Harnett County, North Carolina | |
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.jpg) Harnett County Courthouse | |
 Flag  Seal  Logo | |
 Location within the U.S. state ofNorth Carolina | |
| Coordinates:35°22′N78°52′W / 35.37°N 78.87°W /35.37; -78.87 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  North Carolina |
| Founded | 1855 |
| Named after | Cornelius Harnett |
| Seat | Lillington |
| Largest community | Anderson Creek |
| Area | |
• Total | 601.22 sq mi (1,557.2 km2) |
| • Land | 594.93 sq mi (1,540.9 km2) |
| • Water | 6.29 sq mi (16.3 km2) 1.05% |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 133,568 |
• Estimate (2024) | 146,096 |
| • Density | 224.51/sq mi (86.68/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| Congressional district | 13th |
| Website | www |
Harnett County (/ˈhɑːrnɪt/HAR-nit)[1] is acounty located in theU.S. state ofNorth Carolina. As of the2020 census, the population was 133,568.[2] Itscounty seat isLillington;[3] its largest community isAnderson Creek.[4] Harnett County is part of theAnderson Creek, NCMicropolitan Statistical Area.[5]
Harnett County was formed in 1855 from land given byCumberland County. It was named forAmerican Revolutionary war soldierCornelius Harnett,[6] who was also a delegate to theContinental Congress. The first settlers came to the region in the mid-1720s, and were followed byHighland Scots immigrants. The Scots settled in the foothills, where land was more affordable, rather than in the rich alluvial soil area of the coastal plain. After the defeat by the British ofBonny Prince Charles atCulloden, Scots immigrants came up theCape Fear River in ever increasing numbers and settled in western Harnett County. British immigrants had settled primarily along the banks of theCape Fear River in the coastal area, generally fromErwin toWilmington.
During theAmerican Revolutionary War, many of the Scots wereLoyalists. In their defeat in Scotland, they had been forced to take ironclad vows that prohibited taking up arms against the British.[7] SomeRebels considered them traitors to the cause ofIndependence. Public executions of suspected spies occurred. One site nearLillington was the scene of a mass execution of "Scots traitors".[8]
Though Harnett County was not a site of warfare during theCivil War, one of the last battles took place near Averasborough, which was once the third-most populated town in North Carolina, but is no longer in existence. During theCarolinas campaign, the Left Wing ofGeneral William Sherman's army under the command of Major GeneralHenry W. Slocum defeated the army ofGeneral William Hardee in theBattle of Averasborough and proceeded eastward. A centennial celebration of the event was held in 1965 at the site of the battlefield.
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 601.22 square miles (1,557.2 km2), of which 594.93 square miles (1,540.9 km2) is land and 6.29 square miles (16.3 km2) (1.05%) is water.[9]
| Race / Ethnicity(NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 2000[13] | Pop 2010[14] | Pop 2020[15] | % 2000 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 62,708 | 73,707 | 77,876 | 68.89% | 64.27% | 58.30% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 20,371 | 23,591 | 26,769 | 22.38% | 20.57% | 20.04% |
| Native American orAlaska Native alone (NH) | 752 | 991 | 978 | 0.83% | 0.86% | 0.73% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 573 | 983 | 1,408 | 0.63% | 0.86% | 1.05% |
| Pacific Islander alone (NH) | 48 | 126 | 242 | 0.05% | 0.11% | 0.18% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 118 | 202 | 707 | 0.13% | 0.18% | 0.53% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | 1,119 | 2,719 | 6,689 | 1.23% | 2.37% | 5.01% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 5,336 | 12,359 | 18,899 | 5.86% | 10.78% | 14.15% |
| Total | 91,025 | 114,678 | 133,568 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
As of the2020 census, the county had a population of 133,568, making it the 23rd most populous county in North Carolina; Anderson Creek was recorded as the largest community.[16][17][4]
The median age was 35.0 years; 26.6% of residents were under the age of 18 and 13.3% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 96.9 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 94.0 males age 18 and over.[16]
The racial makeup of the county was 61.3%White, 20.5%Black or African American, 1.1%American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%Asian, 0.2%Native Hawaiian andPacific Islander, 7.1% from some other race, and 8.7% fromtwo or more races.Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 14.1% of the population.[18]
35.8% of residents lived in urban areas, while 64.2% lived in rural areas.[19]
There were 48,083 households in the county, of which 37.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 51.2% were married-couple households, 16.8% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 25.8% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 23.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[16]
There were 52,876 housing units, of which 9.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 66.8% were owner-occupied and 33.2% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.1% and the rental vacancy rate was 7.6%.[16]
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Between 2010 and 2020, the population in Harnett County grew by 18,890 people, or 18.6 percent, though the largest city ofDunn (at the time) shrank by 4.8 percent during the same interval. Proportionately, the white population decreased by 6.7 percent, while the Hispanic/Latino population grew by 3.3 percent and the Asian population grew by 0.2 percent. The black and Native American populations remained about the same.[17]
Harnett is a typical "Solid South" county in its political history. Apart from the 1928 election when it defected toHerbert Hoover because of opposition to the Catholicism ofAl Smith,[26] Harnett voted rock-solid Democratic until the 1960s when opposition to increasing liberalism on racial policies turned the electorate toward the segregationist candidacy ofGeorge Wallace. Since then apart from when carried twice by native SouthernerJimmy Carter in 1976 and 1980, Harnett has been a solidly Republican county.
