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Albany is a city in Linn County, western Oregon, United States. It is located in the Willamette Valley and is the county seat of Linn County. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 42,280 making it the 12th largest city in Oregon. Albany was named for Albany, New York by the brothers Walter and Thomas Monteith, a family of early prominence in the area, in 1850.
History The site of the city at the confluence of the Calapooia River with the Willamette. In the 19th century, the area was inhabited by Kalapuya, a Penutian-speaking Native American people who inhabited the middle Willamette Valley. The Kalapuya called the area Tekenah, from a word meaning "the deep pool where the rivers meet" (and often humorously translated to "hole in the ground"). The name specifically refers to a location near the confluence of the Calapooia where the current had cut a hole near the bank. It is the earliest known name for the locality, and was also the name for a neighboring Kalapuya settlement as late as the 1850s. The first European settler inside the current city limits of Albany arrived in 1846. Although Albany replaced Calapooia as the county seat in 1851, it was not until 1864 that Albany was incorporated as a city. In the 1970s Albany attempted to extend its city limits to cover the land to include a zirconium processing plant of Wah Chang Corporation. Wah Chang responded in 1974 by sponsoring a vote to incorporate the desired properties as Millersburg. Geography Albany is located at (44.630188, -123.095992). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 41.6 km² (16.1 mi²). 41.1 km² (15.9 mi²) of it is land and 0.5 km² (0.2 mi²) of it (1.18%) is water. Economy Albany is known as the rare metals capital of the world: producing zirconium, hafnium and titanium. Local farms grow crops that include corn, beans, mint, hazelnuts, and grass seed. PepsiCO has recently agreed to place a Gatorade and Propel factory in Albany to be completed in 2008. Demographics As of the census of 2000, there were 42,280 people, 16,108 households, and 10,808 families residing in the city. The population density was 993.3/km² (2,571.8/mi²). There were 17,374 housing units at an average density of 422.4/km² (1,093.8/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 91.68% White, 0.53% African American, 1.22% Native American, 1.14% Asian, 0.21% Pacific Islander, 2.65% from other races, and 2.56% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.09% of the population. There were 16,108 households out of which 33.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.1% were married couples living together, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.9% were non-families. 26.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 2.99. In the city the population was spread out with 26.4% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 29.3% from 25 to 44, 21.9% from 45 to 64, and 12.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 94.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.7 males. The median income for a household in the city was $39,409, and the median income for a family was $46,094. Males had a median income of $36,457 versus $24,480 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,570. About 9.3% of families and 11.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.1% of those under age 18 and 7.5% of those age 65 or over. AS of 2006, the population had reached approximately 45,000. Sites of interest The Monteith House - Originally constructed near the Calapooia River, the Monteith house is one of the oldest buildings in Albany. It has been relocated twice, most recently to downtown Albany where is serves as a museum. North Albany - This section of Albany is regarded as the more scenic, upscale side of town. Much of the homes and neighborhoods are relatively new. A Ray's grocery store and shopping center was completed in 2006 to facilitate the rapidly growing community. Colleges and universities Albany is the home of Linn-Benton Community College. Transportation Albany, Oregon is adjacent to Interstate 5, while Highway 99E runs through it in a north and south direction and Highway 20 runs through it in an east and west direction. Public transportation within Albany is provided by Albany Transit System (ATS). Transit to Corvallis, Oregon is provided by bus service via the Linn-Benton Loop and the Valley Retriever inter-county bus systems. Albany also has an Amtrak station near downtown, providing daily stops for both the Coast Starlight and Amtrak Cascades. ATS, the Linn-Benton Loop, Greyhound, and the Valley Retriever all provide bus service to and from the station. Mass media The primary media outlet is the Albany Democrat-Herald. Notable residents Sister cities Albany has two sister cities: Source: * | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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