Lenoir, North Carolina

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Lenoir is a city in Caldwell County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 16,793 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Caldwell County^GR6. Lenoir is located in the Blue Ridge foothills. The city also contains the Brushy Mountains, a spur of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Hibriten Mountain, located within the city limits of Lenoir, marks the western end of the Brushy Mountains range. The city was named for Revolutionary War figure and early North Carolina statesman General William Lenoir, who lived nearby. His restored home is a tourist attraction (see [1]).

The Broyhill furniture company, one of the largest furniture companies in the United States and part of Furniture Brands International, has its headquarters in Lenoir, and has been one of the town's largest employers. Bernhardt and Fairfield furniture companies are also located in Lenoir. As these companies have begun outsourcing their work overseas, however, their influence and number of factory workers have dramatically decreased; causing many local businesses to either close or move to another city. Recently, Google announced that it will be locating a server farm in Lenoir.[2]

1 Geography
2 Demographics
3 Notable Residents
4 Trivia
5 External links

[edit] Geography

Lenoir is located at 35°54′30″N, 81°31′48″W (35.908438, -81.530012)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 42.9 km² (16.6 mi²), all land.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 16,793 people, 6,913 households, and 4,569 families residing in the city. The population density was 391.3/km² (1,013.7/mi²). There were 7,461 housing units at an average density of 173.9/km² (450.4/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 80.88% White, 14.71% African American, 0.23% Native American, 0.67% Asian, 0.11% Pacific Islander, 2.27% from other races, and 1.13% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.25% of the population.

There were 6,913 households out of which 27.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.0% were married couples living together, 14.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.9% were non-families. 29.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.1% 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 2.87.

In the city the population was spread out with 22.9% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 27.5% from 25 to 44, 23.3% from 45 to 64, and 18.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 91.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $29,369, and the median income for a family was $37,280. Males had a median income of $26,122 versus $21,895 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,697. About 10.4% of families and 14.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.4% of those under age 18 and 12.7% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Notable Residents

Larry Smith, noted NASCAR driver
Claudia Church, local country music artist
David Abernethy, RCA Music group Puddingstone founder
Kent Annas, Recognized by Wired Magazine in 1996 for creating the first multi-artist CD composed and recorded entirely over the Internet.