Caldwell, Idaho
Encyclopedia
Caldwell is a city in and the county seat
of Canyon County
, Idaho
, United States
. The U.S. Census Bureau estimated the population to be 43,281, as of July 2009.
Caldwell is the home of the College of Idaho. It is considered part of the Boise metropolitan area
.
of 2000, there were 25,967 people, 8,963 households, and 6,354 families residing in the city. The population density
was 2,289.3/sq mi. There were 9,603 housing units at an average density of 846.6 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was
75.07% White
28.14% Hispanic or Latino
0.47% African American
0.94% Native American
0.83% Asian
0.10% Pacific Islander
2.91% two or more races
There were 8,963 households, out of which 39.5% had children under the age of 18, 51.7% were married couples
, 13.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.1% were non-families. In addition, 23.3% of all households were made up of a single individual and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.79, and the average family size was 3.30.
In the city the population was spread out with 30.9% under the age of 18, 13.1% from 18 to 24, 27.3% from 25 to 44, 17.6% from 45 to 64, and 11% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females there were 95.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.6 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $30,848, and the median income for a family was $35,158. Males had a median income of $27,017 versus $21,096 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $13,657. About 12.6% of families and 16.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.8% of those under age 18 and 15.5% of those age 65 or over.
immigrants, but the town was central in Idaho's aggressive anti-Chinese backlash that culminated in an 1886 convention of the Anti-Chinese League in Boise. By 1890, however, every last immigrant had been driven from town by social pressures and outright violence. http://www.powells.com/biblio?show=TRADE%20PAPER:USED:0684846179:10.95&page=excerpt
In March 1908, at the end of a series of trials relating to a Coeur d'Alene miners' uprising
and the Colorado Labor Wars
, Albert Horsley
, better known by his pseudonym Harry Orchard, pleaded guilty in District Court in Caldwell to the assassination of former Idaho governor Frank Steunenberg
. Judge Fremont Wood sentenced Orchard to hang, but his sentence was commuted, and he lived out the rest of his life in an Idaho prison. This result flowed from Orchard's having turned state's evidence and having become the prosecution's star witness against Big Bill Haywood and two other leaders of the Western Federation of Miners
whom the prosecution alleged had masterminded Steunenberg's assassination. Haywood and his colleagues, however, represented by Clarence Darrow
, were acquitted.
Downtown Caldwell has suffered in recent years from the Great Recession of 2008 with numerous businesses unable to weather the economic downturn. The general feeling is Caldwell is well positioned to bounce back as the economy recovers.
Caldwell has excellent public schools as well as several Charter schools in the area. Of particular note is the quality of the city water system. Caldwell water remained untreated and met all federal guidelines but had to start cholorination when mandated by the federal government in the 1990s
Caldwell has a major hospital in the center of town, West Valley Medical Center,easy access to Interstate 84, Rail service, and a large number of public parks and a world class skate park in the city limits.
BSk) with short, cold winters and hot, dry summers.
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
of Canyon County
Canyon County, Idaho
Canyon County is a county located in the U.S. state of Idaho. As of the 2010 Census the county had a population of 188,923. The county seat is Caldwell, and its largest city is Nampa.. Canyon County is part of the Boise City–Nampa, Idaho Metropolitan Statistical Area.- History :The county was...
, Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The U.S. Census Bureau estimated the population to be 43,281, as of July 2009.
Caldwell is the home of the College of Idaho. It is considered part of the Boise metropolitan area
Boise metropolitan area
The Boise City-Nampa, Idaho Metropolitan Statistical Area , as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of five counties in southwestern Idaho, anchored by the cities of Boise and Nampa...
.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 25,967 people, 8,963 households, and 6,354 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 2,289.3/sq mi. There were 9,603 housing units at an average density of 846.6 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was
75.07% White
28.14% Hispanic or Latino
0.47% African American
0.94% Native American
0.83% Asian
0.10% Pacific Islander
2.91% two or more races
There were 8,963 households, out of which 39.5% had children under the age of 18, 51.7% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
, 13.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.1% were non-families. In addition, 23.3% of all households were made up of a single individual and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.79, and the average family size was 3.30.
