Caldwell County, North Carolina | |
|---|---|
 Caldwell County Courthouse in Lenoir | |
 Flag  Seal  Logo | |
| Nickname: The Gateway To The Blue Ridge | |
 Location within the U.S. state ofNorth Carolina | |
 North Carolina's location within theU.S. | |
| Coordinates:35°58′N81°31′W / 35.97°N 81.51°W /35.97; -81.51 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  North Carolina |
| Founded | 1841 |
| Named after | Joseph Caldwell |
| Seat | Lenoir |
| Largest community | Lenoir |
| Area | |
• Total | 474.61 sq mi (1,229.2 km2) |
| • Land | 471.89 sq mi (1,222.2 km2) |
| • Water | 2.72 sq mi (7.0 km2) 0.57% |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 80,652 |
• Estimate (2024) | 80,739 |
| • Density | 170.91/sq mi (65.99/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| Congressional district | 5th |
| Website | www |
Caldwell County is acounty in theU.S. state ofNorth Carolina. It is located in the foothills of theBlue Ridge Mountains. As of the2020 census, the population was 80,652.[1] Itscounty seat isLenoir.[2] Caldwell County is part of theHickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NCMetropolitan Statistical Area.
The county was formed in 1841 from parts ofBurke County andWilkes County. It was named forJoseph Caldwell, presiding professor and the first president of theUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
A series of reductions to the county's territory have taken place since its initial formation. In 1847, parts of Caldwell County,Iredell County, and Wilkes County were combined to formAlexander County. In 1849, parts of Caldwell County,Ashe County, Wilkes County, andYancey County were combined to formWatauga County. In 1861, parts of Caldwell County, Burke County,McDowell County, Watauga County, and Yancey County were combined to formMitchell County. Finally, in 1911 parts of Caldwell County, Mitchell County, and Watauga County were combined to formAvery County.
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 474.61 square miles (1,229.2 km2), of which 471.89 square miles (1,222.2 km2) is land and 2.72 square miles (7.0 km2) (0.57%) is water.[3]
Caldwell County is divided into three distinct geographic sections: theBlue Ridge Mountains, which dominate the northern and western parts of the county; the gently rollingPiedmont country in the middle and southern parts of the county; and theBrushy Mountains, an isolated remnant of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The "Brushies", as they are often called, run across much of Caldwell County's eastern section.Hibriten Mountain, located within the city limits ofLenoir, the county's largest city, marks the western end of the Brushy Mountain range. In the western part of the county is theWilson Creek area.
US 64
US 221
US 321, busiest highway in the county with an annual average daily traffic count of 39,000 in 2014.[5]
US 321A
NC 18
NC 90
NC 268| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1850 | 6,317 | — | |
| 1860 | 7,497 | 18.7% | |
| 1870 | 8,476 | 13.1% | |
| 1880 | 10,291 | 21.4% | |
| 1890 | 12,298 | 19.5% | |
| 1900 | 15,694 | 27.6% | |
| 1910 | 20,579 | 31.1% | |
| 1920 | 19,984 | −2.9% | |
| 1930 | 28,016 | 40.2% | |
| 1940 | 35,795 | 27.8% | |
| 1950 | 43,352 | 21.1% | |
| 1960 | 49,552 | 14.3% | |
| 1970 | 56,699 | 14.4% | |
| 1980 | 67,746 | 19.5% | |
| 1990 | 70,709 | 4.4% | |
| 2000 | 77,415 | 9.5% | |
| 2010 | 83,029 | 7.3% | |
| 2020 | 80,652 | −2.9% | |
| 2024 (est.) | 80,739 | [7] | 0.1% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[8] 1790–1960[9] 1900–1990[10] 1990–2000[11] 2010[12] 2020[1] | |||
| Race | Number | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| White (non-Hispanic) | 67,868 | 84.15% |
| Black or African American (non-Hispanic) | 3,843 | 4.76% |
| Native American | 196 | 0.24% |
| Asian | 527 | 0.65% |
| Pacific Islander | 15 | 0.02% |
| Other/Mixed | 3,280 | 4.07% |
| Hispanic orLatino | 4,923 | 6.1% |
As of the2020 census, there were 80,652 people, 32,513 households, and 20,975 families residing in the county.
At the2010 census,[14] there were 83,029 people, 33,388 households, and 23,456 families residing in the county. Thepopulation density was 176.1 people per square mile (68.0 people/km2). There were 37,659 housing units at an average density of 79.9 units per square mile (30.8 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 90.24%White, 4.92%Black orAfrican American, 0.52%Asian, 0.31%Native American, 0.03%Pacific Islander, 2.47% fromother races, and 1.51% from two or more races. TheHispanic orLatino (of any race) population was 4.57%.
There were 33,388 households, of which 32.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.16% weremarried couples living together, 12.52% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.75% were non-families. 25.39% of all households were made up of individuals living alone, and 41.16% of those households had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 2.91.
