This Map Shows America’s Most Armed Counties. #1 Might Surprise You.

WideOpenSpaces ^ | September 10, 2014 | Matt Alpert

[Straight Vermonter]

The most heavily armed county in the US is (drum roll, please) – Faribanks North Star Borough, Alaska. Second place goes to Tooele County, Utah and third is Nez Perce County, Arizona. City-Data.com compiled the list (We should note there’s no source posted for the city-data list) and Reddit user Ramsesses_Deux created the map.

Texas, one of the most gun friendly states in America, is surprisingly not one of the top 10 most armed counties. The Lone Star State’s first entry is Harris County at no. 73.

1. Fairbanks North Star Borough, AK, pop. 82,840: 59.1%
2. Tooele County, UT (Tooele, Grantsville, Erda), pop. 40,735: 59.1%
3. Nez Perce County, ID (Lewiston, Lapwai, Culdesac), pop. 37,410: 59.0%
4. Armstrong County, PA (Kittanning, Ford City, Leechburg), pop. 72,392: 57.6%
5. Rapides Parish, LA (Alexandria, Pineville, Ball), pop. 126,337: 52.8%
6. Teller County, CO (Woodland Park, Cripple Creek, Green Mountain Falls), pop. 20,555: 52.3%
7. Darlington County, SC (Hartsville, Darlington, North Hartsville), pop. 67,394: 52.1%
8. Franklin County, VT (St. Albans, Swanton, Fairfax), pop. 45,417: 51.7%
9. Randolph County, NC (Asheboro, Archdale, Trinity), pop. 130,454: 51.1%
10. Canyon County, ID (Nampa, Caldwell, Middleton), pop. 131,441: 50.9%
11. Anchorage Municipality, AK, pop. 260,283: 50.0%
12. Laramie County, WY (Cheyenne, Ranchettes, South Greeley), pop. 81,607: 49.6%
13. Davis County, UT (Layton, Bountiful, Clearfield), pop. 238,994: 48.8%
14. Yellowstone County, MT (Billings, Laurel, Lockwood), pop. 129,352: 48.7%
15. Franklin County, PA (Chambersburg, Waynesboro, Greencastle), pop. 129,313: 48.5%
16. Pennington County, SD (Rapid City, Rapid Valley, Box Elder), pop. 88,565: 48.5%
17. Terrebonne Parish, LA (Houma, Bayou Cane, Schriever), pop. 104,503: 47.9%
18. Ouachita Parish, LA (Monroe, West Monroe, Claiborne), pop. 147,250: 47.6%
19. Florence County, SC (Florence, Lake City, Timmonsville), pop. 125,761: 47.6%
20. Orange County, VT (Randolph, Williamstown, Bradford), pop. 28,226: 47.0%
21. Calcasieu Parish, LA (Lake Charles, Sulphur, Moss Bluff), pop. 183,577: 46.4%
22. Weber County, UT (Ogden, Roy, North Ogden), pop. 196,533: 46.3%
23. Kanawha County, WV (Charleston, South Charleston, St. Albans), pop. 200,073: 45.2%
24. Ada County, ID (Boise, Meridian, Eagle), pop. 300,904: 45.0%
25. Pulaski County, AR (Little Rock, North Little Rock, Jacksonville), pop. 361,474: 44.7%
26. Minnehaha County, SD (Sioux Falls, Brandon, Dell Rapids), pop. 148,281: 44.7%
27. Westmoreland County, PA (Greensburg, New Kensington, Lower Burrell), pop. 369,993: 44.0%
28. Pinal County, AZ (Apache Junction, Casa Grande, Florence), pop. 179,727: 43.6%
29. St. Tammany Parish, LA (Slidell, Mandeville, Covington), pop. 191,268: 42.5%
30. Caddo Parish, LA (Shreveport, Vivian, Greenwood), pop. 252,161: 42.2%
31. Sandoval County, NM (Rio Rancho, Corrales, Bernalillo), pop. 89,908: 42.1%
32. Hinds County, MS (Jackson, Clinton, Byram), pop. 250,800: 41.9%
33. Jefferson County, AL (Birmingham, Hoover, Bessemer), pop. 662,047: 41.0%
34. Anoka County, MN (Coon Rapids, Blaine, Fridley), pop. 298,084: 40.6%
35. East Baton Rouge Parish, LA (Baton Rouge, Shenandoah, Baker), pop. 412,852: 40.0%
36. Windsor County, VT (Hartford, Springfield, Windsor), pop. 57,418: 40.0%
37. Henderson County, NC (Hendersonville, Fletcher, East Flat Rock), pop. 89,173: 39.8%
38. Clark County, WA (Vancouver, Orchards, Salmon Creek), pop. 345,238: 39.5%
39. Cass County, ND (Fargo, West Fargo, Casselton), pop. 123,138: 39.2%
40. Buncombe County, NC (Asheville, Black Mountain, Royal Pines), pop. 206,330: 39.1%
41. Washoe County, NV (Reno, Sparks, Sun Valley), pop. 339,486: 38.7%
42. Salt Lake County, UT (Salt Lake City, West Valley City, Sandy), pop. 898,387: 38.3%
43. Forsyth County, NC (Winston-Salem, Kernersville, Clemmons), pop. 306,067: 38.1%
44. Grafton County, NH (Lebanon, Hanover, Plymouth), pop. 81,743: 36.9%
45. Lancaster County, PA (Lancaster, Ephrata, Elizabethtown), pop. 470,658: 36.8%
46. Sedgwick County, KS (Wichita, Derby, Haysville), pop. 452,869: 36.7%
47. Clackamas County, OR (Lake Oswego, Oregon City, West Linn), pop. 338,391: 35.9%