In the city the population was spread out with 30.9% under the age of 18, 13.1% from 18 to 24, 27.3% from 25 to 44, 17.6% from 45 to 64, and 11% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females there were 95.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.6 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $30,848, and the median income for a family was $35,158. Males had a median income of $27,017 versus $21,096 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $13,657. About 12.6% of families and 16.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.8% of those under age 18 and 15.5% of those age 65 or over.
History
In the 1870s and 1880s, Caldwell was home to hundreds of ChineseHan Chinese
Han Chinese are an ethnic group native to China and are the largest single ethnic group in the world.Han Chinese constitute about 92% of the population of the People's Republic of China , 98% of the population of the Republic of China , 78% of the population of Singapore, and about 20% of the...
immigrants, but the town was central in Idaho's aggressive anti-Chinese backlash that culminated in an 1886 convention of the Anti-Chinese League in Boise. By 1890, however, every last immigrant had been driven from town by social pressures and outright violence. http://www.powells.com/biblio?show=TRADE%20PAPER:USED:0684846179:10.95&page=excerpt
In March 1908, at the end of a series of trials relating to a Coeur d'Alene miners' uprising
Coeur d'Alene, Idaho labor confrontation of 1899
There were two related incidents between miners and mine owners in Coeur d'Alene: the Coeur d'Alene, Idaho labor strike of 1892, and the Coeur d'Alene, Idaho labor confrontation of 1899....
and the Colorado Labor Wars
Colorado Labor Wars
Colorado's most significant battles between labor and capital occurred primarily between miners and mine operators. In these battles the state government, with one clear exception, always took the side of the mine operators....
, Albert Horsley
Albert Horsley
Albert Edward Horsley , best known by the pseudonym Harry Orchard, was a miner convicted of the 1905 political assassination of former Idaho Governor Frank Steunenberg...
, better known by his pseudonym Harry Orchard, pleaded guilty in District Court in Caldwell to the assassination of former Idaho governor Frank Steunenberg
Frank Steunenberg
Frank Steunenberg was the fourth Governor of the State of Idaho, serving from 1897 until 1901. He is perhaps best known for his 1905 assassination by one-time union member Harry Orchard, who was also a paid informant for the Cripple Creek Mine Owners' Association...
. Judge Fremont Wood sentenced Orchard to hang, but his sentence was commuted, and he lived out the rest of his life in an Idaho prison. This result flowed from Orchard's having turned state's evidence and having become the prosecution's star witness against Big Bill Haywood and two other leaders of the Western Federation of Miners
Western Federation of Miners
The Western Federation of Miners was a radical labor union that gained a reputation for militancy in the mines of the western United States and British Columbia. Its efforts to organize both hard rock miners and smelter workers brought it into sharp conflicts – and often pitched battles...
whom the prosecution alleged had masterminded Steunenberg's assassination. Haywood and his colleagues, however, represented by Clarence Darrow
Clarence Darrow
Clarence Seward Darrow was an American lawyer and leading member of the American Civil Liberties Union, best known for defending teenage thrill killers Leopold and Loeb in their trial for murdering 14-year-old Robert "Bobby" Franks and defending John T...
, were acquitted.
Revitalization
Some 50 years ago, the City of Caldwell Idaho had a waterway, Indian Creek initially used for sewage from local industries. After consistent complaints, the tax payers covered up Indian Creek which once ran gently through Caldwell. Currently, the City of Caldwell has developed a plan to restore Indian Creek and help bring life to its struggling downtown scene. Since the enactment of the Clean Water Act, many cities as well as Caldwell's water quality has been improved making it possible to resurrect this once regarded 'eyesore.' This was completed in 2009. Other attractions include suspended bridges above Indian Creek, which is now available for fishing. Caldwell currently holds an annual Indian Creek Festival that was first held on September 25, 2003.Downtown Caldwell has suffered in recent years from the Great Recession of 2008 with numerous businesses unable to weather the economic downturn. The general feeling is Caldwell is well positioned to bounce back as the economy recovers.
