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Madera County, California

Madera County is a county of the U.S. state of California, located in the Central Valley and the Sierra Nevada north of Fresno County. It is part of the Madera, California Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2000 census the population was 123,109. The county seat is Madera.

The southernmost part of Yosemite National Park is located in the county's northeast.

History

Madera County was formed in 1893 from parts of Fresno County.

Madera in Spanish means timber or lumber. The county derives its name from the town of Madera, named when the California Lumber Company built a log flume to carry lumber to the railroad there in 1876.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 2,153 square miles (5,577 km²), of which, 2,136 square miles (5,532 km²) of it is land and 17 square miles (45 km²) of it is water. The total area is 0.81% water.

Cities and towns

Adjacent counties

National protected areas

Transportation Infrastructure

Major highways

Public Transportation

Madera County Connection provides service between the cities of Madera and Chowchilla. Routes also run to eastern Madera County. A connection to Fresno can be made at Children's Hospital Central California near the county line.
The cities of Madera and Chowchilla also have their own local transit services.
Greyhound buses and Amtrak trains stop in Madera.

Airports

Madera Municipal Airport and Chowchilla Airport are general aviation airports.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there are 123,109 people in the county, organized into 36,155 households, and 28,598 families. The population density is 58 people per square mile (22/km²). There are 40,387 housing units at an average density of 19 per square mile (7/km²). The racial makeup of the county is 62.23% White, 4.12% Black or African American, 2.61% Native American, 1.27% Asian, 0.17% Pacific Islander, 24.35% from other races, and 5.25% from two or more races. 44.28% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race. 8.0% were of German, 5.9% English, 5.4% American and 5.3% Irish ancestry according to Census 2000. 63.6% spoke English and 33.7% Spanish as their first language.

There are 36,155 households out of which 40.2% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.9% are married couples living together, 12.2% have a female householder with no husband present, and 20.9% are non-families. 16.5% of all households are made up of individuals and 7.7% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 3.18 and the average family size is 3.52.

In the county the population is spread out with 29.6% under the age of 18, 9.9% from 18 to 24, 29.1% from 25 to 44, 20.4% from 45 to 64, and 11.0% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 33 years. For every 100 females there are 91.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 86.0 males.

The median income for a household in the county is $36,286, and the median income for a family is $39,226. Males have a median income of $33,658 versus $24,415 for females. The per capita income for the county is $14,682. 21.4% of the population and 15.9% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 28.6% of those under the age of 18 and 9.0% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

Politics

Presidential election results
Year	GOP	DEM	Others
2004	64.0% 24,871	34.7% 13,481	1.3% 498
2000	60.7% 20,283	34.9% 11,650	4.4% 1,462
1996	53.8% 16,510	36.7% 11,254	9.5% 2,898
1992	43.2% 13,066	35.9% 10,863	20.9% 6,316
1988	54.6% 13,255	43.8% 10,642	1.6% 384
1984	60.0% 13,954	38.7% 8,994	1.3% 293
1980	53.6% 10,599	39.3% 7,783	7.1% 1,398
1976	46.0% 6,844	51.2% 7,625	2.8% 423
1972	52.6% 7,835	44.2% 6,580	3.2% 477
1968	43.5% 6,229	48.5% 6,932	8.0% 1,142
1964	32.2% 4,461	67.7% 9,391	0.1% 10
1960	41.8% 5,869	57.8% 8,126	0.4% 62

Madera is a strongly Republican county in Presidential and congressional elections. The last Democrat to win a majority in the county was Jimmy Carter in 1976.

The vast majority of Madera is part of California's 19th congressional district, which is held by Republican George Radanovich; a tiny part of Madera is in the 18th district, which is held by Democrat Dennis Cardoza. In the State Assembly, most of Madera is in the 25th district with a small part in the 19th district. Both districts are held by Republicans, Tom Berryhill and Michael Villines respectively. In the State Senate, Madera is part of the 12th and 14th districts, which are held by Republicans Jeff Denham and Dave Cogdill respectively.