Kennebec County

Kennebec County, Maine
Kennebec County Courthouse
Seal
Location in the U.S. state of Maine
Maine's location in the U.S.
Founded	1799
Named for	Kennebec River
Seat	Augusta
Largest city	Augusta
Area
• Total	951 sq mi (2,463 km2)
• Land	868 sq mi (2,248 km2)
• Water	84 sq mi (218 km2), 8.8%
Population (est.)
• (2016)	120,569
• Density	141/sq mi (54/km²)
Congressional districts	1st, 2nd
Time zone	Eastern: UTC-5/-4
Website	www.kennebeccounty.org

Kennebec County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maine, in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 122,151. Its county seat is Augusta, the state capital. The county was established on 20 February 1799 from portions of Cumberland and Lincoln Counties. The name Kennebec comes from the Eastern Abenaki /kínipekʷ/, meaning "large body of still water, large bay."

Kennebec County comprises the Augusta–Waterville, ME Micropolitan Statistical Area.

In 2010, the center of population of Maine was located in Kennebec County, in the city of Augusta.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 951 square miles (2,460 km²), of which 868 square miles (2,250 km²) is land and 84 square miles (220 km²) (8.8%) is water.

As of the census of 2000, there were 117,114 people, 47,683 households, and 31,327 families residing in the county. The population density was 135 people per square mile (52/km²). There were 56,364 housing units at an average density of 65 per square mile (25/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.45% White, 0.34% Black or African American, 0.40% Native American, 0.59% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.18% from other races, and 1.02% from two or more races. 0.73% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 20.6% were of English, 17.4% French, 13.4% French Canadian, 10.9% United States or American and 9.9% Irish ancestry. 92.5% spoke only English at home, while 5.48% spoke French.