Durham County, North Carolina

Not to be confused with Durham, North Carolina or County Durham.

Durham County
County
Durham County Courthouse
Flag Seal Logo
Motto:  "Live. Grow. Thrive."
Location within the U.S. state of North Carolina
North Carolina's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 36°02′N78°53′W / 36.03°N 78.88°W / 36.03; -78.88
Country	United States
State	North Carolina
Founded	1881
Named for	Bartlett Snipes Durham
Seat	Durham
Largest community	Durham
Area
• Total	297.86 sq mi (771.5 km2)
• Land	286.53 sq mi (742.1 km2)
• Water	11.33 sq mi (29.3 km2)  3.80%
Population  (2020)
• Total	324,833
• Estimate  (2023)	336,892
• Density	1,100/sq mi (420/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district	4th
Website	dconc.gov

Durham County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 324,833, ^[1] making it the sixth-most populous county in North Carolina. Its county seat is Durham, ^[2] which is the only incorporated municipality predominantly in the county, though very small portions of cities and towns mostly in neighboring counties also extend into Durham County. The central and southern parts of Durham County are highly urban, consisting of the city as well as several unincorporated suburbs. Southeastern Durham County is dominated by the Research Triangle Park, most of which is in Durham County. The northern third of Durham County is rural in nature. Durham County is the core of the Durham-Chapel Hill, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Raleigh-Durham-Cary, NC Combined Statistical Area, which had an estimated population of 2,368,947 in 2023. ^[3]

History

See also: Timeline of Durham, North Carolina

The county was formed on April 17, 1881, from parts of Orange County and Wake County, taking the name of its own county seat. In 1911, parts of Cedar Fork Township of Wake County were transferred to Durham County and became Carr Township.

Geography

Interactive map of Durham County

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 297.86 square miles (771.5 km²), of which 286.53 square miles (742.1 km²) is land and 11.33 square miles (29.3 km²) (3.80%) is water. ^[4]

State and local protected areas/sites

• Bennett Place State Historic Site
• Butner-Falls of Neuse Game Land (part) ^[5]
• Duke Homestead and Tobacco Factory
• East Durham Historic District
• Eno River State Park (part)
• Falls Lake State Recreation Area (part)
• Historic Stagville
• Hollow Rock Nature Park (part) ^[6]
• Horton Grove Nature Preserve ^[7]
• Jordan Game Land (part) ^[5]
• Little River Regional Park and Natural Area (part) ^[8]
• Mason Farm Biological Reserve (part) ^[9]
• Museum of Life and Science
• Rolling View State Recreation Area (part) ^[10]

Major water bodies

• B. Everett Jordan Lake
• Crabtree Creek
• Ellerbe Creek
• Eno River
• Falls Lake
• Flat River
• Lake Michie
• Little River
• New Hope Creek
• Stirrup Iron Creek

Adjacent counties

• Person County – north
• Granville County – northeast
• Wake County – east-southeast
• Chatham County – south
• Orange County – west

Major highways

• I-40
• I-85
• 
  I-540  / NC 540 Toll
• 
  I-885  / NC 885 Toll
• US 15
• 
  US 15 Bus.
• US 70
• 
  US 70 Bus. (Durham)
• 
  US 70 Bus. (to Orange County)
• US 501
• NC 54
• NC 55
• NC 98
• NC 147
• NC 157
• NC 751
• 
  NC 751 Truck (truck route)

Major infrastructure

• Durham Station

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1890	18,041		—
1900	26,233		45.4%
1910	35,276		34.5%
1920	42,219		19.7%
1930	67,196		59.2%
1940	80,244		19.4%
1950	101,639		26.7%
1960	111,995		10.2%
1970	132,681		18.5%
1980	152,785		15.2%
1990	181,835		19.0%
2000	223,314		22.8%
2010	267,587		19.8%
2020	324,833		21.4%
2023 (est.)	336,892	[1]	3.7%
U.S. Decennial Census [11] 1790–1960 [12] 1900–1990 [13] 1990–2000 [14] 2010–2020 [1]

2020 census

Durham County racial composition ^[15]

Race	Number	Percentage
White (non-Hispanic)	133,768	41.18%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic)	109,225	33.62%
Native American	704	0.22%
Asian	16,707	5.14%
Pacific Islander	83	0.03%
Other/Mixed	14,242	4.38%
Hispanic or Latino	50,104	15.42%

As of the 2020 census, there were 324,833 people, 131,140 households, and 75,291 families residing in the county.