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1880 | 704 | 40.65% | 1,028 | 59.35% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1884 | 744 | 37.24% | 1,254 | 62.76% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1888 | 1,100 | 42.34% | 1,498 | 57.66% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1892 | 650 | 25.87% | 1,222 | 48.63% | 641 | 25.51% |
| 1896 | 1,042 | 37.95% | 1,676 | 61.03% | 28 | 1.02% |
| 1900 | 1,199 | 47.17% | 1,342 | 52.79% | 1 | 0.04% |
| 1904 | 723 | 37.60% | 1,169 | 60.79% | 31 | 1.61% |
| 1908 | 1,047 | 41.01% | 1,501 | 58.79% | 5 | 0.20% |
| 1912 | 148 | 5.80% | 1,364 | 53.43% | 1,041 | 40.78% |
| 1916 | 1,603 | 44.49% | 1,992 | 55.29% | 8 | 0.22% |
| 1920 | 3,311 | 45.80% | 3,919 | 54.20% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1924 | 2,895 | 46.68% | 3,296 | 53.14% | 11 | 0.18% |
| 1928 | 4,740 | 57.15% | 3,554 | 42.85% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1932 | 2,617 | 29.04% | 6,346 | 70.42% | 49 | 0.54% |
| 1936 | 2,264 | 22.02% | 8,018 | 77.98% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1940 | 2,280 | 25.67% | 6,602 | 74.33% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1944 | 3,191 | 32.66% | 6,579 | 67.34% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1948 | 1,985 | 22.26% | 6,608 | 74.11% | 323 | 3.62% |
| 1952 | 4,306 | 36.18% | 7,595 | 63.82% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1956 | 3,998 | 35.01% | 7,421 | 64.99% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1960 | 5,301 | 40.18% | 7,892 | 59.82% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1964 | 5,883 | 44.03% | 7,477 | 55.97% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1968 | 5,184 | 32.97% | 4,007 | 25.49% | 6,531 | 41.54% |
| 1972 | 10,259 | 74.64% | 3,347 | 24.35% | 138 | 1.00% |
| 1976 | 5,935 | 39.61% | 8,992 | 60.01% | 58 | 0.39% |
| 1980 | 7,284 | 44.70% | 8,791 | 53.95% | 220 | 1.35% |
| 1984 | 11,198 | 61.11% | 7,106 | 38.78% | 19 | 0.10% |
| 1988 | 9,749 | 57.25% | 7,259 | 42.63% | 21 | 0.12% |
| 1992 | 9,751 | 46.58% | 8,473 | 40.48% | 2,708 | 12.94% |
| 1996 | 11,596 | 53.34% | 8,767 | 40.33% | 1,376 | 6.33% |
| 2000 | 14,762 | 61.08% | 9,155 | 37.88% | 250 | 1.03% |
| 2004 | 20,922 | 64.24% | 11,563 | 35.50% | 86 | 0.26% |
| 2008 | 23,579 | 57.93% | 16,785 | 41.24% | 341 | 0.84% |
| 2012 | 25,565 | 58.89% | 17,331 | 39.92% | 519 | 1.20% |
| 2016 | 27,614 | 59.95% | 16,737 | 36.33% | 1,714 | 3.72% |
| 2020 | 35,177 | 60.35% | 22,093 | 37.90% | 1,023 | 1.75% |
| 2024 | 39,440 | 61.86% | 23,472 | 36.81% | 845 | 1.33% |
Harnett County is a member of the regionalMid-Carolina Council of Governments.
Harnett County is home toCampbell University and to 27 pre-college schools: 4 primary schools, 13 elementary schools, 5 middle schools, 4 high schools, and 2 alternative schools.[28][29]
Harnett County Schools is the local public school district.
Schools in the county include:
The Linden Oaks housing development, ofFort Bragg, has someDepartment of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) schools, including Gary Ivan Gordon Elementary School,[31] Randall David Shughart Elementary School,[32] and Shugart Middle School.[33] High school students living in Linden Oaks are assigned to Harnett County Schools' Overhills High School.[34]
The county is served by theHarnett County Library System, based in Lillington with branches atAngier,Coats,Dunn,Erwin, Anderson Creek Primary School, and Boone Trail Community Center and Library.[35]
With the addition of Shughart Middle School in the Linden Oaks community,[...]
Geographic data related toHarnett County, North Carolina atOpenStreetMapPlaces adjacent to Harnett County, North Carolina | ||||||||||||||||
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Municipalities and communities ofHarnett County, North Carolina,United States | ||
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| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
Greater Raleigh Metropolitan Region (Raleigh–Cary, MSA; part of theResearch Triangle) | ||
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