Of the county's entire population, 22.63% was under the age of 18, 18.33% were 18 to 34, 22.44% were 35 to 49, 21.17% were 50 to 64, and 15.44% were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41.3 years. For every 100 females there were 96.84 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.06 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $34,853, and the median income for a family was $47,028. Males had a median income of $36,429 versus $31,221 for females. Theper capita income for the county was $19,397. About 15.3% of families and 20.50% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 51.8% of single mothers and 13.2% of people age 65 or over.
The county is governed by a five-member Board of Commissioners.[15] The members of the Board of Commissioners are Jeff Branch, Randy Church, Mike LaBrose, Donnie Potter, and Robbie Wilkie.[15] The Clerk to the Board is Abby Rich.[15] The County Manager is Donald E. Duncan Jr. and Deputy County Manager is Jimmy Harrison.[16] The Caldwell County Sheriff is Alan C. Jones.[17] The Clerk of Superior Court is Angela Ashley Kidd.[18] The county's Register of Deeds is Wayne Rash.[19] Caldwell County is a member of the regionalWestern Piedmont Council of Governments.[20]
In theNorth Carolina General Assembly, the county is represented by RepublicanWarren Daniel in the North Carolina Senate, as part ofNorth Carolina Senate district 46, and by RepublicanDestin Hall in the North Carolina House of Representatives, asNorth Carolina House district 87.[21][22]
Caldwell County is part ofNorth Carolina's 5th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives and is represented by RepublicanVirginia Foxx. The county was moved fromNorth Carolina's 11th congressional district in 2021 due to court orderedredistricting in North Carolina. North Carolina's congressional districts for 2023 and beyond have not yet been approved.[23][24][25][26]
Caldwell County's partisan lean is veryRepublican. Of the county's elected legislative representatives at the county, state, and national level, all are Republicans. Since 2010, the average federal election vote in Caldwell County goes over 70% Republican.[27][28][29][30][31]
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1912 | 482 | 14.66% | 1,627 | 49.50% | 1,178 | 35.84% |
| 1916 | 1,659 | 49.02% | 1,725 | 50.98% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1920 | 3,298 | 52.95% | 2,931 | 47.05% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1924 | 2,503 | 42.59% | 3,348 | 56.97% | 26 | 0.44% |
| 1928 | 4,207 | 64.74% | 2,291 | 35.26% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1932 | 3,750 | 40.43% | 5,479 | 59.07% | 46 | 0.50% |
| 1936 | 3,421 | 33.44% | 6,809 | 66.56% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1940 | 3,005 | 32.18% | 6,334 | 67.82% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1944 | 4,365 | 44.61% | 5,419 | 55.39% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1948 | 4,987 | 46.24% | 5,033 | 46.67% | 765 | 7.09% |
| 1952 | 9,160 | 54.87% | 7,533 | 45.13% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1956 | 10,833 | 61.22% | 6,861 | 38.78% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1960 | 11,553 | 56.98% | 8,722 | 43.02% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1964 | 8,733 | 44.60% | 10,846 | 55.40% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1968 | 10,433 | 51.46% | 4,746 | 23.41% | 5,095 | 25.13% |
| 1972 | 12,976 | 71.41% | 4,886 | 26.89% | 309 | 1.70% |
| 1976 | 9,872 | 45.15% | 11,894 | 54.39% | 100 | 0.46% |
| 1980 | 12,965 | 58.11% | 8,738 | 39.17% | 607 | 2.72% |
| 1984 | 17,024 | 69.79% | 7,311 | 29.97% | 59 | 0.24% |
| 1988 | 15,176 | 65.78% | 7,862 | 34.08% | 33 | 0.14% |
| 1992 | 12,543 | 49.04% | 9,033 | 35.32% | 4,000 | 15.64% |
| 1996 | 12,653 | 55.18% | 8,050 | 35.11% | 2,228 | 9.72% |
| 2000 | 17,337 | 66.39% | 8,588 | 32.89% | 190 | 0.73% |
| 2004 | 21,186 | 67.58% | 9,999 | 31.90% | 163 | 0.52% |
| 2008 | 22,526 | 64.08% | 12,081 | 34.36% | 548 | 1.56% |
| 2012 | 23,229 | 66.88% | 10,898 | 31.38% | 605 | 1.74% |
| 2016 | 26,621 | 73.30% | 8,425 | 23.20% | 1,274 | 3.51% |
| 2020 | 32,119 | 74.99% | 10,245 | 23.92% | 465 | 1.09% |
| 2024 | 33,009 | 75.81% | 10,146 | 23.30% | 385 | 0.88% |
All of the county is within theCaldwell County Schools school district.[33]
High schools operated by the district include:
Townships in Caldwell County include:[36]
Geographic data related toCaldwell County, North Carolina atOpenStreetMapPlaces adjacent to Caldwell County, North Carolina | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||||||||||||||
Municipalities and communities ofCaldwell County, North Carolina,United States | ||
|---|---|---|
| Cities |  | |
| Towns | ||
| Village | ||
| CDP | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Geographic | |
| Other | |
