Jefferson, North Carolina

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Coordinates: 36°25′12″N, 81°28′8″W
Jefferson, North Carolina
Aerial view of Jefferson, NC
Location in North Carolina
Country	United States
State	North Carolina
Counties	Ashe County
Founded	as Jeffersonton 1799 as Jefferson 1799
Government
- Mayor	Dana Tugman (R)
Area
- City	1.9 sq mi (5 km²)
Population (2000)
- City	1,422
- Density	738.2/sq mi (284.5/km²)
Time zone	Eastern (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)

Jefferson is a town in Ashe County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 1,422 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Ashe County^GR6.

1 History
2 Geography
3 Demographics
4 References
5 External links

[edit] History

The North Carolina General Assembly created a special commission in 1799 to create a county seat for Ashe County. The commission purchased 50 acres of land to form the Town of Jeffersonton, later named Jefferson. It is the first town in the nation to bear the name of Thomas Jefferson, who was the Vice President of the United States in 1799.^[1]

[edit] Geography

Jefferson is located at 36°25′12″N, 81°28′8″W (36.419922, -81.468899)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 5.0 km² (1.9 mi²), all land. The ancient New River, one of the oldest and most scenic rivers in the eastern United States, flows through the town.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 1,422 people, 582 households, and 334 families residing in the town. The population density was 284.5/km² (738.2/mi²). There were 617 housing units at an average density of 123.4/km² (320.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 95.43% White, 1.41% African American, 0.35% Asian, 2.53% from other races, and 0.28% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.73% of the population.

There were 582 households out of which 19.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.2% were married couples living together, 10.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.6% were non-families. 39.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 20.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.02 and the average family size was 2.66.

In the town the population was spread out with 14.3% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 21.2% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and 34.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 51 years. For every 100 females there were 73.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 70.7 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $22,847, and the median income for a family was $34,554. Males had a median income of $26,500 versus $18,929 for females. The per capita income for the town was $15,505. About 11.6% of families and 15.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.3% of those under age 18 and 19.6% of those age 65 or over.