2000 census

At the 2000 census, ^[16] there were 223,314 people, 89,015 households, and 54,032 families residing in the county. The population density was 769 people per square mile (297 people/km²). There were 95,452 housing units at an average density of 329 units per square mile (127 units/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 50.91% White, 39.46% Black or African American, 0.30% Native American, 3.29% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 4.21% from other races, and 1.80% from two or more races. 7.63% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 89,015 households, out of which 29.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.00% were married couples living together, 14.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.30% were non-families. 30.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 2.99.

In the county, the age distribution was as follows: 22.90% under the age of 18, 12.80% from 18 to 24, 34.80% from 25 to 44, 19.80% from 45 to 64, and 9.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 93.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.70 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $43,337, and the median income for a family was $53,223. Males had a median income of $35,939 versus $30,683 for females. The per capita income for the county was $23,156. About 9.80% of families and 13.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.20% of those under age 18 and 12.30% of those age 65 or over.

Law and government

See also: Durham Police Department (North Carolina)

Durham County Sheriff's Office
Abbreviation	DCSO, DSO
Motto	"Honor, Duty and Service."
Agency overview
Formed	May 2, 1881
Employees	452
Annual budget	$34,949,195
Jurisdictional structure
Operations jurisdiction	Durham County, North Carolina, US
General nature	Local civilian police
Operational structure
Headquarters	510 S Dillard St, Durham
Sworn officers	181 Deputies [17] 211 Detention Officers [17]
Civilians	59 [17]
Agency executive	Clarence Birkhead, Sheriff
Facilities
Sub-Stations	2
Notables
Award	CALEA Accredited
Website
Official website

Durham County is a member of the regional Triangle J Council of Governments. Durham County is governed by a five-member board of county commissioners, currently consisting of Chair Brenda A. Howerton, Vice Chair Wendy Jacobs, Nimasheena Burns, Heidi Carter, and Nida Allam. ^[18] All are elected concurrently, and each elected member serves a four-year term. The current sheriff, Clarence Birkhead, was elected in 2018 and is the county's first African American Sheriff to hold office. ^[19]

Politics

Durham County is consistently one of the most Democratic counties in North Carolina, favoring Democrats in national, state, and local elections. ^[20] having only voted for the Republican candidate twice since 1884, the Republican landslides of 1928 and 1972. George H. W. Bush is the last Republican to manage even 40 percent of the county's vote. Since the 1990s, Durham County has been one of the most Democratic urban counties in the South.

