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Dearborn is a city of nearly 98,000 people located in the Metro Detroit metropolitan area and Wayne County, Michigan. The city is the hometown of Henry Ford and the world headquarters of the Ford Motor Company, and the site of a University of Michigan campus as well as Henry Ford Community College.
Dearborn is home to over 29,000 Arab-Americans, the second largest concentration within the U.S (New York, New York has nearly 70,000). Arabs first settled here to work in the automotive industry. In January of 2005 a new Arab American National Museum will open.
Dearborn is home to the Ford Rouge Plant, built by Henry Ford to make Ford Model T components, and later the birthplace (and former production line) of the Ford Mustang. It currently produces Ford F150 trucks. At one time the plant employed 100,000 people and produced finished vehicles from iron ore and sand.
History
The Dearborn area was first settled by Europeans in 1786. The village of Dearborn was established in 1836, named after Henry Dearborn, Secretary of War under President Thomas Jefferson. Its origins as a city trace back to a January 1929 consolidation vote which established its present-day borders by merging Dearborn and neighboring Springwells which feared being absorbed into Detroit. The area between the two towns was, and still remains in part undeveloped. This open land came under the control of Henry Ford who built his estate and world headquarters on it. Later developments in this corridor were the Ford airport, (later converted to the Ford test track), other Ford administrative and development facilities, The Henry Ford village and museum, the Henry Ford Centennial Library and the Dearborn Civic Center. Some of the land remains open as of 2004 and is planted, often in Henry Ford's favorite soybeans, presumably for property tax reduction purposes. The crops are never harvested.
Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 63.3 km² (24.5 mi²). 63.1 km² (24.4 mi²) of it is land and 0.2 km² (0.1 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 0.37% water. River Rouge runs through the city with a artificial waterfall/low head dam on the Henry Ford estate to power his powerhouse. The Upper, Middle and Lower Branches of the river come together in Dearborn. The river is widened and channeled near the Rouge Plant to allow freighter access.
Demographics As of the census2 of 2000, there are 97,775 people, 36,770 households, and 23,863 families residing in the city. The population density is 1,549.7/km² (4,013.2/mi²). There are 38,981 housing units at an average density of 617.8/km² (1,600.0/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 86.86% White, 1.28% African American, 0.26% Native American, 1.47% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.73% from other races, and 9.38% from two or more races. 3.00% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race. Dearborn is also home to the largest Arabic community outside of the Middle East. Due to the way the census works, adding Arabs in with the White population numbers, the 86.86% number is misleading. The upcoming census should correct this and give a more accurate counting of both demographics.
There are 36,770 households out of which 31.3% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.0% are married couples living together, 9.4% have a female householder with no husband present, and 35.1% are non-families. 30.9% of all households are made up of individuals and 14.7% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.65 and the average family size is 3.42.
In the city the population is spread out with 27.8% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 29.2% from 25 to 44, 19.1% from 45 to 64, and 15.6% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 34 years. For every 100 females there are 99.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 96.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $44,560, and the median income for a family is $53,060. Males have a median income of $45,114 versus $33,872 for females. The per capita income for the city is $21,488. 16.1% of the population and 12.2% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 24.4% of those under the age of 18 and 7.6% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.
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