Caswell County, North Carolina | |
|---|---|
 OldCaswell County Courthouse in Yanceyville | |
 Seal | |
| Motto: "Preserving the Past – Embracing the Future" | |
 Location within the U.S. state ofNorth Carolina | |
 Interactive map of Caswell County, North Carolina | |
| Coordinates:36°23′N79°20′W / 36.39°N 79.34°W /36.39; -79.34 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  North Carolina |
| Founded | June 1, 1777 |
| Named after | Richard Caswell |
| Seat | Yanceyville |
| Largest community | Yanceyville |
| Area | |
• Total | 428.71 sq mi (1,110.4 km2) |
| • Land | 425.37 sq mi (1,101.7 km2) |
| • Water | 3.34 sq mi (8.7 km2) 0.78% |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 22,736 |
• Estimate (2024) | 22,363 |
| • Density | 53.45/sq mi (20.64/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| Congressional district | 13th |
| Website | www |
Caswell County is acounty in theU.S. state ofNorth Carolina. It is located in thePiedmont Triad region, borderingVirginia. At the2020 census, the population was 22,736.[1] Itscounty seat isYanceyville.[2]
The towns of Yanceyville andMilton are the only twoincorporated communities in Caswell County.Unincorporated communities in the county includeBlanch,Casville,Cherry Grove,Leasburg,Pelham,Prospect Hill,Providence, andSemora.[3]
TheDan River andHyco Lake are notable geographic features, with Hyco Lake serving as a popular recreation area.[4]
The area that is now Caswell County has at least 12,000 years of human history, beginning with Indigenous habitation. Colonial-era settlement began in the mid-18th century, and the county became a hub forbright leaf tobacco farming in the 19th century, shaping the local economy, which relied heavily onenslaved labor before theCivil War.
The county was established in 1777 from the northern portion ofOrange County during theAmerican Revolutionary War and was named forRichard Caswell, the first governor of North Carolina.[5] Early settlers wereScotch-Irish, German,French Huguenot, and English migrants seeking fertile land.
Caswell County has played a role in significant national events, including the American Revolution,Reconstruction, and thecivil rights movement. Today, the county is known for its historic landmarks, cultural tourism, and a diversifying economy across multiple sectors.
The area that is now Caswell County has evidence of Native American presence dating back at least 12,000 years.[6] Indigenous peoples of the region includedSiouan-speaking groups such as theOccaneechi,Shakori, andEno.[4][7]
Abundant evidence of Indigenous activity, including pottery fragments, arrowheads, and stone tools, has been discovered across Caswell County, reflecting its long history of Native American habitation andsettlement.[8][7]
In 1663,Charles II of England granted the land ofCarolina (named for his father,Charles I) to eight noblemen, known as theLords Proprietors. A second charter in 1665 expanded the colony's boundaries and reaffirmed their proprietorship.[9] In 1744, land including present-day Caswell County became part of theGranville District, whenJohn Carteret, 2nd Earl Granville retained rights to the northern half of North Carolina.[10][11]
Formed in 1777, Caswell County had previously been part of the northern region ofOrange County, which was established in 1752.[12]Colonial records show that land grants in the area now comprising Caswell County were issued as early as 1748. There wereScotch-Irish,German, andEnglish settlements along theDan River and Hogans and Country Line creeks by 1751.[11]
The first recorded settlements occurred between 1750 and 1755, when eight to ten families migrated from within Orange County, as well as fromCulpeper andSpotsylvania counties inVirginia.[13][14] The primary reason for resettlement was economic. They were searching for fertile land, which the lowlands of the Dan River and several creeks provided.[11]
The area grew rapidly after the initial settlements. Scotch-Irish and German families traversed theGreat Wagon Road, which was the main route for settlement in the region, and had come by way of Virginia andPennsylvania. English andFrench Huguenot migrants came from settled areas ofeastern North Carolina, following theGreat Trading Path. English colonists also came from Virginia, using the same network of roads and trails.[15]
The area's culture was strongly influenced by Scotch-Irish andEnglish traditions, shaping its social, spiritual, educational, and economic life.[16] Local commerce centered on stores, mills, andtanneries, as well as home and shop trades such asblacksmithing, carpentry,coopering, pottery, wagon making, rope making, brewing and distilling, weaving, hat making, and tailoring.[17]
Enslaved Africans were brought to the area by migrating enslavers beginning in the 1750s, as well as by slave traders, primarily through thedomestic slave trade from within North Carolina,South Carolina,Georgia, and theChesapeake region.[17][18][19]
Slavery in the region was facilitated by:
Legal frameworks to reinforce slavery in North Carolina were established before the area was extensively settled and continued to evolve as the region developed. For example, the 1741slave codes restrictedmanumission, barred enslaved Black people from owning livestock or carrying guns, and permitted, without legal consequences, the killing offreedom seekers formally declared outlaws by public proclamation.[23]
In August 1774, thecolony’s First Provincial Congress resolved that after November 1, 1774, no enslaved people would be imported into North Carolina “from any part of the world,” whether from overseas or from other British colonies, and that residents could not buy people newly brought into the colony; this targeted international and intercolonial importation and did not end the buying and selling of enslaved people already in North Carolina.[24] From 1774 to 1776, county and town Committees of Safety in North Carolina enforced these nonimportation rules. TheRevolutionary War further disrupted both thetransatlantic slave trade and the coastal and regional slave trade into North Carolina.[25][26]
In 1786, North Carolina again tried to limit the inflow of enslaved people from outside its borders by banning importation—whether from foreign ports or from other American states—and by imposing a punitive duty on such imports, a measure repealed in 1790; afterward, the state's enslaved population rose from 100,571 (1790) to 133,296 (1800).[19]
By 1794–1795, state laws again forbade bringing enslaved people orindentured servants into North Carolina by land or by water and specifically barred enslaved people arriving from theWest Indies, to protect the in‑state slave market and, in lawmakers’ view, to prevent Caribbeanslave rebellions from spreading. Taken together, these provincial and later state measures regulated international and interstate importation; however, they did not prevent the continued buying, selling, or forced movement of enslaved people within North Carolina, and slavery as an institution continued to expand.[19]
Within this broader legal and economic context, the enslaved population in Caswell County grew as agriculture expanded. The late‑18th‑century rise of tobacco cultivation in the Piedmont and in counties bordering Virginia in particular increased demand for enslaved labor and contributed to the county’s rising enslaved population.[23][19]
Enslaved labor in the area was typically concentrated on farms, with large plantations less common. Over half of enslavers enslaved fewer than five individuals, and only a small minority lived on farms with over 50 others. This smaller-scale system meant Black inhabitants performed diverse tasks and often interacted with those on neighboring farms, fostering social connections and marriages across properties.[23]
Enslaved Black people in the region were primarily forced to do agricultural work, with some working as domestic laborers and a smaller number performing skilled labor.[23] The local economy thrived due to their labor as tobacco production grew; however, the brutal and oppressive conditions that enslaved inhabitants faced led many to use escape, violent resistance, or theft of food and goods to survive.[27]
Amid these brutal conditions, Black inhabitants maintained resilience through cultural practices, family and community bonds, and subtle acts of resistance such as work slowdowns. These cultural and social networks provided emotional support and a shared sense of identity.[28]
By 1800, nearly one-third (32%) of Caswell County's population was enslaved.[11]
The earliest white settlers in the mid-18th century were primarilyyeoman farmers and planters. Later in the century, they were joined by middle-class settlers—historically referred to as the "new families."[29][11]
