KENNEWICK, WASHINGTON

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'Kennewick' is a city in Benton County in southeastern Washington. It is the most populous of the three cities collectively referred to as the 'Tri-Cities' (the others being Pasco and Richland). Kennewick is located along the southwest bank of the Columbia River, opposite Pasco and just south of the confluence of the Columbia and Yakima rivers. As of the 2004 census estimates, the city had a total population of 60,118, making it the largest city in Benton County.

Contents

History

Attractions

Geography

Demographics

Education

Famous residents

Sister cities

External links

History

Kennewick was officially incorporated on February 5, 1904. Previously, the town had been known by many names, arguably the strangest was "Tehe" which was allegedly attributed to the reaction from a native girl's laughter when asked the name of the region.
The name "Kennewick" is believed to be a native word meaning "grassy place." It has also been called "winter paradise," mostly because of the mild winters in the area.
Kennewick Man is the name for the remains of a prehistoric man found on a bank of the Columbia River nearby, sometimes thought to have Caucasian features, despite being indigenous and living 9000 years ago. Ownership of the bones has been a matter of great controversy.

Attractions

Kennewick is the host city of the Tri-City Americans of the Western Hockey League, as well as of the Arena Football League's Tri-Cities Fever. They both play their home games in the Toyota Center, which hosts many other regional events as well. Every year during the summer, hydroplane racing takes place at the Water Follies event on the Columbia River. Residents from all of southeastern Washington come to Kennewick to shop in the city's commercial district, the center point of which is Columbia Center Mall.

Geography

Kennewick is located at (46.203475, -119.15927).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 63 km² (24.3 mi²). 59.4 km² (22.9 mi²) of it is land and 3.6 km² (1.4 mi²) of it (5.67%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 54,693 people, 20,786 households, and 14,176 families residing in the city. The population density was 920.9/km² (2,384.9/mi²). There were 22,043 housing units at an average density of 371.2/km² (961.2/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 82.93% White, 1.14% Black or African American, 0.93% Native American, 2.12% Asian, 0.11% Pacific Islander, 9.4% from other races, and 3.37% from two or more races. 15.55% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 20,786 households out of which 37.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.5% were married couples living together, 12.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.8% were non-families. 26.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.6 and the average family size was 3.15.
In the city the population was spread out with 29.6% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 29.3% from 25 to 44, 20.6% from 45 to 64, and 10.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.3 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $41,213, and the median income for a family was $50,011. Males had a median income of $41,589 versus $26,022 for females. The per capita income for the city was $20,152. About 9.7% of families and 12.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.8% of those under age 18 and 8.7% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Public schools located in the city are part of the Kennewick School District. The Kennewick School District has thirteen elementary schools (Amistad, Canyon View, Cascade, Eastgate, Edison, Hawthorne, Lincoln, Ridge View, Southgate, Sunset View, Vista, Washington, Westgate), four middle schools (Park, Highlands, Desert Hills, Horse Heaven Hills), and three high schools: Kennewick High School (the Lions), Kamiakin High School (the Braves), and Southridge High School (the Suns).

Famous residents

★ Jeremy Bonderman, Major League Baseball Pitcher, Detroit Tigers

★ Damon Lusk, NASCAR driver

★ Ray Mansfield, National Football League player, center, Pittsburgh Steelers

★ Sharon Tate, Actress, victim of the Manson Family murders

★ Danica Stewart, Actress, ''Passions''

★ Doric Wilson, Award-winning playwright

Sister cities

Kennewick has the following sister cities [1]:

★ Ying Ko, Taiwan

★ Taoyuan, Taiwan

External links

★ City of Kennewick

★ Tri-City Herald newspaper

★ NCWJobs.com - Kennewick jobs, Kennewick employers, and relocation information