Washington, North Carolina

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Washington is a city in Beaufort County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 9,583 at the 2000 census. In 2006, it was estimated that the town population was 14,831. It is the county seat of Beaufort County^GR6. The closest major city is Greenville ⁶, approx. 10mi to the west.

[edit] Features

The town, known as the "Heart of the Inner Banks," is rich in historical buildings and landmarks--many dating back to colonial times. The city was bombed during the Civil War and there is even a downtown waterfront home that still contains a cannon ball shot by a Confederate ship from the Tar River during the Union's occupation of the town. Union soldiers evacuated the town after the intense shelling, burning most buildings as they left.

Locals enjoy fishing, boating, and the beaches along the Pamlico River, dining in the quaint downtown restaurants, watching the East Carolina University Pirates, Washington High School Pam Pack football games, and a monthly downtown music and art festival called "Music in the Streets."

The town is also near Chocowinity, NC, home to Fountain Powerboats, Inc., a company that specializes in luxury powerboats and powerboat racing. It is here, on the Pamlico sound, that Fountain has set its numerous high-speed world records.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 9,583 people, 3,968 households, and 2,468 families residing in the city. The population density was 569.2/km² (1,475.2/mi²). There were 4,399 housing units at an average density of 261.3/km² (677.2/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 51.78% White, 45.50% African American, 0.17% Native American, 0.49% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 1.04% from other races, and 1.00% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.72% of the population.

There were 3,968 households out of which 28.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 37.3% were married couples living together, 21.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.8% were non-families. 33.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.93.

In the city the population was spread out with 24.7% under the age of 18, 8.6% from 18 to 24, 24.5% from 25 to 44, 22.6% from 45 to 64, and 19.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 77.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 70.8 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $22,057, and the median income for a family was $30,280. Males had a median income of $26,053 versus $21,641 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,319. About 23.3% of families and 28.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 42.8% of those under age 18 and 19.3% of those age 65 or over.