Yeoman farmers accounted for more than half of the settler population.[11] Few if any were enslavers at this time. The yeomanry owned small family farms and lived in log homes. They farmed forsubsistence, with surpluses going toward debt settlement or bartering for goods. Relying on the skilled and unskilled labor of family members, neighbors, and others, they supported the local agricultural economy by linking farms to earlygrist mills andsawmills.[15]
Yeoman farmers' economic independence reflected the region's social structure, which provided opportunities for advancement to settlers. For example, North Carolina's lack of a rigid class system enabled migrants to attain prominent government roles more easily. This particularly attracted middle-class settlers mainly from Virginia to the area, some of whom later became sheriffs, justices, militia officers, and state legislators.[10]
Middle-class families, representing a smaller proportion of the settler population, played an important role in the area's early economic and social development. Families including the Coles, Holts, Stephens, and Upchurches were among the "new families" that contributed much to local prosperity by fostering business, trade, and settlement in and aroundLeasburg,Milton, and (later)Yanceyville.[11]
Due to the influx of the middle class, entrepreneurship and craftsmanship became prevalent in the area, with many settlers engaging in local trades and artisanal production.[10] The new settlers relied on family labor and other workers, also on their small farms, but many later adopted enslaved labor as their prosperity grew.[30]
Theplanter class, orgentry, represented the upper class and comprised the smallest segment of the white settler population. Most came from prosperous families, owned extensive landholdings, and were influenced byEnlightenment ideas. Through land ownership, agriculture, enslaved labor, and other means, they accumulated wealth and wielded influence that shaped the region's economic, political, and cultural landscape.[31][11]
The Graves family, who migrated to the area from Virginia in the mid-1750s, exemplified this gentry class. John Graves (1715–1792), a prominent landowner and patriarch of the family, acquired extensive tracts of land along Country Line Creek and established a mill and plantation. His sonAzariah Graves (1768–1850), along with other descendants, rose to prominence as planters, merchants, legislators, and community leaders, embodying the gentry's lasting influence.[14]
The Graves family also contributed to religion and education in the region. Azariah's brother, Rev. Barzillai Graves (1759–1827), pastored two localBaptist churches, reflecting his active role in the area's religious community. Azariah supported missionary efforts and is said to have hosted aschool for young women on his plantation, where, by 1820, 56 people were enslaved according to census records.[14]
While the Graves family embodied the height of gentry privilege and influence, the area's smaller-scale, less prominent planters had fewer landholdings and lived more modestly. Often referred to as "middling planters," they occupied a position between the gentry and moderately prosperous families. These planters typically engaged in landspeculation and trade. They established small mills, bred and sold livestock, and cultivated profitable crops such as wheat, corn,oats, and tobacco on their farms, relying on enslaved labor.[32]
In the early 1780s, a number of children in the area, including those ofmixed Black and white ancestry, werebound out as apprentices under fixed-term court-approved contracts with tradesmen or farmers. These apprentices were typically assigned to agricultural labor or skilled trades.[33] However, as enslaved labor became increasingly available, reliance on bound apprentices declined.
Early agricultural production in the area was centered on corn, wheat, oats, and tobacco. Additional crops included sweet potatoes, rye,flax, peas, beans, hay, and cotton. Cattle, hogs, and sheep were also raised, and much wool was shorn. Most household necessities, including wool and cotton for clothing, were produced on farms, ensuring self-sufficiency.[34]
Over time, tobacco became increasingly significant in the region's agricultural economy, with its extensive cultivation beginning around 1793. Until the early 1800s, it was grown as a secondary crop, with corn, wheat, and oats as the principal crops.[34]
Changing market demand, pricing, soil exhaustion, and other factors, such as the availability of enslaved labor, access to trade routes, and relationships with British merchants had impacted the earlier regional trade in tobacco.
Between the early 1760s and early 1770s, many regional planters took credit loans fromBritish-owned mercantile companies in theprovince to expand agricultural production. The loans funded land purchases and enslaved labor, while British merchants managed tobacco and other exports sent to Virginia warehouses and supplied imported goods.[20]
Initially, these companies offered favorable terms to planters, but over time, declining prices and high debts forced many to sell land or enslaved people to remain solvent. Due to the Revolutionary War, most existing debts were never repaid. After the war, demand for tobacco rose significantly in the 1790s, as planters gained direct access to new international markets, bypassing British middlemen.[35]
During the mid-18th century, the area later known as Caswell County was commonly referred to as the "backcountry" due to its remote location.[10] As the region grew, it became home to mostly small to medium-sized farms, where settlers were notably progressive about building sustainable communities.[10][11]
Among the first settlers, the Delone family migrated to the area in the early 1750s, while the Graves and Lea families, who intermarried, arrived in the mid-1750s; together, these families played significant roles in community development.[14] For example, in the late 1780s, Nicholas Delone and William Lea partnered to sell 100 acres, divided into 62 lots, to establish the area's firstincorporated town,Leasburg. The town was named for William Lea—a prominent merchant and civic leader.[11][10]
Lea family members, namely John Lea, also contributed to early community development by initiating construction of the area's first chapel (later known as Lea's Chapel), nearSouth Hyco Creek around 1750. Another William Lea, known as Capt. William Lea, was named "overseer of the road," responsible for keeping the chapel's road in good repair.[10]
Older families such as the Leas were notable for fostering progressive community development through churches, schools, and businesses, while simultaneously opposing government spending and debt increases, particularly for post-Revolutionary Warinternal improvements.[11]
Before the Revolutionary War, as local communities grew, they were affected by broader regional events. For example, the region was impacted by theFrench and Indian War and theRegulator Movement—an uprising against the colonial government inHillsborough and surrounding counties.[36] During that time, John Lea, serving as sheriff of Orange County, was attacked by five men while attempting to serve a paper on a Regulator—a protester in the colonial uprising; he was tied to a tree and flogged.[10]
The Regulator Movement heightened tensions among settlers and between protesters and the colonial government, although it was not directly about independence; many Regulators remained loyal to the British Crown. The movement reflected the frustrations of those backcountry settlers who were angered by perceived government corruption, unfair taxation, and other mistreatments, culminating in theBattle of Alamance in 1771.[36]
While not explicitly revolutionary, the uprising's stance on corruption and taxation echoed themes of the emerging revolutionary movement, which sought independence from the Crown. In backcountry communities across the region, theAmerican Revolution would find much support.[11]
Formal education in the area was limited before the Revolutionary War. Between 1750 and 1775, an estimated one-third of white inhabitants could read, and fewer could write. By the period of 1775-1800, around half of the white population received a basic English education, which included reading, writing, and arithmetic.[37]
From 1800 onward, significant progress was made in education, with Robert H. Childers—a local educator and skilled penman—making notable contributions. It is estimated that at least half of the county’s white youth who developed good writing skills were taught directly or indirectly by him.[37]
Building on this momentum, plantation owners and citizens of (later) Yanceyville and Leasburg, seeking to promote the intellectual development of their youth, publicly proposed plans for the establishment of private academies in the winter of 1801.[11] Due to these efforts, academies andfemale seminaries were founded in the area and expanded over time. Notable institutions included:[11]
Female seminaries:
Academies and seminaries such as these were instrumental in shaping the region's educational landscape.