48. Shelby County, TN (Memphis, Bartlett, Germantown), pop. 897,472: 35.7%
49. Sarpy County, NE (Bellevue, Papillion, La Vista), pop. 122,595: 35.6%
50. Cleveland County, OK (Norman, Moore, Noble), pop. 208,016: 35.3%
51. Richland County, SC (Columbia, St. Andrews, Dentsville), pop. 320,677: 34.9%
52. Tulsa County, OK (Tulsa, Broken Arrow, Owasso), pop. 563,299: 34.3%
53. York County, ME (Biddeford, Sanford, Saco), pop. 186,742: 33.7%
54. Sussex County, DE (Milford, Seaford, Georgetown), pop. 156,638: 33.7%
55. Kent County, DE (Dover, Smyrna, Highland Acres), pop. 126,697: 33.7%
56. El Paso County, CO (Colorado Springs, Fountain, Cimarron Hills), pop. 516,929: 33.5%
57. Snohomish County, WA (Everett, Edmonds, Lynnwood), pop. 606,024: 33.4%
58. Frederick County, MD (Frederick, Ballenger Creek, Green Valley), pop. 195,277: 33.3%
59. Dakota County, MN (Eagan, Burnsville, Apple Valley), pop. 355,904: 33.2%
60. Duval County, FL (Jacksonville, Jacksonville Beach, Atlantic Beach), pop. 778,879: 32.8%
61. Merrimack County, NH (Concord, Hooksett, Franklin), pop. 136,225: 32.7%
62. Jefferson Parish, LA (Metairie, Kenner, Marrero), pop. 455,466: 32.3%
63. Jackson County, MO (Kansas City, Independence, Blue Springs), pop. 654,880: 32.2%
64. Guilford County, NC (Greensboro, High Point, Summerfield), pop. 421,048: 32.1%
65. Shawnee County, KS (Topeka, Silver Lake, Auburn), pop. 169,871: 32.0%
66. Yuma County, AZ (Yuma, Fortuna Foothills, San Luis), pop. 160,026: 31.8%
67. Lancaster County, NE (Lincoln, Waverly, Hickman), pop. 250,291: 31.8%
68. Washington County, OR (Beaverton, Hillsboro, Aloha), pop. 445,342: 31.6%
69. Jefferson County, CO (Lakewood, Arvada, Wheat Ridge), pop. 527,056: 31.5%
70. Polk County, IA (Des Moines, West Des Moines, Urbandale), pop. 374,601: 31.0%
71. Macomb County, MI (Warren, Sterling Heights, Clinton), pop. 788,149: 30.9%
72. Oklahoma County, OK (Oklahoma City, Edmond, Midwest City), pop. 660,448: 30.8%
73. Harris County, TX (Houston, Pasadena, Baytown), pop. 3,400,578: 30.4%
74. Bernalillo County, NM (Albuquerque, South Valley, North Valley), pop. 556,678: 30.2%
75. Johnson County, KS (Overland Park, Olathe, Shawnee), pop. 451,086: 30.0%
76. Pierce County, WA (Tacoma, Lakewood, Puyallup), pop. 700,820: 29.9%
77. Maricopa County, AZ (Phoenix, Mesa, Glendale), pop. 3,072,149: 29.7%
78. Adams County, CO (Aurora, Westminster, Thornton), pop. 363,857: 29.3%
79. Clark County, NV (Las Vegas, Paradise, Henderson), pop. 1,375,765: 29.2%
80. Douglas County, NE (Omaha, Ralston, Elkhorn), pop. 463,585: 28.1%
81. Oakland County, MI (Farmington Hills, Troy, Southfield), pop. 1,194,156: 27.9%
82. Dallas County, TX (Dallas, Garland, Irving), pop. 2,218,899: 27.7%
83. Chittenden County, VT (Burlington, Colchester, South Burlington), pop. 146,571: 27.7%
84. Windham County, CT (Windham, Willimantic, Plainfield), pop. 109,091: 27.6%
85. Lake County, IN (Gary, Hammond, East Chicago), pop. 484,564: 27.5%
86. Pima County, AZ (Tucson, Casas Adobes, Catalina Foothills), pop. 843,746: 27.2%
87. Davidson County, TN (Goodlettsville, Forest Hills, Oak Hill), pop. 569,891: 27.0%
88. Jefferson County, KY (Louisville, Jeffersontown, Valley Station), pop. 693,604: 26.5%
89. Cobb County, GA (Marietta, Smyrna, Mableton), pop. 607,751: 26.4%
90. Mahoning County, OH (Youngstown, Boardman, Austintown), pop. 257,555: 26.3%
91. Cumberland County, ME (Portland, South Portland, Brunswick), pop. 265,612: 26.0%
92. Chester County, PA (West Chester, Phoenixville, Coatesville), pop. 433,501: 25.1%
93. Anne Arundel County, MD (Glen Burnie, Annapolis, Severn), pop. 489,656: 25.1%
94. Arapahoe County, CO (Southglenn, Littleton, Englewood), pop. 487,967: 24.8%
95. Montgomery County, OH (Dayton, Kettering, Huber Heights), pop. 559,062: 24.7%
96. St. Louis County, MO (Florissant, Chesterfield, University City), pop. 1,016,315: 24.7%
97. Marion County, IN (Indianapolis, Lawrence, Beech Grove), pop. 860,454: 24.7%
98. Bucks County, PA (Levittown, Morrisville, Croydon), pop. 597,635: 24.6%
99. Hennepin County, MN (Minneapolis, Bloomington, Brooklyn Park), pop. 1,116,200: 24.5%
100. Rockingham County, NH (Derry, Salem, Londonderry), pop. 277,359: 24.4%
101. Ramsey County, MN (St. Paul, Maplewood, Roseville), pop. 511,035: 24.4%

