Boone | |
|---|---|
 West King Street | |
 Flag  Seal | |
| Nickname: The Heart of the High Country | |
 | |
| Coordinates:36°12′40″N81°40′01″W / 36.21111°N 81.66694°W /36.21111; -81.66694 | |
| Country | United States |
| State | North Carolina |
| County | Watauga |
| Incorporated | 1872 |
| Named after | Daniel Boone |
| Government | |
| • Type | Council–manager |
| • Mayor | Tim Futrelle[1] |
| Area | |
• Total | 6.35 sq mi (16.45 km2) |
| • Land | 6.33 sq mi (16.40 km2) |
| • Water | 0.019 sq mi (0.05 km2) |
| Elevation | 3,232 ft (985 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 19,092 |
| • Density | 3,010/sq mi (1,164/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| ZIP codes | 28607-28608 |
| Area code | 828 |
| FIPS code | 37-07080[4] |
| GNIS feature ID | 2405303[3] |
| Website | www |
Boone is a town in and thecounty seat ofWatauga County, North Carolina, United States. Located in theBlue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina, Boone is the home ofAppalachian State University and the headquarters of the disaster and medical relief organizationSamaritan's Purse. The population was 19,092 at the2020 census.[5]
The town is named for famousAmerican pioneer and explorerDaniel Boone, and every summer from 1952 has hosted an outdooramphitheatre drama,Horn in the West, portraying the British settlement of the area during theAmerican Revolutionary War and featuring the contributions of its namesake. It is the largest community and the economic hub of the seven-county region of Western North Carolina known as theHigh Country.
Boone took its name from the famous pioneer and explorerDaniel Boone, who on several occasions camped at a site generally agreed to be within the present city limits. Daniel's nephews, Jesse and Jonathan (sons of brother Israel Boone), were members of the town's first church,[6] Three Forks Baptist, still in existence today.[7]
Boone was served by thenarrow-gaugeEast Tennessee and Western North Carolina Railroad (nicknamed "Tweetsie") until the flood of 1940. The flood washed away much of the tracks and it was decided not to replace them.
Boone is the home ofAppalachian State University, a constituent member of theUniversity of North Carolina. Appalachian State is the sixth-largest university in the seventeen-campus system.Caldwell Community College & Technical Institute also operates a satellite campus in Boone.
"Horn in the West" is a dramatization of the life and times of the early settlers of the mountain area.[8] It features Daniel Boone as one of its characters, and has been performed in an outdooramphitheater near the town every summer since 1952, except for when COVID-19 necessitated canceling the 2020 performances.[9]
The original actor in the role of "Daniel Boone" wasNed Austin.[10] His "Hollywood Star" stands on a pedestal on King Street in downtown Boone. He was followed in the role by Glenn Causey, who portrayed the rugged frontiersman for 41 years, and whose image is still seen in many of the depictions of Boone featured in the area today.[citation needed]
Boone is notable for being home to the Junaluska community. Located in the hills just north of Downtown Boone, a free black community has existed in the area since before theCivil War. Although integration in the mid-20th century led to many of the businesses in the neighborhood closing in favor of their downtown counterparts, descendants of the original inhabitants still live in the neighborhood. Junaluska is also home to one of the few majority-African AmericanMennonite Brethren congregations.[11]
Boone is a center forbluegrass musicians andAppalachianstorytellers. Notable artists associated with Boone include the lateGrammy Award-winning bluegrass guitar playerDoc Watson and the late guitaristMichael Houser, one of the founding members of and the lead guitarist for the bandWidespread Panic, as well asOld Crow Medicine Show,The Blue Rags, andEric Church, all who are Boone natives.
TheBlair Farm,Daniel Boone Hotel,Jones House,John Smith Miller House, andUS Post Office-Boone are listed on theNational Register of Historic Places.[12]
Thehellbender is an important cultural symbol of the city and is the namesake of various local establishments and products. In 2024, the Boone Town Council and theCenter for Biological Diversity installed a large mural of the hellbender in downtown Boone to raise awareness of the species. In January 2024, Boone passed a resolution supporting the inclusion of the hellbender in theEndangered Species Act of 1973 to better protect its habitat.[13]
Boone has an elevation of 3,333 feet (1,016 m) above sea level. An earlier survey gave the elevation as 3,332 ft and since then it has been published as 3,333 ft (1,016 m). Boone has the highest elevation of any town of its size (over 10,000 population) east of theMississippi River. As such, Boone features, depending on theisotherm used, awarm-summer humid continental climate (KöppenDfb), a rarity for the Southeastern United States, bordering on anoceanic climate (Cfb)[14] and straddles the boundary betweenUSDA Plant Hardiness Zones 6B and 7A;[15] the elevation also results in enhanced precipitation, with 59.13 inches (1,500 mm) of average annual precipitation. Compared to the lower elevations of the Carolinas, winters are long and cold, with frequent sleet and snowfall. The daily average temperature in January is 31.5 °F (−0.3 °C),[16] which gives Boone a winter climate more similar to coastal southernNew England rather than the Southeast, where ahumid subtropical climate (Cfa) predominates. Blizzard-like conditions are not unusual during winters. Summers are warm, but far cooler and less humid than lower regions to the south and east, with a July daily average temperature of 68.4 °F (20.2 °C).[16] Boone receives on average nearly 25 inches (64 cm) of snowfall annually, far higher than the lowland areas in the rest ofNorth Carolina.[17] On January 21, 1985, the temperature fell to −24 °F (−31 °C).