Formal education for the enslaved population, however, remained largely inaccessible, withanti-literacy laws enacted in 1818 and 1830 forbidding their instruction.[39]
Before the anti-literacy laws, groups like theMoravians andQuakers provided basic literacy lessons to enslaved people andfree Black residents in North Carolina, although such instruction was not widespread. According to oral tradition, they continued this work, though its extent in the area remains unclear. Free public schools, first established in 1840 in neighboring Rockingham County, excludedAfrican Americans. In rare instances, free Black youth could attend private schools.[40]
The firstBlack schools in Caswell County were established followingReconstruction, with thirty-seven documented by 1896. In addition,Black churches often served as educational venues.[40]
In 1897, a number of African American residents in Yanceyville chartered a school. Despite these efforts, Black schools remained segregated, underfunded, and faced significant disparities.[40]
Religion played a central role in early settler and Black communities. While the early inhabitants brought their religious beliefs from their places of origin, the typical settler affiliation before the Revolution was with theChurch of England.[11]
Before the area was settled in the 1750s, theFirst Great Awakening drew more free and enslaved Black people in the colony toProtestantism. In the 1700s, most enslaved people practicedAfrican religions, which they often later blended with Christianity throughsyncretism. By the early 1800s, during theSecond Great Awakening, many in the region had converted toBaptist andMethodist denominations while preserving African traditions.[41][42]
Black converts attended white churches but were segregated into balconies or designated pews. Fears of slave revolts prevented the establishment of independent Black churches until after theCivil War.[42]
Lea's Chapel, established around 1750 as previously mentioned, functioned as a privately controlled "plantation chapel," serving local parishioners with services led by rectors and visiting preachers from various denominations. In 1779, the State of North Carolina granted the chapel and surrounding land to Capt. William Lea, a prominent citizen and landowner. His descendants later donated the property to theMethodist Episcopal Church in 1833.[10]
Other notable churches in the region includedRed House Presbyterian Church, founded by Pennsylvania missionary Hugh McAden between 1755 and 1756, and Country LinePrimitive Baptist Church, established in 1772.[43][44][45]
These and other early churches served as centers for worship and community life, shaping the area's religious and social development.
Caswell County was formed from the northern half of Orange County and officially established on June 1, 1777, during the Revolutionary War.[46] It was created so that governance could be more localized and efficient.[47] The legislative act establishing the county ordered its first court to be held at the homestead of Thomas Douglas and appointed commissioners to find a permanent location to build a county courthouse and prison.[46]
Caswell County was named forRichard Caswell, the firstgovernor of North Carolina. He was also a delegate at the First and SecondContinental Congresses and a senior officer ofmilitia in theSouthern theater of the Revolutionary War.[48]
During the prelude to theBattle of Guilford Courthouse in 1781,Lord Cornwallis pursued GeneralNathanael Greene through Caswell County. Greene's retreat, called the "Race to theDan," was a calculated ploy. His objective was to extend Cornwallis far beyond his supply base inCamden, South Carolina, so that his fighting power would be significantly diminished.[47]
Cornwallis and his troops marched throughCamp Springs andLeasburg. They continued on to theRed House Church area ofSemora in search of Presbyterian minister Hugh McAden, an ardent supporter of the Patriot cause. However, McAden had died a week earlier, foiling their plan to confront him.[11]
At the church, Cornwallis and his men burned many of McAden's papers and records, setting fire to a portion of the building. They are also said to have disturbed McAden's nearby grave.[11]
After the Battle of Guilford Courthouse, Cornwallis, on his way toYorktown, Virginia, traveled again through northern Caswell County. It is unknown how many locally enslaved people fled tothe British for safe haven before theBattle of Yorktown in 1781.[11][49]
By the war's end in 1783, Caswell County had made significant contributions of personnel andmateriel to the war effort. Little fighting occurred locally other than several skirmishes with Tories, resulting in some being killed.[11] County residents renowned for their Revolutionary War service include Lieutenant Colonel Henry "Hal" Dixon, John Herndon Graves, Dr. Lancelot Johnston, and Starling Gunn.[47]
Following the war, the county experienced notable social changes. A small number offree Black families settled in the area. Most of the men had served in theContinental Army orNavy.[50] Usually skilled in a trade, they farmed in a manner similar to yeoman farmers but did not have equal rights. They encountered barriers such as limited access to fertile land, fewer legal protections, and social discrimination.[51]
As the county continued to develop, its infrastructure needs became more pressing.By the mid-1780s, no county courthouse had been built, prompting theGeneral Assembly to pass another act authorizing the construction of public buildings. As a result, a courthouse was established at Leasburg, which was incorporated in 1788 as the county's first officialseat of government.[46]
Caswell County's significant population growth had necessitated advancements in governance and infrastructure. A special state census in 1786 ranked it as the second-largest county with a population of 9,839—trailing onlyHalifax County, which had 489 more inhabitants.[47]
During his 1791 Southern tour to promote unity and address regional concerns,George Washington stayed at Revolutionary War veteran Dudley Gatewood's home in Caswell County from June 3-4. In his journal, Washington noted observations of the land and his efforts to gather insights from locals.[52]
In February 1792, the eastern half of the county was legally separated to formPerson County. Following this division, Caswell County's seat of government was relocated from Leasburg to a more central location. The community hosting the new county seat was originally called Caswell Court House. In 1833, the name was changed toYanceyville.[53]
In the early 1800s, Caswell County's wealthy landowners were moving away fromdiversified farming and accelerating toward tobacco as a single cash crop. This agricultural conversion had a significant impact on the enslaved population, which grew by 54 percent from 1800 to 1810.[11]
In 1810, the village of Caswell Court House (laterYanceyville) had one store and ahattery, twotaverns, and approximately fifteen homes. Not long thereafter, silversmiths, blacksmiths, wheelwrights, coachmakers, and other tradesmen began opening businesses. Attorneys, doctors, preachers, and politicians were also drawn to the growing village and county seat.[54]
Around 1830, Caswell County entered a period of economic expansion known as the Boom Era, which lasted until the outbreak of theAmerican Civil War in 1861. Bright leaf tobacco emerged as the county's dominant cash crop, but the era also saw industrialization flourish, with the rise of flour and lumber mills, a cotton factory, afoundry, and a silk company.[47]
Additionally, one of the era's most notable achievements was the renowned furniture craftsmanship ofThomas Day, a free Black businessman inMilton. Day's creations are now celebrated as a major contribution to American decorative arts.[55]
Furthermore, in Yanceyville roads were improved and formally named by 1841. By 1852, the town had grown prosperous enough to charter the Bank of Yanceyville, which boasted one of the highest market capitalizations in the state.[54]
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In 1839, on Abisha Slade's farm inPurley, an enslaved man named Stephen discovered the bright leaf tobaccoflue-curing process.[56][47] Slade perfected the curing method in 1856. The following year, his farm harvested 20,000 pounds (9,100 kg) of bright leaf tobacco on 100 acres of land, and the crop was sold at an exorbitant price inLynchburg, Virginia.[11]
Slade taught the flue-curing technique to many farmers in the area and elsewhere, helping to spread its adoption. Bright leaf tobacco became popular with smokers and North Carolina growers gained a dominant position in the tobacco industry as a result.[57][56]
The skyrocketing tobacco economy enriched many local residents. The lifestyle of many yeoman farmers shifted to that of planters.[11] Many of the newly wealthy builtGreek Revival-style homes and sent their children to private academies.[47][58] However, the majority of Caswell County's inhabitants did not benefit. By 1850, enslaved African Americans accounted for 52 percent of the county's population.[59]
By 1856, tobacco overshadowed all other forms of enterprise in Caswell County. Tobacco warehouses and manufacturing & processing plants dotted the skyline, with the largest centers located in Yanceyville and Milton.[11] During this time,Leasburg functioned as a regional center of education and included numerous mills and tobacco factories. The community also featured a racetrack, taverns, a tannery, a tailor, a carriage maker, cotton gins, and a brickyard, with commerce largely supported by the surrounding region's tobacco-based economy.[60]
Demand for labor kept growing as Caswell County's tobacco-based economy expanded. The number of enslaved people in the county grew to 9,355 in 1860, from a total of 4,299 in 1810 and 2,788 in 1800.[11]
