| Madison County, North Carolina | ||
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Madison County courthouse, Marshall
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Location in the state of North Carolina |
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North Carolina's location in the U.S. |
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| Founded | 1851 | |
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| Seat | Marshall | |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
452 sq mi (1,171 km²) 449 sq mi (1,163 km²) 2 sq mi (5 km²), 0.48% |
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| Population - (2010) - Density |
20,764 46/sq mi (17.8/km²) |
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| Website | www.madisoncountync.org | |
Madison County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is part of the Asheville, North Carolina, Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, the population was 20,764. Its county seat is Marshall.[1]
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The county was formed in 1851 from parts of Buncombe County and Yancey County. It was named for James Madison, fourth President of the United States (1809–1817).
Madison County is governed by a five-member board of commissioners who are elected every two years. The board selects its own chairman and holds scheduled meetings on the second Monday of each month.[2] Madison County is a member of the Land-of-Sky Regional Council of governments. Madison County is considered a "dry" county, meaning that the sale and/or public consumption of alcoholic beverages is illegal within the county limits. However, individual towns have right of self determination regarding alcohol sales. Hot Springs, Marshall and Mars Hill[3] all allow beer and wine sales, but not liquor.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 452 square miles (1,170 km2), of which, 449 square miles (1,160 km2) of it is land and 2 square miles (5.2 km2) of it (0.48%) is water.
Madison County is located deep in the Appalachian Mountains of western North Carolina, and much of the county's terrain is rugged, heavily forested, and sparsely populated. The county's northern border is with the State of Tennessee. Madison County's largest river is the French Broad River, which flows north-northwest through the county, first past the county seat of Marshall, then past the resort town of Hot Springs.
Madison County's public educational system consists of one early college high school, one ordinary high school, located in the county seat of Marshall, one middle school, and four elementary schools. The county is also home to Mars Hill College, a private, coed, four-year liberal-arts college affiliated with the North Carolina Baptist Convention. Founded in 1856, Mars Hill is the oldest college in western North Carolina; it offers 31 majors in five degrees.
The county is divided into eleven townships, which are both numbered and named: 1 (North Marshall and South Marshall), 2 (Laurel), 3 (Mars Hill), 4 (Beech Glenn), 5 (Walnut), 6 (Hot Springs), 7 (Ebbs Chapel), 8 (Spring Creek), 9 (Sandy Mush), 10 (Grapevine), and 11 (Revere Rice Cove). Formerly there were sixteen: 1 (Marshall), 2 (Shelton Laurel), 3 (Bull Creek), 4 (Middle Fork of Ivy), 5 (West Fork of Ivy), 6 (Sandy Mush), 7 (Little Pine Creek), 8 (Spring Creek), 9 (Hot Springs), 10 (Big Laurel), 11 (Upper Laurel), 12 (Big Pine Creek), 13 (Meadow Fork of Spring Creek), 14 (Grapevine), 15 (Mars Hill), and 16 (Foster Creek).
| Cocke County, Tennessee | Greene County, Tennessee | Unicoi County, Tennessee | ||
| Yancey County | ||||
| Madison County, North Carolina | ||||
| Haywood County | Buncombe County |
As of the census[4] of 2000, there were 19,635 people, 8,000 households, and 5,592 families residing in the county. The population density was 44 people per square mile (17/km²). There were 9,722 housing units at an average density of 22 per square mile (8/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.63% White, 0.83% Black or African American, 0.27% Native American, 0.23% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.45% from other races, and 0.59% from two or more races. 1.35% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 8,000 households out of which 28.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.50% were married couples living together, 8.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.10% were non-families. 26.30% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.81.
In the county the population was spread out with 21.20% under the age of 18, 10.30% from 18 to 24, 26.50% from 25 to 44, 26.00% from 45 to 64, and 15.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 97.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.30 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $30,985, and the median income for a family was $37,383. Males had a median income of $27,950 versus $22,678 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,076. About 10.90% of families and 15.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.60% of those under age 18 and 19.20% of those age 65 or over.
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