| Climate data for Boone, North Carolina (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1920–present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 78 (26) | 75 (24) | 81 (27) | 89 (32) | 87 (31) | 94 (34) | 96 (36) | 91 (33) | 92 (33) | 87 (31) | 80 (27) | 73 (23) | 93 (34) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 60.1 (15.6) | 62.5 (16.9) | 69.9 (21.1) | 76.7 (24.8) | 80.2 (26.8) | 83.9 (28.8) | 85.6 (29.8) | 84.5 (29.2) | 81.3 (27.4) | 75.6 (24.2) | 68.1 (20.1) | 61.5 (16.4) | 86.9 (30.5) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 41.4 (5.2) | 44.7 (7.1) | 51.7 (10.9) | 61.7 (16.5) | 69.4 (20.8) | 75.8 (24.3) | 79.0 (26.1) | 77.8 (25.4) | 72.2 (22.3) | 63.0 (17.2) | 53.0 (11.7) | 45.0 (7.2) | 61.2 (16.2) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 31.5 (−0.3) | 34.2 (1.2) | 40.5 (4.7) | 49.3 (9.6) | 57.6 (14.2) | 64.7 (18.2) | 68.4 (20.2) | 67.1 (19.5) | 61.3 (16.3) | 51.2 (10.7) | 41.3 (5.2) | 34.9 (1.6) | 50.2 (10.1) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 21.6 (−5.8) | 23.8 (−4.6) | 29.2 (−1.6) | 36.9 (2.7) | 45.8 (7.7) | 53.7 (12.1) | 57.7 (14.3) | 56.3 (13.5) | 50.3 (10.2) | 39.3 (4.1) | 29.6 (−1.3) | 24.7 (−4.1) | 39.1 (3.9) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | 3.9 (−15.6) | 8.8 (−12.9) | 14.3 (−9.8) | 24.3 (−4.3) | 32.6 (0.3) | 43.6 (6.4) | 49.6 (9.8) | 48.5 (9.2) | 38.4 (3.6) | 26.2 (−3.2) | 17.6 (−8.0) | 10.2 (−12.1) | 1.5 (−16.9) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −24 (−31) | −8 (−22) | −6 (−21) | 13 (−11) | 24 (−4) | 33 (1) | 38 (3) | 33 (1) | 25 (−4) | 14 (−10) | −6 (−21) | −11 (−24) | −24 (−31) |
| Averageprecipitation inches (mm) | 4.39 (112) | 3.64 (92) | 4.77 (121) | 5.52 (140) | 5.46 (139) | 5.59 (142) | 5.11 (130) | 5.56 (141) | 5.73 (146) | 4.69 (119) | 4.44 (113) | 4.23 (107) | 59.13 (1,502) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 6.6 (17) | 6.7 (17) | 4.8 (12) | 1.0 (2.5) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.3 (0.76) | 1.0 (2.5) | 5.2 (13) | 25.6 (65) |
| Average extreme snow depth inches (cm) | 4.3 (11) | 3.9 (9.9) | 3.4 (8.6) | 0.6 (1.5) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.2 (0.51) | 0.7 (1.8) | 3.8 (9.7) | 8.4 (21) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 0.01 in) | 11.7 | 11.5 | 12.3 | 12.9 | 14.0 | 14.3 | 14.1 | 13.3 | 10.9 | 9.8 | 9.2 | 11.9 | 145.9 |
| Average snowy days(≥ 0.1 in) | 3.7 | 3.8 | 2.5 | 0.7 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.7 | 2.6 | 14.6 |
| Source:NOAA[16][17] | |||||||||||||
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1880 | 167 | — | |
| 1890 | 144 | −13.8% | |
| 1900 | 155 | 7.6% | |
| 1910 | 179 | 15.5% | |
| 1920 | 374 | 108.9% | |
| 1930 | 1,295 | 246.3% | |
| 1940 | 1,788 | 38.1% | |
| 1950 | 2,973 | 66.3% | |
| 1960 | 3,686 | 24.0% | |
| 1970 | 8,754 | 137.5% | |
| 1980 | 10,191 | 16.4% | |
| 1990 | 12,915 | 26.7% | |
| 2000 | 13,472 | 4.3% | |
| 2010 | 17,122 | 27.1% | |
| 2020 | 19,092 | 11.5% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[18] | |||
| Race | Number | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| White (non-Hispanic) | 13,701 | 71.76% |
| Black or African American (non-Hispanic) | 1,783 | 9.34% |
| Native American | 31 | 0.16% |
| Asian | 645 | 3.38% |
| Pacific Islander | 7 | 0.04% |
| Other/Mixed | 1,154 | 6.04% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 1,771 | 9.28% |
As of the2020 United States census, there were 19,092 people, 5,905 households, and 1,641 families residing in the town.
