La Conner, Washington
Location of La Conner, Washington
Coordinates: 48°23′26″N 122°29′44″W / 48.39056, -122.49556
Country	United States
State	Washington
County	Skagit
Area
- Total	0.5 sq mi (1.3 km²)
- Land	0.4 sq mi (1.1 km²)
- Water	0.1 sq mi (0.2 km²)
Elevation	56 ft (17 m)
Population (2000)
- Total	761
- Density	1,746.7/sq mi (674.4/km²)
Time zone	Pacific (PST) (UTC-8)
- Summer (DST)	PDT (UTC-7)
ZIP code	98257
Area code(s)	360
FIPS code	53-36780[1]
GNIS feature ID	1534592[2]

La Conner is a town in Skagit County, Washington, USA. The population was 761 at the 2000 census. It is included in the Mount Vernon-Anacortes, Washington Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

La Conner was named for the wife of an early settler, Louisa Ann Conner.

Geography

La Conner is located at 48°23′26″N, 122°29′44″W (48.390495, -122.495646)^[3].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 0.5 square miles (1.3 km²), of which, 0.4 square miles (1.1 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) of it (15.69%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census^[1] of 2006, there were 839 people, 372 households, and 196 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,746.7 people per square mile (667.8/km²). There were 434 housing units at an average density of 996.1/sq mi (380.8/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 90.80% White, 0.79% African American, 1.71% Native American, 0.26% Asian, 3.81% from other races, and 2.63% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.18% of the population.

There were 372 households out of which 21.8% had children under the age of 12 living with them, 43.8% were married couples living together, 6.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 41.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 22.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.05 and the average family size was 2.79.

In the town the population was spread out with 20.1% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 22.9% from 25 to 44, 29.4% from 45 to 64, and 21.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46 years. For every 100 females there were 82.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.0 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $42,344, and the median income for a family was $52,083. Males had a median income of $40,074 versus $26,875 for females. The per capita income for the town was $24,308. About 8.8% of families and 11.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.3% of those under age 18 and 8.1% of those age 65 or over.

Landmarks

La Conner's Rainbow Bridge crossing the Swinomish Channel

La Conner's Rainbow bridge connects La Connner to Fidalgo Island which includes, the gated Shelter Bay Community, the Swinomish reservation, and the city of Anacortes. Cecily Hann, a resident of La Conner, currently resides as the bridges' Troll and collects a toll for every 3rd red minivan that drives by

Notable natives

Author Tom Robbins is a long-time resident of LaConner. Many of his books, most notably Another Roadside Attraction, have chapters set in the vicinity.

Pacific Northwest photographer Art Hupy (1924-2003) settled in La Conner in 1977 and founded the Museum of Northwest Art in 1981. Many influential Northwest artists including Guy Anderson, Clayton James, and Barbara Straker James have close ties to La Conner.

Joe Shell (born in La Conner in 1918) is a former member and floor leader of the California State Assembly and was the intraparty opponent of Richard M. Nixon for the California Republican gubernatorial nomination in 1962. His father was an Indian agent at the time on the Swinomish reservation.

Each spring, La Conner attracts tens of thousands of visitors to view a wide array of tulips. Also, it hosts the Arts Alive! show during the first weekend of November, where notable artists such as Kevin Paul can display and sell their artwork.

The town is also famous for its many wild turkeys. In 2005, the town named the wild turkey as their "Official Town Bird."^[4] On August 8, 2006, however, a debate was heard in town council about whether the birds should be removed because of nuisance complaints about noise, fecal matter, and ingestion of garden materials.^[5]

Sister cities

La Conner has the following sister cities.^[6]

• Olga, Russia
• San Rafael del Sur, Nicaragua
• Kenmare, Ireland^[7]

References

1. ^ ^{a b} American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
2. ^ US Board on Geographic Names. United States Geological Survey (2007-10-25). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
3. ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
4. ^ YouTube - La Conner Town Turkeys
5. ^ http://www.laconner.net/uploads/TC_Minutes_06-0808.pdf
6. ^ Sister Cities, States, Counties & Ports
7. ^ http://www.laconner.net/uploads/TC_Minutes_04-0511.pdf

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

La Conner, Washington

External links

• La Conner website

• La Conner, Washington is at coordinates 48°23′26″N 122°29′44″W / 48.390495, -122.495646 (La Conner, Washington)Coordinates: 48°23′26″N 122°29′44″W / 48.390495, -122.495646 (La Conner, Washington)

• Arts Alive!

v • d • e Municipalities and communities of Skagit County, Washington County seat: Mount Vernon Cities Anacortes | Burlington | Mount Vernon | Sedro-Woolley Towns Concrete | Hamilton | La Conner | Lyman CDPs Alger | Bay View | Big Lake | Clear Lake | Conway | Edison | Lake Cavanaugh | Lake McMurray | Marblemount | Rockport Unincorporated communities Bow | Samish Island

v • d • e The Mosquito Fleet of Puget Sound Sidewheelers Alaskan  • Beaver  • Eliza Anderson  • George E. Starr  • Idaho  • Olympian  • T.J. Potter  • Wilson G. Hunt  • Yosemite ”They managed to keep their particular sort of jaunty, wind-swept beauty until the end.” – Newell, Gordon R., Ships of the Inland Sea Sternwheelers Bailey Gatzert  • City of Shelton  • Greyhound  • Hassalo (1880)  • Multnomah  • S.G. Simpson  • WT Preston Propellers Athlon  • Clallam  • M/V Coho  • Crystal  • Cy Peck  • Daily  • Daring  • Dart  • Dauntless  • Defiance  • Dix  • Dove  • Fleetwood  • Kingston  • Flyer (1891) • Hattie Hansen  • Island Princess  • Islander (1) • Mary D. Hume  • Mizpah  • Monticello (2) • Rosalie  • Virginia V Steamboat Lines Black Ball Line • Oregon Railway and Navigation Co. • Oregon Steam Navigation Co. • Puget Sound Navigation Co. • Hunt Bros. • McDowell Transportation Co. Steamboat captains William Ballard • Matthew McDowell Builders and shipyards John J. Holland • Robert Moran • King & Winge Steamboats in other areas of the Pacific Northwest Lake Washington • Columbia River • Oregon Coast • Willamette River • Yaquina Bay and river • Coquille River • Cowlitz River • Grays Harbor • Chehalis River • Hoquiam River • Willapa Bay • Columbia River (Wenatchee Reach) • Lake Crescent • Arrow Lakes • Upper Fraser River • Skeena River • Lake Okanagan • Thompson=Shuswap • Slocan Lake • Kootenay Lake and the lower Kootenai River • Columbia Lake and upper Kootenai River • Peace & Finaly Rivers • Stikine River