Catawba County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2010 census, the population was 154,810. Its county seat is Newton, and its largest city is Hickory. The county is part of the Hickoryâ€"Lenoirâ€"Morganton, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Catawba County is part of the "North Carolina Data Center Corridor" in Western North Carolina. Maiden is home to the Apple iCloud data center and the largest privately owned solar farm in the United States (operated by Apple). As of 2017, the Catawba County Economic Development Corporation controls a 55-acre business park in Conover designed for data centers and office use. Commscope and Corning, manufacturers of fiber optic cabling, became the region’s largest employers in the late 1990s.
Hickory is home to Lenoir-Rhyne University, the "World's Most Famous Short Track" in NASCAR, and a minor league baseball team named the Hickory Crawdads. Conover is home to the Greater Hickory Classic at Rock Barn.
History
The county, formed in 1842 from Lincoln County, was named for the Catawba tribe of Native Americans who once inhabited the area. German Lutheran colonial immigrants and farmers settled the area in the 1700s. The official history of the county is documented in a series of three books by Gary Freeze, called The Catawbans.
Law and government
Catawba County is a member of the regional Western Piedmont Council of Governments. The county is strongly Republican: no Democratic Presidential candidate has won Catawba County since Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1944.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 413 square miles (1,070Â km2), of which 399 square miles (1,030Â km2) is land and 15 square miles (39Â km2) (3.6%) is water.
Adjacent counties
- Alexander County - north
- Iredell County - east
- Lincoln County - south
- Burke County - west
- Caldwell County - northwest
- Mecklenburg County - southeast
Demographics
As of the census of 2010, there were 154,358 people, 55,533 households, and 39,095 families residing in the county. The population density was 354 people per square mile (137/km²). There were 59,919 housing units at an average density of 150 per square mile (58/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 87.1% White, 8.5% Black or African American, 0.3% Native American, 3.1% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, and 1.14% from two or more races, 9.4% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 55,533 households out of which 31.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.10% were married couples living together, 10.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.60% were non-families. 24.60% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 2.98.
In the county, the population was spread out with 24.30% under the age of 18, 8.80% from 18 to 24, 31.10% from 25 to 44, 23.50% from 45 to 64, and 12.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 97.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.70 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $43,536, and the median income for a family was $47,474. Males had a median income of $30,822 versus $23,352 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,358. About 6.50% of families and 9.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.50% of those under age 18 and 9.70% of those age 65 or over.
Education
- Most of the county is served by Catawba County Schools.
- Newton and Conover are served by the Newton-Conover City School System.
- Most of Hickory is served by the Hickory City School System.
Higher education
- Lenoirâ€"Rhyne University
- Catawba Valley Community College
- Appalachian Center at Hickory
- NC Center for Engineering Technologies
Libraries
- The Catawba County Library System serves the residents of Catawba County. The library system operates 7 libraries throughout the county.
- The Hickory Public Library System serves the residents of Hickory. The library system operates 2 libraries: The Patrick Beaver Memorial Library, and the Ridgeview Library.
Points of Interest
Museums and libraries
- Catawba County FireFighters Museum
- Catawba County Museum of History
- Hickory Aviation Museum
- Hickory Museum of Art
- Catawba County Science Center
- Murrays Mill
- Public Libraries of Catawba County
- Public Libraries of Hickory
Sports and entertainment
- Hickory Crawdads
- Hickory Motor Speedway
Music and performing arts
- Newton-Conover Auditorium
- The Green-Room Theatre
- Western Piedmont Symphony
- Hickory Community Theatre
Other attractions
- Valley Hills Mall
- Lake Norman
- Lake Hickory
- Lake Lookout
Transportation
Major highways
Air
The county's primary general aviation airport is Hickory Regional Airport.
Mass transit
- Greenway Public Transportation bus service serves the cities of Conover, Hickory, and Newton.
Rail
With approximately twenty freight trains a day, Catawba County is a freight railroad transportation center. This is largely due to the areas strong manufacturing based economy, and its placement along the Norfolk Southern Railway line. The Caldwell County Railroad also serves the county and interchanges with Norfolk Southern in Hickory.
Conover has been designated as the Catawba County passenger rail stop for the Western North Carolina Railroad planned to run from Salisbury, NC to Asheville.
Communities
Cities
- Claremont
- Conover
- Hickory
- Newton
Towns
- Brookford
- Catawba
- Long View
- Maiden
Census-designated places
- Lake Norman of Catawba
- Mountain View
- St. Stephens
Unincorporated communities
- Banoak
- Sherrills Ford
- Terrell
Townships
Notable people
Sports and entertainment figures
- Dale Jarrett-NASCAR Driver.1999 Winston Cup Champion
- Ryan Newman-NASCAR Driver.
- Michael Waltrip-NASCAR Driver.
- Morgan Shepherd-NASCAR Driver.
- Matt Kenseth-NASCAR Driver.
- Rob Moroso-NASCAR Driver.
- Robert Huffman-Former NASCAR Driver.
- Ned Jarrett-Former NASCAR Driver.
- Glenn Jarrett-Former NASCAR Driver.
- Tommy Houston-Former NASCAR Driver.
- Bobby Isaac-1970 NASCAR Winston Cup Series champion.
- Dennis Setzer-NASCAR Driver.
- Jason Line â€" NHRA Pro Stock driver.
- Elliott Forbes-Robinson â€"Sports car driver in Motorsports Hall of Fame of America.
- James Best- Actor.
- Matthew Settle- Actor.
- Jon Reep- Comedian and Winner of Last Comic Standing
- Tom Constanten-Musician, composer, former member of The Grateful Dead and member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
- Tori Amos-Musician songwriter.
- Madison Bumgarner- 2010, 2012, 2014 (MVP) World Series Champion Pitcher for the San Francisco Giants.
- Ryan Succop- Placekicker for the Tennessee Titans.
- Rick Barnes- Coach for Tennessee Volunteers basketball.
- Chris Washburn- 1986 1st round NBA selection.
- Paul Burris-Pitcher for Boston/Milwaukee Braves.
- Chad Lail-Professional Wrestler known as Gunner in TNA Wrestling.
- The Cockman Family -Bluegrass musicians.
- Bryan Harvey - Major League Baseball player
- Anthony "Blame Truth" Presnell - Twitch Streamer/YouTuber/Gaming Personality
- Braun Strowman WWE Superstar
Other
- Chris Hughes-Co-founder of Facebook.
See also
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Catawba County, North Carolina
References
Further reading
- Freeze, Gary R. The Catawbans: Crafters of a North Carolina County, 1747-1900 Catawba County Historical Association, 1995. ISBNÂ 0-9702776-2-8.
- Freeze, Gary R. The Catawbans: Pioneers in Progress, Vol. 2. Catawba County Historical Association, 2002.
External links
- Geographic data related to Catawba County, North Carolina at OpenStreetMap
- Official website
- Catawba County Chamber of Commerce