Manteo, North Carolina

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Manteo is a town in Dare County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 1,052 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Dare County^GR6.

1 Geography
2 Demographics
3 History
4 Twinning
5 Festivals and Events
6 References
7 External links

[edit] Geography

Manteo is located at 35°54′17″N, 75°40′10″W (35.904595, -75.669385)^GR1, on the north central area of Roanoke Island.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 4.6 km² (1.8 mi²). 4.5 km² (1.7 mi²) of it is land and 0.2 km² (0.1 mi²) of it (3.35%) is water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 1,052 people, 515 households, and 287 families residing in the town. The population density was 234.8/km² (607.2/mi²). There were 924 housing units at an average density of 206.2/km² (533.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 86.31% White, 10.08% African American, 0.57% Native American, 0.10% Asian, 1.43% from other races, and 1.52% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race was 2.57% of the population. Primarily Peruvians and lesser numbers of Mexicans.

There were 515 households out of which 23.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.8% were married couples living together, 12.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.1% were non-families. 38.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.03 and the average family size was 2.64.

In the town the population was spread out with 19.8% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 28.7% from 25 to 44, 27.3% from 45 to 64, and 17.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 87.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.5 males. For this reason, many local women wind up married to men they met elsewhere.

The median income for a household in the town was $29,803, and the median income for a family was $40,139. Males had a median income of $30,625 versus $20,833 for females. The per capita income for the town was $20,222. About 18.2% of families and 19.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 29.4% of those under age 18 and 10.9% of those age 65 or over. Property taxes have been raised so high that some of the older natives of the area are being forced to sell their now-valuable properties and move away because of the economic pressure brought on by people moving in from the Northeast US who buy old homes and fix them up into gems of architecture.

Housing costs are prohibitively high, due to Roanoke Island's proximity to the beaches of the Outer Banks, with barely adequate single-family homes often costing well over $250,000. Mobile home parks are also prevalent in the Manteo area, with rents being equally exorbitant.

[edit] History

The town is named for a Native American named Manteo, who was of the Croatan tribe of "American Indians". Manteo had been "civilized" by the English during a trip to London in 1584 where he and another native, Wanchese, learned to become the liaison between the Roanoke Colony settlers and the Indians, and had favorable interaction with British colonist John White. Eventually, John White's daughter Eleanor married Ananias Dare, and they had the first American born English child, Virginia Dare. In 1587, Manteo was friendly to White when he returned to find what the final stage of the Roanoke Colony became. When the colonists disappeared after supplies from England were delayed for three years, the ongoing mystery of "The Lost Colony" began.

Manteo's most famous resident is the actor Andy Griffith who lives with his wife Cindy on a secluded compound on the northeastern shore of Roanoke Island about one mile north of the actual city limits.

Dare County is named for Virginia Dare.

[edit] Twinning

The town claims it is twinned with Bideford, Devon in England. On 20 October 2006 resident David Riley travelled to Bideford to mark the “20-year link” between the two towns. Bideford town clerk George McLauchlan, told him locals had never heard of Manteo and the only town Bideford was twinned with was in France. Mr Riley handed over a clock to "celebrate" the twenty year link, while Manteo Town manager Kermit Skinner said the link started in the 1980's during the 400th anniversary of Walter Raleigh’s voyages to America ^[1] ^[2].

[edit] Festivals and Events

Dare Day- An annual celebration for the people of Dare County. The festival is free and open to all residents and visitors. There is a variety of entertainment, food, and shopping with all activities in walking distance. Dates of this festival range.^[3]

Independence Day- Every year on July 4th Manteo holds an Independence Day celebration. During the day there are an array of contests, games, and tounaments, and in the evening a wonderful fireworks display.^[4]

The New World Festival of the Arts- Held on the Manteo waterfront an great exhibition that features over 80 selected artists displaying and selling their work. It is a two-day outdoor art show that has been held for over 23 years running. ^[5]