Ottawa County

HOUSEHOLD AND FAMILY STRUCTURE

A household is defined as one or more people living in a residence. A family is more than one person living together, either married or of the same bloodline. The head of a household is one of the people who owns or rents the residence and was indicated first on the Census questionnaire.

The tendency for people to marry at an older age and the number of married people getting divorced may have contributed to the overall drop in married couples. Also, it may more culturally acceptable for people to not get married at all or to have non-traditional relationships.

Household Types, 1990-2000
1990 2000
Number Percent Number Percent
Total Households 12,124 100.00% 12,984 100.00%
Married Couple 7,090 58.48% 7,220 55.61%
With Children* 2,875 23.71% 2,901 22.34%
Without Children* 4,215 34.77% 4,319 33.26%
Female Householder, no spouse 1,173 9.68% 1,391 10.71%
With Children* 724 5.97% 812 6.25%
Without Children* 449 3.70% 579 4.46%
Male Householder, no spouse 283 2.33% 510 3.93%
With Children* 148 1.22% 304 2.34%
Without Children* 135 1.11% 206 1.59%
Non-Family Households 3,578 29.51% 3,863 29.75%
Living Alone 3,315 27.34% 3,455 26.61%
Two or More Persons 263 2.17% 408 3.14%

*In this table, children are people under age 18.

Source: Census 2000 analyzed by the Social Science Data Analysis Network (SSDAN).

Home | About | Help | Contact | Use Policy