[Gumdrop]

Biggest surprise - Hennepin County and Ramsey County in MN. That’s the Twin Cities.

Proving that there are conservatives in MN even in the TC’s.

[make no mistake]

Did Romney have something to do with that?

[Graybeard58]

I think it is much worse than that but this is a good lesson in how to create a lie and then push it as fact. If you missed that let me clarify it.

You doubt the veracity of someone posting on facebook? It's on the internet, it's gotta be true!

[ClearCase_guy]

I believe that law goes back all the way to the 70s, so I can’t blame Romney for that.

[Does so]

The county of Miami-Dade isn’t listed: they don’t use firecrackers to celebrate New Year’s Eve.

[oldenuff2no]

I grew up in Staunton, VA and VA is not listed in the top 100.

The morons who put this trash together are clueless. Even in far north eastern cali almost every house has guns, many of them. I'm talking about Modoc county and I know this because I've spent a lot of time there and hunted and shot with many of the people there. This report is a crock. I bet there are many counties around our country like Modoc county. The people there may have a lot to say to someone asking about their guns but it would not be truthful answers to their questions. Their answers would be very hostile and deservedly so. The guns we have in our homes are none of anyone else's business. Sometimes freedoms and rights must be explained to the intentionally ignorant liberals in clear short words that they can understand.

[TexasGator]

“This just counts legal gun owners”

Since there is no source for the data we have no idea.

[Lorianne]

That’s true, but it surely does not count the criminal’s guns.

[IYAS9YAS]

Woohoo! My hometown is #10!

[ozarkgirl]

I doubt those numbers. There are areas in MI that everyone has guns, it is rare for someone not to have any.

Me too. The only places in KS and MO that have this higher percentage are the big cities. If it's done by percentage, seems everywhere I've lived in KS and MO are smaller towns and every household has a gun. I wonder if they mean more protection type guns. Seemed every household in my small Missouri town had a shotgun and rifle, not so much handguns.

[ozarkgirl]

Oh I understand now, these are registered guns. The shotguns and rifles I grew up with weren’t registered (and I’m not THAT old), they were passed down or bought from other people or auctions or whatever. I suppose you get on the list when they run a background check?

[Impy]

Does not surprise me, actually, at all.

[redlegplanner]

howdy neighbor.

I had heard rumor of this ranking before. Believe Sheriff Ensminger once mentioned that this is a baaaad place to try to break and enter.

[MediaMole]

I call BS on this list. My state has no gun registration (i.e. no way to know the numbers) and I know we’re all armed to the teeth, yet some county with a little over 51% gun ownership is on top???

Yeah, right. Guess all my neighbors had boating accidents.

Just a little example of how gun friendly my county is — our public technical college opened a public gun range and offers CCW classes along with, “how to choose the best CCW weapon for you” classes where they let you shoot a variety of weapons.

[x1stcav]

I think this map, which actually came out last summer, is based on the number of concealed permits per capita.

Still, lots of people ‘packin’ here.

I’ll quote it yet again.

Robert Heinlein:

An armed society is a polite society.

[sheana]

Yeah my county is not on there. Guess they’re not counting all the illegal guns the illegal aliens own.

[central_va]

They don’t call ‘em shotgun shacks for nuthin’.

[Zionist Conspirator]

I thought Alaska wasn’t divided into counties?

[okie01]

I thought Alaska wasn’t divided into counties?

Alaska is divided into judicial districts.

[GreyHoundSailor]

If it was based on number of ‘concealed permits per capita’, every one of Vermont’s 14 counties would be at the top of the list. Everybody in the state with a driver’s license has, by definition, a concealed carry permit.