20 or U.S. Highway 20 (US 20) is an east–west United States Highway, United States Numbered Highway that stretches from the Pacific Northwest east to New England. The "0" in its route number indicates that US 20 is a major ...

US 26 U.S. Highway 26 (US 26) is an east–west United States Numbered Highway that runs from Seaside, Oregon, to Ogallala, Nebraska. When the U.S. Numbered Highway System was first defined, it was limited to Nebraska and Wyoming Wyoming ...

* US 93 * SH-22 * SH-33

National protected areas

* Caribou-Targhee National Forest (part) * Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve (part) * Salmon-Challis National Forest (part)

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 2,899 people, 1,089 households, and 802 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 1,290 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 94.65%

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 ...

, 0.28%

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 ...

, 0.69% Native American, 0.24% Asian, 2.38% from other races, and 1.76% from two or more races. 4.14% 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. 25.3% were of English, 13.4% American, 8.5% German, 6.3% Irish and 5.5% Swedish ancestry. There were 1,089 households, out of which 32.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.20% 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, 7.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.30% were non-families. 23.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 3.14. In the county, the population was spread out, with 29.00% under the age of 18, 6.30% from 18 to 24, 24.00% from 25 to 44, 25.70% from 45 to 64, and 14.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 101.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.30 males. The median income for a household in the county was $30,473, and the median income for a family was $36,950. Males had a median income of $37,750 versus $20,962 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 $14,948. About 14.70% of families and 18.20% 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 27.70% of those under age 18 and 8.10% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 2,891 people, 1,129 households, and 788 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 1,354 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 95.5% white, 0.4% American Indian, 0.2% Pacific islander, 0.2% Asian, 0.2% black or African American, 2.0% from other races, and 1.5% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 4.1% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 33.4% were English, 18.5% were German, 10.6% were American, 9.1% were Irish, 7.6% were Danish, and 7.2% were Scottish. Of the 1,129 households, 31.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.8% were married couples living together, 7.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 30.2% were non-families, and 26.4% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 3.10. The median age was 41.7 years. The median income for a household in the county was $39,413 and the median income for a family was $47,225. Males had a median income of $42,500 versus $26,563 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,414. About 9.0% of families and 13.8% of the population were below the

, including 17.2% of those under age 18 and 5.0% of those age 65 or over.

2016

As of 2016, the largest self-reported ancestries/ethnicities in Butte County were:

Communities

Cities

* Arco * Butte City * Moore

Unincorporated communities

* Darlington * Lost River * Howe

Politics

Prior to 1976, Butte County only failed to back the national winner in 1944 in presidential elections between 1920 and 1972. Since 1968, the county has become a Republican Party stronghold, especially since 2000. No Democratic Party candidate has won a quarter of the county's votes since

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...

in 1996.

Education

School districts include: * Butte County Joint School District 111 * Mackay Joint School District 182 The College of Eastern Idaho includes this county in its catchment zone; however, this county is not in its taxation zone.

References

External links

County Assessor Parcel Map
{{authority control Idaho counties 1917 establishments in Idaho Populated places established in 1917