There were 26 free Black inhabitants residing in Caswell County in 1800, 90 in 1810, and 282 in 1860. Thewhite population declined from a peak of 8,399 in 1850 to 6,578 in 1860. This was due to the western migration of small-scale farmers who were unable to compete with the larger tobacco planters.[11]
In 1858, construction began onCaswell County Courthouse. Built with enslaved labor, the courthouse was completed in 1861 around the start of the Civil War, which brought an end to the prosperous Boom Era.[61][62]
After the Civil War, the collapse of theplantation economy severely disrupted agriculture in Caswell County. While there was a short-lived surge in tobacco output driven bytenant labor and reliance on extended family networks, the loss of enslaved labor left many farms insufficiently maintained and unable to sustain prewar production levels.[47]
In the years that followed, the county's economy remained heavily dependent on tobacco, with limitedagricultural diversification andland degradation the norm. Grain production declined and cotton cultivation ceased entirely.[34] The area saw little industrial growth in the late 19th century, with development largely restricted to tobacco factories and minimal railway infrastructure.[47] In Leasburg, the rise of nearby Durham's tobacco industry later doomed its tobacco factories due to competition, causing many residents to relocate for better opportunities.[60]
Industrial growth in Durham andDanville also drew tobacco factories and trade away from Milton and Yanceyville; consolidation in the tobacco industry left local growers dependent on outside markets, and brief railroad, textile,hosiery, and furniture ventures failed in the county under conditions of limited capital, weak transport links, and better-resourced neighbors.[59]
Amid the weakened economy, the county's population declined between 1880 and 1900, showing signs of recovery only after 1910.[63][64] By that time, the introduction of telephone infrastructure in Yanceyville andSemora signaled a bright spot in local conditions.[65][66]
However, the area still faced persistent agricultural challenges, including:[34]
These issues weakened economic stability by reducing agricultural productivity and degrading soil health, negatively affecting the county's economic progress through the 1910s.
Despite these challenges, Caswell County's residents demonstrated resilience and community spirit duringWorld War I. Local efforts includedRed Cross work, military registration, and resource management to support soldiers and civilians, with women playing a prominent role.[67]
Through the 1920s, Caswell County's population continued to grow. To provide better public facilities, theCaswell County Board of Education initiated school improvement projects. These efforts included replacing older, inadequate facilities with new buildings for both African American and white students. For Black students, this included six school construction projects, such as upgrades toYanceyville School in 1924, funded by public and private contributions with significant support from theRosenwald Fund.[40][68]
In 1926, the area experienced several notable developments, including the construction of a county home for the poor as well as the founding ofThe Caswell Messenger newspaper and the Caswell County Chamber of Commerce.[54][69]
During theGreat Depression, however, many farmers and local businesses struggled with economic hardship, falling crop prices, and limited access to credit. To assist the community, the North Carolina Emergency Relief Administration (NCERA), a stateNew Deal program, funded projects in Caswell County from 1932 to 1935 to create jobs and improve infrastructure. These included constructing a civic center, renovating the courthouse, building a water treatment plant, and improving schools.[40]
To further assist the community, the YanceyvilleRotary Club was founded in 1937, and its members successfully pioneered economic and community development projects.[16] The county's economy also benefited from the establishment of the Caswell Knitting Mill in 1939.[54]
Additionally, the WPA’s rural road development initiatives, advancements in farming practices starting in the 1940s, and the economic impact ofWorld War II had positive effects on the area.[47][54]
In the decades after World War II, local planning materials emphasized that Caswell County's sustained economic advancement depended on developing and maintaining sufficient water resources for industrial expansion, improving roads and otherinfrastructure, providing new and diverse countywide services, increasingcultural resources, and operating local government in a more businesslike manner.[59]
By 1950, the county's population had grown to 20,870, a figure not surpassed until the2000 census.[70][71] The economic upswing of the 1950s brought new businesses to the area, including the opening of a meatpacking operation in 1956 in the county's southwest corner.[47]
In 1965, theGeneral Assembly authorized thePerson–Caswell Lake Authority for recreational governance at a new reservoir on theHyco River.Carolina Power & Light subsequently completedHyco Lake as the cooling reservoir for a nearby generating station, which began operation in 1966.[72][73]
From the mid-1950s to the mid-1980s, severaltextile mills opened in Yanceyville. Royal Textile Mills, for example, restarted operations in 1975 and later supplied major customers, including the U.S. military.[74][75][76][77] This growth broadened the local tax base and increasedpublic revenue.[47]
In 1975, Yanceyville-born painterMaud Gatewood returned to Caswell County and, a year later, became the county's first woman elected commissioner. During her tenure, she advocated for economic development, land-use planning, and expanded human services.[78][79][80]
In 1986, S.R. Farmer Lake, a 365-acre water supply reservoir with a public recreation area, was completed for Yanceyville. Under an agreement with Caswell County, the town draws drinking water from the lake, which the Yanceyville Water Treatment Plant treats and distributes.[81][82][83]
In 1988,Piedmont Community College opened a branch campus in Yanceyville. The campus serves adult learners and high school students enrolled in the Career and College Promise program and, given its proximity toBartlett Yancey High School, provides accessiblevocational and academic pathways duringsecondary education.[84][85][86]
In 1989, a fire severely damaged Milton'sUnion Tavern (Thomas Day House), aNational Historic Landmark, prompting a long-running restoration effort.[87]
In 1994, the Piedmont Triad Visitor Center was established inPelham to support tourism and provide resources for travelers; as of 2025, it offers information and assistance for area attractions and events.[88]
In 1995, Canadian producer Zale Magder invested about $5 million to build a film‑production complex in Yanceyville, promoted as a “Hollywood East” campus with amenities such as jogging trails, a golf course, a restaurant, and a fitness center to attractfilmmakers and movie stars.[89] Although the venture hosted at least one feature and several commercials, it filed for bankruptcy in 1997; the property later operated as Carolina Pinnacle Studios under owner Faiger Blackwell before transitioning to non‑film uses.[90][91][92][93]
In April 1997, the state dedicated the Dan River Prison Work Farm, a minimum-custody facility near Yanceyville, and began moving inmates into the facility. Built largely by inmate crews underDepartment of Correction engineers, the facility was designed for 650 inmates and initially added about 165 positions, roughly half filled by Caswell County residents; operations have includedgreenhouse and field production ofproduce for other prisons.[94][95][96]
In 1998, theNorth Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission andDucks Unlimited constructed the 14-acre Highrock Waterfowl Impoundment on the R. Wayne Bailey–Caswell Game Land, a state-managed wildlife area southeast of Yanceyville, to expandwetland habitat forwaterfowl.[97]
In the early 2000s, the region faced challenges including adapting to theInformation Age and addressing thedecline of the tobacco industry, which negatively affected the local economy, even ascultural tourism emerged as an economic contributor.[98]
In 2007, Caswell Correctional Center, a medium-custody facility near Yanceyville, employed about 188 staff and offered on-site vocational training from Piedmont Community College, contributing state jobs and education services to the local economy.[99][100]
Initiatives in the 2010s—such as the Caswell County Farmers Market, launched in 2013—were followed in the 2020s by new investments: Riverside Furniture Corporation’s $5.4 million, 300,000 sq ft (28,000 m2) warehouse and distribution center (announced in 2020 to create 50 jobs); major 2020 and 2023 grants for Piedmont Community College’s CEAD agribusiness campus in Pelham; the county-funded CoSquare coworking hub in downtown Yanceyville; and, in 2024, Cherokee Tobacco’s planned $14 million, 65,000 sq ft (6,000 m2) facility creating 39 jobs in Pelham.[101][102][103][104][105]
By the 2020s, the local economy, while maintaining its agricultural roots, had furtherdiversified across multiple sectors, including manufacturing, healthcare, education,food service, retail, and otherservice industries.[105][106][102]
In 2020, the Caswell County Chamber of Commerce described the county as having a growing art community centered on the Milton Studio Art Gallery, which represented more than sixty regional artists. The county’s arts heritage includes painters such as Maud Gatewood andBenjamin Forrest Williams.[107][108]
State and county-led investments in education, including the multimillion-dollar renovation of Bartlett Yancey High School in 2022, have supported workforce development by modernizing facilities and broadening opportunities through Piedmont Community College.[109][110]