As of thecensus[4] of 2000, there were 13,472 people, 4,374 households, and 1,237 families residing in the town. Thepopulation density was 2,307.0 people per square mile (890.7 people/km2). There were 4,748 housing units at an average density of 813.0 per square mile (313.9/km2). The racial makeup of the town was 93.98%White, 3.42% Black or African American, 0.30%Native American, 1.19%Asian, 0.05%Pacific Islander, 0.46% fromother races, and 0.60% fromtwo or more races. 1.64% of the population wereHispanic or Latino of any race.[4]
There were 4,374 households, out of which 9.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 21.0% were married couples living together, 5.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 71.7% were non-families. 38.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.97 and the average family size was 2.63.[4]
In the town, the population was spread out, with 5.8% under 18, 65.9% from 18 to 24, 12.1% from 25 to 44, 9.1% from 45 to 64, and 7.1% who were 65 or older. The median age was 21 years. For every 100 females, there are 95.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.7 males.[4]
Themedian income for a household in the town was $20,541, and the median income for a family was $49,762. Theper capita income was $12,256. Males had a median income of $28,060 versus $20,000 for females. About 9.2% of families and 37.0% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 6.3% of those under the age of 18 and 9.1% of those 65 and older.[4]
Boone is mainly served by three local newspapers:
A smaller newspaper,The Appalachian, is Appalachian State University's campus newspaper; it sends out email newsletters twice a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays during the regular academic year and publishes a print publication monthly.[21] In addition to the locally printed papers, a monthly entertainment pamphlet,Kraut Creek Revival, has limited circulation and is funded by a Denver, North Carolina–based newspaper.
Boone operates under amayor–council government. The city council consists of five members. The mayor presides over the council and casts a vote in the event of a tie. As of December 2021[update], the Town Council members were Mayor Tim Futrelle and Councilors: Jon Dalton George (Mayor Pro-Tem), Virginia Roseman, Todd Carter, Edie Tugman, and Dr. Eric Plaag.[23]
Industrial, commercial, and residential development in Boone is controversial due to its location in the mountains of Appalachia. On October 16, 2009, the town council accepted the "Boone 2030 Land Use Plan."[24] The document is not in any way law, but is used by the town council, board of adjustment, and other committees to guide decision-making as to what types of development are appropriate.[25]
In 2009, theNorth Carolina Department of Transportation began widening 1.1 miles of U.S. 421 (King Street) to a 4-to-6-lane divided highway with a raised concrete median from U.S. 321 (Hardin Street) to east of N.C. 194 (Jefferson Road), including a new entrance and exit to the new Watauga High School, at a cost of $16.2 million.[26] The widening has displaced 25 businesses and 63 residences east of King Street.[27] The project was slated to be completed by December 31, 2011, but construction continued into 2012.
Boone is home to theAppalachian State Mountaineers, which field varsity teams in 17 sports, 7 for men and 10 for women. Appalachian State's football program has been successful with the Mountaineers winning three straight national championships in 2005, 2006, and 2007, the only team in North Carolina, public or private, to win an NCAA national championship in football.[28]
Aside from college sports, Boone also has local baseball and soccer teams. The Boone Bigfoots were formed in 2021 and compete in theCoastal Plain League, a wood-bat collegiate summer baseball league. The Bigfoots play their home games atBeaver Field at Jim and Bettie Smith Stadium. Boone's entry in theNational Premier Soccer League isAppalachian FC, which plays home games atASU Soccer Stadium in the Ted Mackorell Soccer Complex.[29]
Boone has onesister city, as designated bySister Cities International:
Collingwood, Ontario, Canada[41]
Municipalities and communities ofWatauga County, North Carolina,United States | ||
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| Towns |  | |
| CDPs | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Geographic | |
| Other | |
