Laramie County is a county located at the southeast corner of the

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...

. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 100,512 or 17.4% of the state's total 2020 population, making it the most populous county in Wyoming, but the least populous county in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

to be the most populous in its state. 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 ...

is Cheyenne, the state capital. The county lies west of the

Nebraska Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...

state line and north of the

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

state line. Laramie County comprises the Cheyenne, WY Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city of

Laramie, Wyoming Laramie () is a List of municipalities in Wyoming, city in and the county seat of Albany County, Wyoming, United States, known for its high elevation at , for its railroad history, and as the home of the University of Wyoming. The population wa ...

, is in neighboring Albany County.

History

Laramie County was originally created in 1867 as a county within the Dakota Territory. The county was named for Jacques La Ramee, a French-Canadian fur-trader. In 1867, a portion of Laramie County was annexed to create

Sweetwater County Sweetwater County is a County (United States), county in southwestern Wyoming, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 42,272, making it the List of counties in Wyoming, fourth-most populous county in Wyoming. Its ...

; in 1868; further annexations occurred to create Albany County and Carbon County. Laramie County became a county in the Wyoming Territory when the territorial government was formed in 1869. Crook County was created with land ceded by Laramie County in 1875. In 1888, Converse County was formed from a portion of Laramie County. In 1911, Goshen and Platte Counties were formed from parts of Laramie County, giving the county its current boundaries. The county's early economy was based on agriculture and livestock raising. The present-day Wyoming Stock Growers Association dates from that era. Other types of animal husbandry also occurred. Some of the settlers in early Laramie County were foreign immigrants; for example, Burns was largely settled by German immigrants.

Arts and culture

Laramie County Library System

The Laramie County Library System is one of the oldest continually operating county library systems in the United States, the first branch established in Cheyenne in 1886. In 1899,

Andrew Carnegie Andrew Carnegie ( , ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the History of the iron and steel industry in the United States, American steel industry in the late ...

donated $50,000 toward the building of the state's first Carnegie Public Library, which opened in 1902. The library moved to a larger location in 1969. In 2007, a second library opened.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.06%) is water.

Adjacent counties

* Goshen County – north * Banner County, Nebraska – northeast * Kimball County, Nebraska – east * Weld County, Colorado – south * Larimer County, Colorado – southwest * Albany County – west * Platte County – northwest

Major highways

* Interstate 25 * Interstate 80 * Interstate 180 (Not a freeway.) * * * US 30

U.S. Highway 30 * US 85

U.S. Highway 85 * US 87

U.S. Highway 87 * Wyoming Highway 210 * Wyoming Highway 211 * Wyoming Highway 212 * Wyoming Highway 213 * Wyoming Highway 214 * Wyoming Highway 215 * Wyoming Highway 216 * Wyoming Highway 219 * Wyoming Highway 221 * Wyoming Highway 222 * Wyoming Highway 223 * Wyoming Highway 225

Transit

* Cheyenne Transit * Express Arrow * Greyhound Lines

Demographics

2000 census

As of the 2000 United States Census, Laramie County had 81,607 people, 31,927 households, and 21,614 families. 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 . The county had 34,213 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 88.92%

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 ...

, 2.60%

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 ...

, 0.85% Native American, 0.95% Asian, 0.11%

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 ...

, 4.00% from other races, and 2.57% from two or more races. 10.90% 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. 23.7% were of German, 11.1% English, 10.3% Irish and 7.4%

American ancestry In the demography of the United States, some people self-identify their ancestral origin or descent as "American", rather than the more common officially recognized racial and ethnic groups that make up the bulk of the American people. The ...

. As of the 2000 census, Laramie County had 31,927 households, of which 33.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.90% 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, 9.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.30% were non-families. 27.20% of all households were made up of a single individual and 8.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.98. The county population contained 25.80% under the age of 18, 9.60% from 18 to 24, 30.50% from 25 to 44, 22.70% from 45 to 64, and 11.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, the county had 100-100.9 males. The median income for a household in the county was $39,607, and the median income for a family was $46,536. Males had a median income of $31,644 versus $24,406 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 $19,634. About 6.50% of families and 9.10% 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 12.00% of those under age 18 and 6.50% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 91,738 people, 37,576 households, and 24,340 families in the county. The population density was . There were 40,462 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 88.5% white, 2.5% black or African American, 1.1% Asian, 1.0% American Indian, 0.2% Pacific islander, 3.8% from other races, and 3.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 13.1% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 29.5% were German, 15.5% were Irish, 12.7% were English, and 4.9% were American. Of the 37,576 households, 31.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.3% were married couples living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 35.2% were non-families, and 29.1% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 2.95. The median age was 37.0 years. The median income for a household in the county was $52,824 and the median income for a family was $64,589. Males had a median income of $44,001 versus $32,882 for females. The per capita income for the county was $27,406. About 6.7% of families and 9.6% of the population were below the

, including 13.8% of those under age 18 and 4.0% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

City

* Cheyenne (county seat and largest municipality)

Towns

* Albin * Burns * Pine Bluffs

Unincorporated areas

Census-designated places

Carpenter Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. Carpenter ...

* Fox Farm-College * Hillsdale * Ranchettes * South Greeley * FE Warren AFB

Other communities

* Altvan * Egbert *

Granite Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...

* Horse Creek * Meriden

Politics and government

Like Wyoming as a whole, Laramie County is strongly Republican. It is extremely conservative for an urban county, having not backed the Democratic presidential candidate since

Lyndon Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after assassination of John F. Kennedy, the assassination of John F. Ken ...

in 1964–one of only two times since 1952 that it has supported a Democrat. In 2016,

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...

managed to win just 28.3 percent of the vote in the county, the lowest total of any presidential candidate in Laramie since John W. Davis in 1924, when a large proportion of progressive voters defected to Robert M. La Follette, Sr. Nonetheless, the county is the third-friendliest to Democrats in the state, beaten only by Teton County and Albany County.

Education

There are two school districts in Laramie County: Laramie County School District 1 and Laramie County School District 2.
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References

External links

Laramie County website
* {{authority control 1867 establishments in Dakota Territory Populated places established in 1867