According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 923 square miles (2,390 km2), of which 923 square miles (2,390 km2) are land and 0.2 square miles (0.52 km2) (0.02%) is covered by water.[4]
Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.
As of the census[9] of 2000, 3,186 people, 1,124 households, and 865 families resided in the county. The population density was 4 people per square mile (1.5 people/km2). The 1,275 housing units averaged 1 units per square mile (0.39 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 82.49% White, 0.53% African American, 0.66% Native American, 0.03% Asian, 14.63% from other races, and 1.66% from two or more races. About 27.43% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race. In terms of ancestry, 20.3% were German, 7.3% were English, 7.1% were of American, 5.5% were of Irish, 2.6% were of Scottish, and 1.9% were of Dutch.
Of the 1,124 households, 40.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.00% were married couples living together, 6.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.00% were not families. About 21.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.76 and the average family size was 3.24.
In the county, the population was distributed as 31.40% under the age of 18, 7.00% from 18 to 24, 26.50% from 25 to 44, 21.50% from 45 to 64, and 13.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 102.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.70 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $33,179, and for a family was $38,821. Males had a median income of $27,481 versus $21,036 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,210. About 11.90% of families and 16.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.90% of those under age 18 and 12.00% of those age 65 or over.