Caldwell has excellent public schools as well as several Charter schools in the area. Of particular note is the quality of the city water system. Caldwell water remained untreated and met all federal guidelines but had to start cholorination when mandated by the federal government in the 1990s
Caldwell has a major hospital in the center of town, West Valley Medical Center,easy access to Interstate 84, Rail service, and a large number of public parks and a world class skate park in the city limits.
Climate
Caldwell experiences a semi-arid climate (KöppenKöppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by Crimea German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen himself, notably in 1918 and 1936...
BSk) with short, cold winters and hot, dry summers.
Notable natives and residents
- Troy BeyerTroy BeyerTroy Yvette Beyer is an American film director, screenwriter and actress.-Life and career:Born in New York City to an African American mother and a Jewish father, Beyer began her acting career with a role on the children’s program Sesame Street when she was just four years old...
- actress, attended high school in Caldwell - Ronee BlakleyRonee BlakleyRonee Blakley is an American entertainer. Though an accomplished singer, songwriter, composer, producer and director, she is perhaps best known as an actress...
- Actress and singer - Dame DarcyDame DarcyDame Darcy is an alternative cartoonist. Her comic book, Meatcake, has been published by Fantagraphics since 1993. Darcy has also released several graphic novels, Frightful Fairytales, Dame Darcy's Meatcake Compilation, The Illustrated Jane Eyre, Dollerium , Comic Book Tattoo, and Gasoline .-...
- cartoonist and performer - Shirley EnglehornShirley EnglehornShirley Englehorn is an American professional golfer. She won 11 tournaments during her LPGA Tour career, including one major, the 1970 LPGA Championship. That proved to be her last win as shortly afterwards she had to have an operation on her ankle...
- LPGA Golfer - A. J. Feeley - NFL quarterback
- Ron HadleyRon HadleyRonald Arthur "Ron" Hadley is a former professional football player, a linebacker with the NFL's San Francisco 49ers in 1987 and 1988, when the 49ers won Super Bowl XXIII....
- NFL linebacker - Larry LujackLarry LujackLarry Lujack , a Top 40 Music radio disc jockey, was known for his world-weary sarcastic style, "Klunk Letter of the Day" and darkly humorous "Animal Stories" along with "sidekick Little Tommy", and "Cheap Trashy Show Biz Report." He was also referred to as Superjock, Lawrence of Chicago, Uncle...
- disc jockey - C. L. OtterC. L. OtterClement Leroy "Butch" Otter is the 32nd and current Governor of Idaho since January 2007 and is a member of the Republican Party. Otter previously represented the state's First Congressional District....
- current Governor of Idaho - Cody PickettCody PickettCody J. Pickett is a former professional football player, a quarterback in the National Football League and Canadian Football League for the Calgary Stampeders. He was originally drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the seventh round of the 2004 NFL Draft...
- NFL quarterback - Frank SteunenbergFrank SteunenbergFrank Steunenberg was the fourth Governor of the State of Idaho, serving from 1897 until 1901. He is perhaps best known for his 1905 assassination by one-time union member Harry Orchard, who was also a paid informant for the Cripple Creek Mine Owners' Association...
- assassinated Governor of Idaho - Gary Stevens - jockey
- Renee TenisonRenee TenisonReneé Tenison is an American model and actress.Reneé has three older brothers and an identical twin sister, Rosie, who also works as a model...
- PlayboyPlayboyPlayboy is an American men's magazine that features photographs of nude women as well as journalism and fiction. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. The magazine has grown into Playboy Enterprises, Inc., with...
Playmate of the Year - 1990
External links
- City of Caldwell
- Idaho Press-Tribune — Western Treasure Valley's (Caldwell and Nampa) newspaper