In the mid-2020s, broadband initiatives, including the state's Completing Access to Broadband (CAB) program, sought to expandhigh-speed internet availability in the county for households and businesses.[111][112]
Although only a limited number of tobacco farms remain, the county's agricultural sector has adapted through farmers diversifying into other types of farming.[98]
While water and sewer infrastructure needs have remained pressing concerns in communities such as Yanceyville,[113] independent sources have cited Caswell County's location within thePiedmont Triad region and the availability of developable industrial sites, including Pelham Business Park, as supporting business recruitment and economic development.[114][115][116][117]
In May 1861, North Carolina, albeit with some reluctance, joinedthe Confederacy, which by then was at war withthe Union.[118][119] Caswell County provided troops, clothing, food, and tobacco in support of the war effort.[120]
Companies A, C, and D of the 13th North Carolina Infantry Regiment consisted almost entirely of county enlistments. Men from the county served inNorth Carolina regiments in theEastern Theater. These units fought in many of the major battles, includingWilliamsburg,Second Manassas,Antietam,Fredericksburg,Chancellorsville,Gettysburg, and theAppomattox campaign, and suffered heavy casualties.[120][11]
At the1860 U.S. census, 58.7 percent of Caswell County's population was enslaved.[121] In January 1862, numerousAfrican Americans in the countyfled slavery. Sevenpatrol squads comprising 34 individuals were dispatched toYanceyville in search of them.[120] Whether any found safe haven behind Union lines atFort Monroe inHampton, Virginia, or elsewhere is unknown.
In the spring of 1862, salt used for meat preservation was rationed, which was a statewide measure. As the war raged on, the county's inhabitants faced food shortages. Daily necessities were in short supply.Speculators benefitted while most remained in need.[120]
Theminutes of the Caswell CountyCourt of Pleas and Quarter Sessions from January 1863 to July 1866 were lost or destroyed; as a result, its proceedings for this period—including matters affecting the county's Black inhabitants—are not preserved in its minute books.[120]
Following theEmancipation Proclamation (January 1, 1863), enslaved people in areas of rebellion were recognized as free by theU.S. federal government and could obtain military protection upon reaching Union lines or as federal troops advanced.[122]
Because Caswell County remained behind Confederate lines until Union forces advanced into the North Carolina Piedmont during theCarolinas campaign in March–April 1865, opportunities to reach Union protection were limited. While numerous African Americans fled or tried to flee the region between 1863 and the war's end to gain freedom permanently, most remained confined behind Confederate lines until April 1865.[118]
After the Civil War duringReconstruction, the pattern of daily life in Caswell County dramatically changed.The previous plantation way of life had disappeared. Struggling small farmers fell into deeper poverty. Abandoned land and eroded soil permeated the landscape. The area struggled with a decreased standard of living and inadequate public revenue for essential services.[11][123]
Many white citizens in the county resented the war's outcome and its aftermath, as did others in the North CarolinaPiedmont area. Regional newspapers actively fomented their bitterness. When Congressional Reconstruction was established in 1867,[124] it was characterized as an effort byRadical Republicans to force Blacksuffrage upon them. To resist perceived threats to the racial and social order, numerous county residents joined the Conservative Party, a loose coalition of prewar Democrats and formerWhigs.[125]
African Americans in the area had experienced immense jubilation when informed of the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863. Their freedom was then safeguarded by Union troops, theFreedmen's Bureau, and the protection of theThirteenth Amendment. However, in 1866 restrictive state laws calledBlack Codes were passed in North Carolina by former Confederate legislators who had returned to power as Conservatives.[126] Enacted to regain control over African Americans, these laws were nullified by congressionalcivil rights legislation later in 1866.[127]
In January 1868, thirteen African American delegates representing 19 majority-Black counties attended the state's constitutional convention inRaleigh. They were North Carolina's first Black Caucus. Their members included a Republican legislator from Caswell County namedWilson Carey. At the convention, he opposed a Conservative proposal to increase white immigration, arguing that the focus should remain on African American North Carolinians whose labor "built up the State to where it was."[128]
The 1868 constitutional convention passed resolutions abolishing slavery, adopting universal male suffrage, removing property and religious qualifications for voting and office holding, and establishing a uniform public school system. Because the convention gave North Carolina a new constitution in 1868 that protected the rights of African Americans, the state was readmitted to the Union that same year onJuly 4 upon ratification of theFourteenth Amendment.[129]
In 1869, theRepublican-controlled General Assembly ratified theFifteenth Amendment.[130] Ensuring the right to vote regardless of race,color, or previous condition of servitude, the Fifteenth Amendment became a part of theU.S. Constitution in February 1870.[131] Inthat year's U.S. census, African Americans represented approximately 59 percent of Caswell County's population.[132] Over a span of roughly four years, from December 1865 to February 1870, they had gained constitutional protections of freedom and voting rights, as well as access to employment, public accommodations, land, and political participation.[133]
County and statewide Conservatives vehemently opposed Black enfranchisement, seeing it as a threat to their power and the perceived racial hierarchy. Their hostility had intensified when Republican gubernatorial candidateWilliam W. Holden endorsed universal male suffrage at the party's state convention in March 1867.[125]
The suffrage resolution's passage and Holden's victory in 1868 substantially added to the continuing friction. This growing animosity helped make Caswell County and the region a hotbed ofKu Klux Klan activity. African Americans and their supporters in the area were subsequently subjected to a campaign of violence, intimidation, and murder to prevent them from voting.[125]
On February 26, 1870, the Klan lynchedWyatt Outlaw, an African American town commissioner andconstable inAlamance County. As Klan violence spread into nearby Caswell County, the Republican state senator of the area,John W. Stephens, became increasingly fearful of attack.[134] On May 21, he went to the courthouse in Yanceyville to convince the former Democratic county sheriff, Frank A. Wiley, to seek re-election as a Republican with his support and thus achieve a political reconciliation in the county.[135]
Wiley had secretly agreed to work with the Klan and lured Stephens into a trap, whereby he was choked with a rope and stabbed to death by Klansmen in a vacant courthouse room. The county's sheriff, Jessie C. Griffith, himself a Klansman and prominent Conservative, made little effort to investigate the assassination.[136]
Holden was outraged by the murders of Wyatt Outlaw and John W. Stephens.[137] Conferring with his advisers, he decided toraise a militia to combat the Klan in Caswell and Alamance counties.[138] By July 8, he declared both counties to be in a state of insurrection.[139]
About 350 militiamen, led by ColonelGeorge Washington Kirk, arrived on July 18 and established headquarters in Yanceyville.[140] The militia arrested 19 men in the county as well as several dozen more in Alamance County, and Klan activities in both counties promptly ceased.[141] The prisoners were initially deniedhabeas corpus before being turned over to local courts, which did not convict any of the accused.[142] On November 10, Holden declared that there was no longer a state of insurrection in Alamance and Caswell counties.[143]
In December 1870, the state legislature, which had a Conservative majority that had come into power on the heels of the political backlash they had spearheaded against Holden over the incident, impeached him on eight charges. He was convicted on six of them and removed from office in March 1871. Holden's removal severely weakened the Republican Party in the state.[125]
The Conservative Party proceeded to institutewhite supremacy in state government in 1876.[129] They dropped the name "Conservative" that same year to become the Democratic Party.[144] When federal troops left the next year, ending Reconstruction, the stage was set for the further passage ofJim Crow laws.[129][145]
In the 20th century, during the era ofschool segregation in the United States, many African American students in Caswell County attendedCaswell County Training School, later renamed Caswell County High School in the early 1960s.[146]Vanessa Siddle Walker's 1996 book,Their Highest Potential: An African American School Community in the Segregated South, provides detailed insights into this school, which is no longer in operation and now a designated site on theNational Register of Historic Places in Caswell County.[147]
By the end of the 1960s, Caswell County's public schools were beginning to fullyintegrate.[148] A decade and a half earlier in 1954, theU.S. Supreme Court ruled inBrown v. Board of Education thatracial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional.
