Demographics

As of the census of 2020, there were 36,207 people and 13,613 households residing in the county.  The population density was 42 people per mile squared. There were 16,239 housing units at an average density of 18.8 units per mile squared. The racial makeup of the county was 89% White, 1.7% Black or African American, 6% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, and 2.7% from two or more races. 1.8% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Families

There were 13,613 households out of which 30.89% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.31% were married couples living together, 21.45% had a female householder with no spouse/partner present, 18.04% had a male householder with no spouse/partner present. 25.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.19% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was three.

Age

In the county the population was spread out with 23% under the age of 18, 6.6% from 18 to 24, 24.1% from 25 to 44, 29.3% from 45 to 64, and 17% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 109.60 males. 

Income

The median income for a household in the county was $63,098. Males had a median income of $39,189 versus $25,343 for females. The per capita income for the county was $29,440. About 8.7% of the population were below the poverty line.

Geography

According to the U.S Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 875 square miles with roughly 860 square miles of land and 15 square miles of water.