Carson is a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

in the

Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area Columbia most often refers to: * Columbia (personification), the historical personification of the United States * Columbia University, a private university in New York City * Columbia Pictures, an American film studio owned by Sony Pictures * Co ...

, north of the

Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook language, Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin language, Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river headwater ...

Skamania County Skamania County ( ) is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2020 census, the population was 12,036. The county seat and largest incorporated city is Stevenson, although the Carson River Valley CDP is more populous. Ska ...

, in the southwestern part of

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

, United States. The population was 2,323 at the 2020 census. Carson is located north of

Washington State Route 14 State Route 14 (SR 14) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Washington. The highway travels east-west on the north side of the Columbia River, opposite Interstate 84 (I-84) to the south in Oregon. SR 14 forms a section ...

and the town lies south of Stabler and between

Stevenson Stevenson is an English language patronymic surname meaning "son of Steven". Its first historical record is from pre-10th-century England. Another origin of the name is as a toponymic surname related to the place Stevenstone in Devon, England. The ...

to the west and

Underwood Underwood may refer to: People *Underwood (surname), people with the surname Places Australia *Underwood, Queensland, a suburb of Logan City, Australia *Underwood, Tasmania, a locality United Kingdom *Underwood, Devon, a List of United Kingdom ...

and the neighboring cities of Bingen and White Salmon to the east.

History

A post office called Carson has been in operation since 1894. The community takes its name from nearby Carson Creek.

Geography

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 CDP has a total area of 4.7 square miles (12.2 km²), of which, 4.7 square miles (12.1 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km²) of it (0.43%) is water.

Climate

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 2,116 people, 797 households, and 572 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 452.8 people per square mile (174.9/km²). There were 894 housing units at an average density of 191.3/sq mi (73.9/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 88.52%

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 ...

, 0.33%

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 ...

, 3.50% Native American, 0.24% Asian, 0.57%

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 ...

, 3.64% from other races, and 3.21% 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 6.10% of the population. There were 797 households, out of which 36.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.5% were married couples living together, 9.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.2% were non-families. 23.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.09. In the CDP, the age distribution of the population shows 28.7% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 29.5% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and 11.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.4 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $33,598, and the median income for a family was $40,519. Males had a median income of $31,413 versus $25,478 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 CDP was $14,922. About 9.4% of families and 13.7% 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 15.9% of those under age 18 and 11.1% of those age 65 or over.

Parks and recreation

Carson is situated within the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area and outside the southern end of

Gifford Pinchot National Forest Gifford Pinchot National Forest is a National Forest located in southern Washington, managed by the United States Forest Service. With an area of , it extends along the western slopes of Cascade Range from Mount Rainier National Park to the C ...

, which contains the nearby highland terrain areas of Wind Mountain and Dog Mountain. The oldest arboretum in the Pacific Northwest, the Wind River Arboretum, is located in nearby Stabler. Carson has a local

hot spring A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a Spring (hydrology), spring produced by the emergence of Geothermal activity, geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow ...

, and hotel and resort businesses in the town provide

geothermal Geothermal is related to energy and may refer to: * Geothermal energy, useful energy generated and stored in the Earth * Geothermal activity, the range of natural phenomena at or near the surface, associated with release of the Earth's internal he ...

steam bath A steam bath is a steam-filled room or steam-filled cabinet designed for the purpose of relaxation and holistic treatment. Steam baths have been formally recognized since ancient Greek and Roman times, yet variations can be found throughout the ...

References