Albany County was organized in 1868 of territory annexed fromLaramie County inDakota Territory, which at the time had jurisdiction over part of modern-day Wyoming.[3] It became a county inWyoming Territory when its government was formally organized on May 19, 1869.[4][5]
Charles D. Bradley, a member of the legislature of theDakota Territory named the county forAlbany, New York, the capital of his native state.[6] In 1875, theWyoming Territorial legislature authorized portions of Albany County to be annexed to createCrook andJohnson counties, and in 1888 land was taken from Albany County for the creation ofConverse County. Further adjustments were made to the county's boundary in 1911 and 1955.
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 4,309 square miles (11,160 km2), of which 4,274 square miles (11,070 km2) is land and 35 square miles (91 km2) (0.8%) is water.[7]
There were 13,269 households, of which 23.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.0% were married couples living together, 7.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 47.2% were non-families. 31.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.84.
The county population contained 18.4% of the population under the age of 18, 28.2% from 18 to 24, 26.1% from 25 to 44, 19.1% from 45 to 64, and 8.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 27 years. For every 100 females there were 106.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 106.4 males.
Themedian household income was $28,790 and the median family income was $44,334. Males had a median income of $31,087 compared with $22,061 for females. Theper capita income for the county was $16,706. About 10.8% of families and 21.0% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 15.7% of those under the age of 18 and 8.8% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
As of the2010 United States census, there were 36,299 people, 15,691 households, and 7,430 families in the county.[12] The population density was 8.5 people per square mile (3.3 people/km2). There were 17,939 housing units at an average density of 4.2 units per square mile (1.6 units/km2).[13] The racial makeup of the county was 90.1% white, 2.8% Asian, 1.2% black or African American, 0.7% American Indian, 0.1% Pacific islander, 2.4% from other races, and 2.7% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 8.8% of the population.[12] In terms of ancestry, 31.2% wereGerman, 15.3% wereIrish, 12.5% wereEnglish, and 4.4% wereAmerican.[14]
Of the 15,691 households, 21.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.9% were married couples living together, 6.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 52.6% were non-families, and 34.9% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.17 and the average family size was 2.84. The median age was 26.8 years.[12]
The median income for a household in the county was $42,890 and the median income for a family was $70,054. Males had a median income of $43,484 versus $33,512 for females. The per capita income for the county was $25,622. About 7.2% of families and 21.5% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 10.7% of those under age 18 and 6.6% of those age 65 or over.[15]
While Wyoming as a whole tends to be solidly Republican, Albany County is a swing county. It is one of only thirteen counties to have voted forBarack Obama in2008,Mitt Romney in2012,Donald Trump in2016, andJoe Biden in2020.[a] It is also a national bellwether, only failing to back the nationwide winner on four occasions in its history (1892,1960,1976, and 2012).
Since the 1990s, Albany County has been one of the few competitive counties in heavily Republican Wyoming. Laramie, home of the University of Wyoming, is solidly Democratic, while the Laramie suburbs and the county's rural precincts are equally solidly Republican. Laramie accounts for roughly half of the county's population, with the Laramie suburbs and the rural precincts of the county forming the other approximate half. Thus,swing voters typically determine the county's winner.
United States presidential election results for Albany County, Wyoming[16]
