The numbers

Incorporated: 1903
(first settled by non-Native Americans in the 1860s)

Square miles: 2.4

Population: 3,160
(City of Stanwood)

Median family income: $25,670

Median house value: $162,500
(Northwest Multiple Listing Service)

Median apartment rent: $299

Housing units: 1,214
(state Office of Financial Management, 1997)

Median age: 38.2

Enrolled in public school (K-12): 5,025
(total enrollment for Stanwood school district, whose boundaries extend beyond town limits)

Completed four-year college or higher: 13.2 percent

Below poverty level: 17.5 percent

Home ownership: 50.5 percent

Renters: 49.5 percent