Avery County, North Carolina


Avery County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 17,806. The county seat is Newland. The county seat was initially established in Elk Park when the county was first formed, but was moved to Newland upon completion of the courthouse in 1912. Founded in 1911, it is the youngest of North Carolina's 100 counties.

History

The county is the newest of North Carolina's 100 counties. It was formed in 1911 from parts of Caldwell County, Mitchell County, and Watauga County. It was named for Waightstill Avery, a colonel in the American Revolutionary War and the first Attorney General of North Carolina.
It is often noted for the large amount of Christmas trees that the county produces. The county seat was originally in the town of Elk Park, which was then the largest town in the county, located on the county's north end, on the Tennessee line. Upon completion of the county's courthouse in 1912, the seat was moved to the central location of what was then an unincorporated area known as Fields of Toe, for the meadows along the head of the Toe River, in what is now the incorporated Town of Newland. The town was so named for then Lt. Gov. William Newland, an influential Democrat, who helped garner support in the then heavily Democratic legislature in Raleigh, for Avery County, an overwhelmingly pro-Union Republican area, becoming the state's 100th and final county.
According to local legend, Elk Park citizens were upset at the decision to move of the county seat from their town, and they refused to give up the books. The then-sheriff, like all county officials, was a Democrat and an interim appointee of the Democratic governor in Raleigh, who would hold office from July 1, 1911, until the next election cycle in late 1912, when the almost all-Republican electorate would undoubtedly vote in all Republicans as local officials. The sheriff was leery of confronting the irate local Elk Park citizens, so his wife baked cookies and had their pastor deliver them as a peace offering. The citizens then cheerfully handed over the books, which were sent to the new offices at the new courthouse in Newland.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water.
Avery County is extremely rural and mountainous with all of the county's terrain located within the Appalachian Mountains range; with a mean altitude of it is the second-highest county east of the Mississippi behind nearby Haywood County. The highest point in the county is Grassy Ridge Bald, above sea level. Most of Grandfather Mountain, whose highest point is Calloway Peak on the tri-point bordering Watauga and Caldwell Counties, is within Avery County. At, Beech Mountain is the highest incorporated community east of the Mississippi River, while at Newland is the highest county seat in the Eastern United States.

National protected areas

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 17,806 people, 6,860 households, and 4,319 families residing in the county, and the median age was 47.0 years.
15.2% of residents were under the age of 18 and 24.5% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 117.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 119.5 males age 18 and over.
The racial makeup of the county was 88.4% White, 3.7% Black or African American, 0.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 3.1% from some other race, and 3.9% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 5.5% of the population.
<0.1% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.
There were 6,860 households in the county, of which 22.5% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 50.7% were married-couple households, 18.9% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 25.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 31.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 13,827 housing units, of which 50.4% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 77.1% were owner-occupied and 22.9% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.4% and the rental vacancy rate was 24.5%.

2000 census

At the 2000 census, there were 17,167 people, 6,532 households, and 4,546 families residing in the county. The population density was. There were 11,911 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 93.95% White, 3.48% Black or African American, 0.34% Native American, 0.19% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 1.28% from other races, and 0.71% from two or more races. 2.41% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 6,532 households, out of which 27.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.10% were married couples living together, 9.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.40% were non-families. 26.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.00% 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 2.82.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 19.40% under the age of 18, 10.30% from 18 to 24, 30.10% from 25 to 44, 24.40% from 45 to 64, and 15.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age of Avery County is aging, with it at 38 years. For every 100 females there were 111.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 112.90 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $30,627, and the median income for a family was $37,454. Males had a median income of $25,983 versus $21,652 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,176. About 10.90% of families and 15.30% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.30% of those under age 18 and 19.00% of those age 65 or over.

Law and government

The county is governed by a five-member Avery County Board of Commissioners who are elected to two or four-year terms, depending on the number and percentage of votes they receive when elected. The current members, as of 2024, are Chairman Tim Phillips, Dennis Aldridge, Robert Burleson, Wood Hall Young Jr. and Junior Benfield.
Avery County is a member of the regional High Country Council of Governments. The county commissioners appoint a county manager to oversee day-to-day operations of county government of all departments that are not controlled by an elected head. The current county manager position is filled by Phillip Barrier, Jr. The current finance officer position is filled Caleb Hogan. The Board of Commissioners also appoints qualified citizen applicants to various boards and committees, such as business and economic development, social service board, library board, airport board, fire commission Mayland Community College Board, ad hoc and others.
The county seat in Newland is the highest county seat east of the Mississippi River, as is the courthouse, located on a pinnacle in the center of town, at an elevation of over. The county's elected Soil and Water Board District supervisors are Bill Beutell, David Banner, Ann Coleman, and Jack Wiseman.
The county also has a non-partisan elected school board to oversee the countywide school district. The current school board chairman is John Greene, with retired teacher Kathy Aldridge serving as vice chair. Other school board members are retired Avery High School Principal Patricia Edwards. The county's superintendent of schools is Dr. Dan Brigman. The School Board is located on NC 194 near the Newland city limits. It also houses the school bus garage, support staff and other school system administrative offices.

Government buildings

Overlooking Avery Square is the historic 1912 Avery County Courthouse. The square, includes monuments to fallen peace officers, fallen firefighters and as of 2016, a large veteran's memorial. The courthouse was remodeled in 1996 and again in 2014, to add more office space and a second smaller courtroom. The courthouse is located on Shultz Circle and Glenn Hicks Lane, which was renamed from Jail Street, in honor of Avery Sheriff's Deputy Lt. Glenn H. Hicks, who was murdered in the line of duty in 2003.
The courthouse also houses local office of the North Carolina Probation and Parole Division, judges offices and chambers, district attorney's sub-office, the county map office, tax office, inspection office, register of deeds, clerk of superior court, guardian ad litem and North Carolina juvenile justice department. Connected to the courthouse is the sheriff's office and the county jail, an elections office, county 911 emergency dispatch center and magistrate's courtroom.
The county administrative building provides work space for the county manager and many other county offices such as social services, payroll, finance, veterans services, fire marshal, emergency management, waste management, technology and personnel. In 1997, a second courtroom and a small magistrate's courtroom at the courthouse was created.
The Avery County Sheriff's Office provides law enforcement protection to the entire county. The county has no police department. The Sheriff also provides security to the courts and courthouse, serves civil orders of the courts and operates the jail complex.
Other county services includes a 911 emergency dispatch center that provides service to all county law enforcement, fire, EMS and rescue services in the county. The county building also houses county fire marshal and emergency management offices, a veteran's services office and an office of economic development, along with staffed trash collection sites throughout the county and a landfill.