In a later decision by the Court in May 1955 known asBrown II, school districts were given the ambiguous order to desegregate "with all deliberate speed."[149] Like many school boards inthe South at the time, the Caswell County Board of Education interpreted the Court's ambiguity in a manner that served to delay, obstruct, and slow the process of racially integrating its schools.[150][151]
The Board of Education's resistance to integration had already been emboldened by North Carolina's passage of the Pupil Assignment Act in April 1955. The legislation gave county school boards full school placement authority.[151] Driven by the act's power, thePearshall Plan's passage, and the prevailing anti-integration sentiment of the white community, the school district kept assigning children to schools in a segregated manner.[148]
In response to these developments, fifteen local African American parents presented a petition to the school district in August 1956 calling for the abolition of segregation, which the board refused to consider. Undeterred, the parents organized protests that included theNAACP. Afederal lawsuit was subsequently filed in December 1956 asking for the immediate desegregation of Caswell County and North Carolina schools.[152]
In August 1957, 43 local students, many of whom were plaintiffs via their parents in the federal court case, applied for admission to public schools that were closer to their homes than the segregated ones they had been assigned.[153] The school board denied their applications and continued to reject them through 1962.[148] Nevertheless, the federal lawsuit kept moving forward.[154]
In December 1961,U.S. District Court JudgeEdwin M. Stanley ruled that two brothers, Charlie and Fred Saunders, could promptly attend Archibald Murphey Elementary School, a now-closed, formerly all-white school nearMilton. However, when the new semester began in January, they did not enroll. TheKu Klux Klan had sent a threatening letter to the Saunders family previously.[155]
According to an affidavit submitted by the children's father, C.H. Saunders Sr., the KKK's threats caused him to miss a school board reassignment hearing ordered by the judge in August 1961, before his final judgment in December. Saunders also stated that he would be agreeable to transferring schools if his children's protection at Murphey Elementary could be assured.[155]
A year after the Saunders decision, Stanley ruled that the school district had been improperly administering the Pupil Assignment Act. In December 1962, he told the school boards of Caswell County and the city ofDurham to allow every schoolchild complete freedom of choice regarding school placement.[156] On January 22, 1963, sixteen African American schoolchildren enrolled in four of the county's previously all-white schools.[148]
On their first day of school, a group of white men harassed and threatened one of the parents,Jasper Brown—a localcivil rights activist and farmer. As Brown drove home, the men pursued and menaced him. Following a rear-end collision, the driver of the other vehicle exited with a firearm. Fearing for his life, Brown exchanged gunfire with the men, wounding two of them, before turning himself in to the police.[157][148] The incident was soon reported to Attorney GeneralRobert F. Kennedy due to its gravity.[158]
Several months later, Brown was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon and served 90 days in jail. While awaiting trial, white men bombed his yard.[159] According to contemporaneous reporting on an NAACP lawsuit, students who integrated the county’s schools faced physical threats and emotional abuse, and the suit alleged that officials failed to provide police protection or bus transportation.[160][148]
By late 1967, only 57 African American children out of a Black student population of approximately 3,000 were attending integrated public schools in Caswell County.[161][148] While there had been some faculty and administration integration,[162] the less than two percent enrollment rate effectively upheld segregation.
The school district's integration plan had not fostered sufficient desegregation. Its "freedom of choice" plan placed the burden of integration on individual African American students and parents, requiring them to cross the color line voluntarily.[163] Those who did so often facedsocial stigma, severe discrimination, and other hardships. Consequently, many families—though supportive of integration efforts—kept their children inBlack schools that they valued, such as Caswell County High School.[146][148]
The school district's low integration rate resulted in theU.S. Office of Education citing the county in 1966 as one of seven in the state that were not in compliance with its civil rightsTitle IV guidelines. The bureau began taking steps to cut off federal funding.[164]
The school district was not in full compliance with federal integration standards until 1969.[165] In that year, the Caswell County Board of Education implemented a plan for complete desegregation after Judge Stanley ordered the school district in August 1968 to integrate starting in the 1969–1970 school year.[166][167][148]
When school integration and consolidation subsequently occurred,Bartlett Yancey High School in Yanceyville became the only public high school in the county after Caswell County High School's closure in 1969.[168] The closed high school building's educational use was promptly reconfigured. The new integrated school was named N. L. Dillard Junior High School in honor ofNicholas Longworth Dillard, the former principal of Caswell County High School. Integrated elementary schools were established based onzoning.[165]
Caswell County has produced notable political leaders throughout its history, includingWilson Carey,Donna Edwards,John H. Kerr,Archibald Murphey,Romulus Mitchell Saunders,John W. Stephens, andBartlett Yancey.[169][170][171][172][173][174][175]
Legislators from the county had considerable influence on state politics during the first half of the 19th century.[47] Bartlett Yancey was speaker of theNorth Carolina Senate from 1817 to 1827. Romulus M. Saunders was concurrently speaker of theNorth Carolina House of Commons from 1819 to 1820.[176]
Archibald Murphey, who was born in Caswell County, has been called North Carolina's "Father of Education." Serving as a state senator, he proposed a publicly financed system of education in 1817. Murphey also made proposals regardinginternal improvements and constitutional reform.[177]
Reconstruction-era Republican state senator John W. Stephens, a Caswell County representative in the North Carolina Senate and local agent of theFreedmen's Bureau, worked to expand Black political participation and civil rights; his assassination byKu Klux Klan members in theYanceyville courthouse in May 1870 helped trigger GovernorWilliam W. Holden’s declaration of insurrection and theKirk–Holden war.[175]
Reconstruction-era African American politician Wilson Carey represented Caswell County as a Republican in both the 1868 and 1875 North Carolina constitutional conventions and served in theNorth Carolina House of Representatives from 1868 to 1870, from 1874 to 1880, and again in 1889.[169]
Another notable political figure with roots in the county was John H. Kerr, born in Yanceyville, who representedNorth Carolina's 2nd district in theUnited States House of Representatives for fifteen consecutive terms from 1923 to 1953.[174][178]
