Murfreesboro, North Carolina
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Murfreesboro is a town in Hertford County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 2,045 at the 2000 census. Murfreesboro is located in North Carolina's Inner Banks region.
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[edit] History
As the northernmost point of navigation on the Meherrin River, Murfreesboro was the deepest a seagoing vessel out on the Albemarle Sound might penetrate into the large and productive farming area of southern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina. Murfreesboro was designated by Congress in 1790 as an official port of entry, and the customs records indicate a profitable three-cornered trade with New England and the West Indies. The vessels and their cargoes were mostly owned by captains from New England, many of whom put down roots here and impressed their outlook on the new town in ways that have not entirely vanished to this day.
A surprising number of famous people have connections to Murfreesboro. Richard Gatling, inventor of the machine gun, was born in the countryside north of Murfreesboro, Walter Reed was married there, and John Hill Wheeler, the first US ambassador to Nicaragua and head of the US Mint in Charlotte, was born there.
Meherrin Baptist Church, one of North Carolina's oldest churches, is located in Murfreesboro.
[edit] Education
Murfreesboro is home to Riverview Elementary School and Hertford County Middle School, both of which are part of the Hertford County Public School system. Chowan University, a small private Baptist 4-year university (with some graduate programs) is also located there. In addition, the old public school (which housed grades 1 - 12 until 1972) has been remodeled into a museum housing the collections of Brady Jefcoat, a Raleigh native. It includes hundreds of well-preserved ordinary items from the late 19th and early 20th century, including functional phongraphs, radios, washing machines, and agricultural implements, as well as a wide variety of other novelties. Admission is $7.00 per person.
[edit] Business
Local restaurants include a barbecue restaurant, a more formal seafood and steak restaurant, two chinese restaurants, an old-fashioned grill, and a variety of fast food. A nearby cotton mill supplements the metal fabrication and farm implement manufacturing industries in town. Chowan College (see Education above) is another major employer, as are a Nucor steel mill located 30 minutes away, and a large federal prison located 20 minutes south. The remainder of local business and industry consists of local retail stores.
[edit] Entertainment
A different musical group performs on the first Saturday of each month at the auditorium behind the Jefcoat museum, and a public boat landing on the edge of town offers easy access to the Meherrin river (pronounced "muh-HAIR-in"), which in turn flows into the larger Chowan river (pronounced "cha-WAHN") a few miles downstream. Highlights of town entertainment include the annual watermelon festival, the annual pork fest (held on the Jefcoat museum grounds), as well as the 4th of July fireworks celebration. There is also an annual all-night-long Relay For Life fundraiser festival each April. A gift shop and guided tours of the historic downtown are also available. Each year in the few weeks before Christmas, a candlelit tour of historic homes in the town is conducted. There is also an annual Christmas parade featuring local businesses and churches.
[edit] Geography
Murfreesboro is located at (36.440983, -77.096901)GR1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 5.7 km² (2.2 mi²). 5.6 km² (2.2 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (1.82%) is water.
[edit] Demographics
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 2,045 people, 919 households, and 574 families residing in the town. The population density was 365.5/km² (946.7/mi²). There were 986 housing units at an average density of 176.2/km² (456.4/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 60.00% White, 37.56% African American, 0.49% Native American, 0.24% Asian, 0.93% from other races, and 0.78% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.00% of the population.
There were 919 households out of which 23.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.5% were married couples living together, 15.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.5% were non-families. 34.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.82.
In the town the population was spread out with 22.0% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 23.2% from 25 to 44, 25.6% from 45 to 64, and 22.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 83.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 76.4 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $29,716, and the median income for a family was $43,417. Males had a median income of $31,392 versus $21,523 for females. The per capita income for the town was $17,054. About 11.5% of families and 18.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.2% of those under age 18 and 14.7% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] External links
- http://www.murfreesboronc.com
- http://www.chowan.edu
- http://www.murfreesboronc.com/historic/tour/jefcoat.htm
- http://www.murfreesboronc.com/historic/tour/wheeler.htm
- http://www.murfreesboronc.com/watermelon/
- http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2004/summer.trips/interactive/gallery.food.wine/content.5.1.html
- Maps and aerial photos
- Street map from Google Maps, or Yahoo! Maps, or Windows Live Local
- Satellite image from Google Maps, Windows Live Local, WikiMapia
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
