Baker City is a city and the county seat of Baker County, Oregon. This city
was named after its county. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total
population of 9,860.
History
Although a post office was established on March 27, 1866, Baker City was not
incorporated until 1874. In 1911 the city dropped "City" from its name, but
restored it in the late 1980s in recognition of its history and to further
encourage tourism.
Baker City is also the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese for the state
of Oregon east of the Cascade Mountains. While the diocese has been sued by
about two dozen individuals claiming that they had been sexually abused by
priests, it is not affected by the archdiocese of Portland filing for
bankruptcy on July 6, 2004.
Geography
Baker City is located at 44°46'36" North, 117°49'57" West (44.776721,
-117.832617)1. Interstate 84 runs along the eastern edge of Baker City,
while U.S. Highway 30 passes through its downtown area.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of
17.9 km˛ (6.9 mi˛). 17.9 km˛ (6.9 mi˛) of it is land and none of the area is
covered with water.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there are 9,860 people, 4,010 households, and
2,602 families residing in the city. The population density is 550.9/km˛
(1,427.5/mi˛). There are 4,435 housing units at an average density of 247.8/km˛
(642.1/mi˛). The racial makeup of the city is 95.14% White, 0.30% African
American, 1.10% Native American, 0.56% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 1.04%
from other races, and 1.80% from two or more races. 2.54% of the population
are Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There are 4,010 households out of which 28.5% have children under the age of
18 living with them, 51.2% are married couples living together, 10.6% have a
female householder with no husband present, and 35.1% are non-families.
30.5% of all households are made up of individuals and 15.0% have someone
living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is
2.35 and the average family size is 2.92.
In the city the population is spread out with 24.5% under the age of 18,
6.7% from 18 to 24, 25.4% from 25 to 44, 23.6% from 45 to 64, and 19.8% who
are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 41 years. For every 100
females there are 93.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there
are 90.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $29,020, and the median
income for a family is $34,790. Males have a median income of $26,638 versus
$20,313 for females. The per capita income for the city is $14,179. 16.5% of
the population and 10.7% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the
total people living in poverty, 19.1% are under the age of 18 and 14.9% are
65 or older.
