Idaho Facts -- National Geographic

Fast Facts

Population:: 1,366,332
Capital:: Boise; 189,847
Area:: 83,570 square miles (216,446 square kilometers)
Per Capita Income:: U.S. $25,042
Date Statehood Achieved:: July 3, 1890

Mountains dominate Idaho, whose irrigated valleys yield more than one-third of the nation's potatoes. The Snake River alone waters a million hectares of farmland. Cascading through Hells Canyon, at 2,408 meters (7,900 feet) the deepest river gorge in the lower 48, the Snake also powers hydroelectric turbines. Second in silver mining, Idaho taps more antimony than any other state. Visitors pour into Sun Valley resort and to Craters of the Moon National Monument, a scene of cindery desolation.

ECONOMY

Industry: Electronics and computer equipment, tourism, food processing, forest products, mining, chemicals
Agriculture: Potatoes, dairy products, cattle, wheat, alfalfa hay, sugar beets, barley, trout

—Text From National Geographic Atlas of the World, Eighth Edition

Related Features

Hike the Triple Crown

Get inspired with our Ultimate Adventure Bucket List, a collection of 40 trips that range from totally extreme to actually doable.
Sawtooths Road Trip

Climb more than 5,000 feet into the terrain of the Sawtooths where elk, bighorn sheep, and mountain goats await.
Family Trip: Priest Lake, Idaho

Splash down in the Selkirks at Priest Lake, Idaho.