Donna Edwards, a former U.S. congresswoman who representedMaryland's 4th congressional district from 2008 to 2017 and the first African American woman to represent Maryland in Congress, was born in Yanceyville.[179]
As a Democrat, Edwards served on key committees and championed various legislative initiatives. Her notable accomplishments include adding Maryland to the Afterschool Suppers Program, advocating forhistorically Black colleges and women's reproductive rights, and introducing a constitutional amendment to repeal the Supreme Court's landmarkCitizens United decision.[179]
The 2008 documentaryMeeting David Wilson followed an African American filmmaker tracing his family lineage, which led him fromGhana to Caswell County. There, he discovered that his ancestors had been enslaved on a tobacco plantation still owned by the same family that had controlled it before the Civil War. The filmmaker, David Wilson, met the current owner, also named David Wilson, to explore the land and the intertwined history of their families, shaped by the legacy of slavery.[180][181]
Writers, includingAlex Haley, and artists, such asMaud Gatewood, have also referenced Caswell County's history in their work. The county was mentioned in Haley's 1977 television miniseriesRoots, where it was cited as the location of championcockfighter and plantation owner Tom Moore's (Chuck Connors) estate.[182] When Gatewood designed the county seal in 1974, she included two large tobacco leaves as a symbol of the crop's long-standing prominence in the area.[183]
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 428.71 square miles (1,110.4 km2), of which 425.37 square miles (1,101.7 km2) is land and 3.34 square miles (8.7 km2) (0.78%) is water.[184] It is bordered by Person, Orange, Alamance, and Rockingham counties, and the state of Virginia.[185] TheDan River flows through a part of the county.Hyco Lake is an important resource and a popular recreational site.[186]
For a comprehensive overview of Caswell County's geography seeWhen the Past Refused to Die: A History of Caswell County North Carolina 1777–1977, byWilliam S. Powell (1977) at 1–22.[187]
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1790 | 10,096 | — | |
| 1800 | 8,701 | −13.8% | |
| 1810 | 11,757 | 35.1% | |
| 1820 | 13,253 | 12.7% | |
| 1830 | 15,185 | 14.6% | |
| 1840 | 14,693 | −3.2% | |
| 1850 | 15,269 | 3.9% | |
| 1860 | 16,215 | 6.2% | |
| 1870 | 16,081 | −0.8% | |
| 1880 | 17,825 | 10.8% | |
| 1890 | 16,028 | −10.1% | |
| 1900 | 15,028 | −6.2% | |
| 1910 | 14,858 | −1.1% | |
| 1920 | 15,759 | 6.1% | |
| 1930 | 18,214 | 15.6% | |
| 1940 | 20,032 | 10.0% | |
| 1950 | 20,870 | 4.2% | |
| 1960 | 19,912 | −4.6% | |
| 1970 | 19,055 | −4.3% | |
| 1980 | 20,705 | 8.7% | |
| 1990 | 20,693 | −0.1% | |
| 2000 | 23,501 | 13.6% | |
| 2010 | 23,719 | 0.9% | |
| 2020 | 22,736 | −4.1% | |
| 2024 (est.) | 22,363 | [195] | −1.6% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[196] 1790–1960[197] 1900–1990[63] 1990–2000[198] 2010[199] 2020[1] | |||
| Race / Ethnicity(NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 2000[200] | Pop 2010[201] | Pop 2020[202] | % 2000 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 14,239 | 14,513 | 14,036 | 60.59% | 61.19% | 61.73% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 8,557 | 7,991 | 6,804 | 36.41% | 33.69% | 29.93% |
| Native American orAlaska Native alone (NH) | 39 | 70 | 65 | 0.17% | 0.30% | 0.29% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 36 | 60 | 61 | 0.15% | 0.25% | 0.27% |
| Pacific Islander alone (NH) | 5 | 4 | 13 | 0.02% | 0.02% | 0.06% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 29 | 13 | 57 | 0.12% | 0.05% | 0.25% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | 181 | 324 | 698 | 0.77% | 1.37% | 3.07% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 415 | 744 | 1,002 | 1.77% | 3.14% | 4.41% |
| Total | 23,501 | 23,719 | 22,736 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
As of the2020 census, there were 22,736 people and 9,124 households residing in the county, including 6,186 families. The median age was 47.6 years, 18.2% of residents were under the age of 18, 22.4% of residents were 65 years of age or older, and there were 105.3 males for every 100 females, or 106.0 males per 100 females age 18 and over.[203][1]
Of all households, 25.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them, 45.1% were married-couple households, 19.5% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 30.8% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present; 30.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[203]
There were 10,444 housing units, of which 12.6% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 75.0% were owner-occupied and 25.0% were renter-occupied, with a homeowner vacancy rate of 1.3% and a rental vacancy rate of 6.1%.[203]
The racial makeup of the county was 62.6%White, 30.0%Black or African American, 0.4%American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%Asian, 0.1%Native Hawaiian andPacific Islander, 2.4% from some other race, and 4.2% fromtwo or more races, whileHispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 4.4% of the population.[204]
0.2% of residents lived in urban areas, while 99.8% lived in rural areas.[205]
| Race | Number | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| White (non-Hispanic) | 14,513 | 61.19% |
| Black or African American (non-Hispanic) | 7,991 | 33.69% |
| Native American | 70 | 0.30% |
| Asian | 60 | 0.25% |
| Pacific Islander | 4 | 0.02% |
| Other/Mixed | 337 | 1.42% |
| Hispanic orLatino | 744 | 3.14% |
At the2010 census, there were 23,719 people and an estimated 8,788 households and 6,345 families residing in Caswell County.[206] In 2010, the estimated median age was 42.8 years. For every 100 females, there were an estimated 103.7 males.[207]
At the2000 census,[208] there were 23,501 people and an estimated 8,670 households and 6,398 families residing in the county. The population density was 55 people per square mile (21 people/km2). There were 9,601 housing units at an average density of 23 units per square mile (8.9 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 61.07%White, 36.52%African American, 1.77%Hispanic orLatino, 0.19%Native American, 0.15%Asian, 0.03%Pacific Islander, 1.17% fromother races, and 0.86% from two or more races.
Out of the 8,670 households, 31.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.20% were married couples living together, 14.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.20% were non-families. 23.20% of all households consisted of individuals living alone and 10.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 3.01.
The age distribution of the county's population consisted of 23.20% under the age of 18, 7.70% from 18 to 24, 30.10% from 25 to 44, 26.00% from 45 to 64, and 13.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 102.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.30 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $35,018 and the median income for a family was $41,905. Males had a median income of $28,968 versus $22,339 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,470. About 10.90% of families and 14.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.30% of those under age 18 and 21.10% of those age 65 and over.
Seated inYanceyville, Caswell County's government consists of 28 departments, an elected board of commissioners, a clerk to the board, and an appointed county manager.[209] The county has additional central administration,Cooperative Extension,E-911, and Juvenile Crime Prevention Council staff.[210]
The county lies within the bounds of the 22nd Prosecutorial District, the 17ASuperior Court District, and the 17A District Court District.[211]
Caswell County is part of the 13th congressional district and a member of thePiedmont Triad Council of Governments.[212]
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1912 | 154 | 17.04% | 705 | 77.99% | 45 | 4.98% |
| 1916 | 338 | 28.48% | 849 | 71.52% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1920 | 505 | 28.96% | 1,239 | 71.04% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1924 | 467 | 30.21% | 1,075 | 69.53% | 4 | 0.26% |
| 1928 | 749 | 44.45% | 936 | 55.55% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1932 | 169 | 8.31% | 1,858 | 91.39% | 6 | 0.30% |
| 1936 | 207 | 7.67% | 2,493 | 92.33% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1940 | 351 | 13.07% | 2,335 | 86.93% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1944 | 492 | 20.37% | 1,923 | 79.63% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1948 | 351 | 14.63% | 1,651 | 68.82% | 397 | 16.55% |
| 1952 | 973 | 27.25% | 2,597 | 72.75% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1956 | 1,204 | 32.79% | 2,468 | 67.21% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1960 | 1,272 | 30.99% | 2,832 | 69.01% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1964 | 1,793 | 41.64% | 2,513 | 58.36% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1968 | 1,036 | 17.20% | 2,137 | 35.47% | 2,851 | 47.33% |
| 1972 | 2,983 | 59.65% | 1,922 | 38.43% | 96 | 1.92% |
| 1976 | 1,761 | 32.08% | 3,707 | 67.54% | 21 | 0.38% |
| 1980 | 2,156 | 37.32% | 3,529 | 61.09% | 92 | 1.59% |
| 1984 | 3,992 | 48.84% | 4,157 | 50.86% | 25 | 0.31% |
| 1988 | 3,299 | 43.93% | 4,189 | 55.79% | 21 | 0.28% |
| 1992 | 2,793 | 33.40% | 4,725 | 56.50% | 845 | 10.10% |
| 1996 | 3,310 | 40.57% | 4,312 | 52.86% | 536 | 6.57% |
| 2000 | 4,270 | 50.70% | 4,091 | 48.58% | 61 | 0.72% |
| 2004 | 4,868 | 51.58% | 4,539 | 48.10% | 30 | 0.32% |
| 2008 | 5,208 | 47.95% | 5,545 | 51.05% | 109 | 1.00% |
| 2012 | 5,594 | 50.67% | 5,348 | 48.45% | 97 | 0.88% |
| 2016 | 6,026 | 54.44% | 4,792 | 43.29% | 252 | 2.28% |
| 2020 | 7,089 | 58.82% | 4,860 | 40.33% | 102 | 0.85% |
| 2024 | 7,445 | 61.84% | 4,493 | 37.32% | 102 | 0.85% |
In August 2025, Caswell County's elected officials were:[214][215][216]
Caswell County Board of Commissioners:
North Carolina General Assembly representatives:
U.S. House of Representatives:
Caswell County is in thePiedmont Triad and nearDanville, Virginia and theResearch Triangle, giving residents access to regional employment centers, services, and institutions.[217][98]
As of 2023, major employers in the area includeCaswell County Schools (the county's largest employer), theNCDAC’s Caswell Correctional Center and Dan River Prison Work Farm, andPiedmont Community College’s Caswell County Campus.[218][100][219][220]
Prominent industries in the county include agriculture, manufacturing, education,food service, healthcare, retail, and otherservice industries. Manufactured goods includetextiles, clothing,electronics, and industrial maintenance chemicals.[4][221]
Caswell County's economy is rooted in agriculture, and its agricultural sector hasdiversified beyond tobacco cultivation. The area's location, commercial properties, land primed for development, and relatively low property tax rate have contributed to an increase in business activity and entrepreneurship.[222][223]
The county's agricultural sector produceshemp, tobacco,soybeans, corn, wheat,oats,barley, hay,alfalfa,beef cattle, sheep,swine, andpoultry. The county also producesminerals such assoapstone,graphite,mica,corundum,microcline, andberyl.[224][4]
NCCooperative Extension inYanceyville connects local agribusinesses and farmers with crucial research-based information and technology.[225] The Caswell County Local Foods Council manages the Caswell County Farmers Market in Yanceyville and initiates community-driven projects.[226]
The county hosts two industrial parks—Pelham Business Park and Yanceyville Business Park.[227] Cherokee Tobacco Company’s planned production and distribution facility will be located at Pelham Business Park.[105] CoSquare, a coworking space that fosters entrepreneurship and remote work, is inYanceyville’s downtown historic district.[104] Caswell County has been described as a prime location for growth in the information technology and manufacturing sectors.[228]
On its website, the county lists the North Carolina Economic Development Association (NCEDA) and the Piedmont Triad Partnership as economic development partners.[222]
The county's property tax rate was $0.585 per $100 of assessed value in FY 2024–25,[229] and third‑party estimates place the county's effective property tax burden for homeowners at about 0.69% (median annual bill roughly $957).[230]
Caswell County is designated a Tier 1 county in North Carolina's 2025 County Distress Rankings, a state system used to prioritize economic development funding and incentives.[231][232]
Caswell County's electric system is maintained byDuke Energy and Piedmont Electric Cooperative.[233]
Caswell County's public safety services are managed by several agencies:[234]
_entering_Caswell_County%2c_North_Carolina_from_Danville%2c_Virginia.jpg)
Interstate 40 andInterstate 85 are the closestinterstate highways to the county, located 14 miles (23 km) south inGraham. When I-785 is completed, it will run through Caswell County nearPelham.[237]
Danville station, located 13.9 miles (22 km) north of Yanceyville[240]
Piedmont Community College's branch campus in Caswell County is located in Yanceyville.[241]
The Caswell County public school system has six schools ranging frompre-kindergarten totwelfth grade. The school district operates onehigh school, onemiddle school, and fourelementary schools:[242]
Gunn Memorial Public Library (in Yanceyville) offers summer reading programs for children of all ages, as well as year-round programs for all age groups.[243]
Caswell Family Medical Center is the county's largestprimary care provider, also offering urgent care, specialty care, andbehavioral health services.[244]
Other health care providers in the county include:
The Caswell County Civic Center, located inYanceyville, has a full-size professionally equipped stage, a 912-seat auditorium, and meeting and banquet facilities for up to 500. It also includes accessories for concerts, theatre, and social functions, as well as a lobby art gallery.[249]
Events and performances are also held at the Yanceyville Town Pavilion.[250][251]
Additional arts-related attractions include:[252][253][254]
Caswell County contains one of North Carolina’s most notable concentrations of antebellum architecture, reflected in the Milton and Yanceyville historic districts as well as numerous individually listed properties on theNational Register of Historic Places. DowntownYanceyville's historic district containsan antebellum courthouse designed by William Percival and several other examples of antebellum architecture.[58]
In addition to the Yanceyville Historic District, the following are included on theNational Register of Historic Places in Caswell County:[255][256]
Caswell County hosts three major festivals annually:
Additional points of interest and amenities include:[254][260]
Caswell County's proximity to Virginia, the Carolina coast, and the foothills of theAppalachian results in a mix ofSouthern American English dialects, includingVirginia Piedmont, Coastal Southern, South Midland, andAfrican American English.[266]
Indoor and outdoor recreational facilities, as well as sports programs and activities, are offered by the Caswell County Department of Parks & Recreation.[267]
The Caswell Senior Center offers recreation and fitness facilities focused on well-being.[268]
Additional recreational areas and attractions include:[269]
The followingtownships are in Caswell County:[185]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)William Alexander Haley, the chief operations officer of Carolina Pinnacle Studios in Yanceyville, N.C.
Dedication ceremonies were held April 1, 1997 and prison managers began moving inmates into the new prison.
The staff includes 188 correctional officers and support personnel.
Top Employer in County, 2023: Caswell County Schools (250–499 employees)
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