United States presidential election results for Durham County, North Carolina ^[21]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2024	32,853	18.16%	144,450	79.85%	3,609	1.99%
2020	32,459	18.04%	144,688	80.42%	2,767	1.54%
2016	28,350	18.16%	121,250	77.66%	6,534	4.18%
2012	33,769	23.01%	111,224	75.80%	1,742	1.19%
2008	32,353	23.63%	103,456	75.57%	1,088	0.79%
2004	34,614	31.57%	74,524	67.96%	513	0.47%
2000	30,150	35.64%	53,907	63.72%	547	0.65%
1996	27,825	34.39%	49,186	60.79%	3,899	4.82%
1992	27,581	33.36%	47,331	57.24%	7,770	9.40%
1988	29,928	45.43%	35,441	53.79%	514	0.78%
1984	29,185	47.39%	32,244	52.36%	155	0.25%
1980	19,276	40.24%	24,969	52.13%	3,656	7.63%
1976	18,945	45.61%	22,425	53.99%	163	0.39%
1972	25,576	61.38%	15,566	37.36%	525	1.26%
1968	12,705	29.68%	16,563	38.69%	13,542	31.63%
1964	15,264	40.02%	22,874	59.98%	0	0.00%
1960	14,322	42.60%	19,298	57.40%	0	0.00%
1956	13,226	48.87%	13,835	51.13%	0	0.00%
1952	11,301	37.42%	18,897	62.58%	0	0.00%
1948	4,531	25.73%	11,530	65.46%	1,552	8.81%
1944	3,690	22.43%	12,763	77.57%	0	0.00%
1940	2,491	14.40%	14,810	85.60%	0	0.00%
1936	2,189	14.60%	12,804	85.40%	0	0.00%
1932	2,770	25.94%	7,559	70.78%	351	3.29%
1928	8,723	66.06%	4,482	33.94%	0	0.00%
1924	3,093	37.95%	4,837	59.34%	221	2.71%
1920	3,550	43.31%	4,646	56.69%	0	0.00%
1916	1,837	42.72%	2,463	57.28%	0	0.00%
1912	124	3.52%	2,197	62.31%	1,205	34.17%
1908	1,820	49.35%	1,859	50.41%	9	0.24%
1904	1,080	40.10%	1,603	59.52%	10	0.37%
1900	2,026	45.86%	2,373	53.71%	19	0.43%
1896	1,924	43.62%	2,435	55.20%	52	1.18%
1892	1,264	35.93%	1,490	42.35%	764	21.72%
1888	1,618	45.77%	1,835	51.91%	82	2.32%
1884	1,193	42.79%	1,595	57.21%	0	0.00%

Communities

Map of Durham County with municipal and township labels

The city of Durham is the only incorporated municipality to predominantly exist within Durham County, and the only one whose urban core lies within the county, though small portions of municipalities from neighboring counties extend into Durham County, and the city of Durham also itself extends slightly into neighboring counties. All other towns and places within Durham County are unincorporated communities.

Cities

• Durham (county seat and largest community; small portions extend into Wake and Orange counties)
• Raleigh (mostly in Wake County) ^[22]

Towns

• Chapel Hill (mostly in Orange County)
• Morrisville (mostly in Wake County)

Townships

• Carr
• Durham
• Lebanon
• Mangum
• Oak Grove
• Triangle

Census-designated places

• Gorman
• Rougemont (small portions extend into neighboring Person County)

Unincorporated communities

• Bahama
• Bethesda
• Genlee
• Lowe's Grove
• Nelson
• Oak Grove
• Braggtown

Notable person

• Margaret O'Neal (1884–?), sharecropper ^[23]

See also

• List of counties in North Carolina
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Durham County, North Carolina
• Research Triangle Park, largest Research park in the United States
• Bull Durham, 1988 romantic comedy about the Durham Bulls

References

1. "QuickFacts: Durham County, North Carolina". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 21, 2024.
2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on July 12, 2012. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
3. "Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas Population Totals: 2020-2023". United States Census Bureau, Population Division. March 14, 2024. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
4. "2020 County Gazetteer Files – North Carolina". United States Census Bureau. August 23, 2022. Retrieved September 9, 2023.
5. "NCWRC Game Lands". www.ncpaws.org. Retrieved March 30, 2023.
6. "Hollow Rock Nature Park". Orange County, NC. Retrieved July 27, 2022.
7. "Miles of Trails with More in the Making - Triangle Land Conservancy". www.triangleland.org. December 11, 2015. Retrieved July 27, 2022.
8. "Little River Regional Park & Natural Area". Eno River Association - Education, Advocacy & Conservation. Retrieved July 27, 2022.
9. "Mason Farm Biological Reserve - North Carolina Botanical Garden" . Retrieved July 27, 2022.
10. "Rollingview at Falls Lake Durham, NC". www.visitnc.com. Retrieved July 27, 2022.
11. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on July 1, 2021. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
12. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Archived from the original on August 11, 2012. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
13. Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 27, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on March 3, 2015. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
14. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 18, 2014. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
15. "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Archived from the original on April 12, 2022. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
16. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on July 9, 2021. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
17. "Annual Report FY 2016-2017". Durham Sheriff. 2017. Archived from the original on January 8, 2020. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
18. "Contact the Board of Commissioners | Durham County". www.dconc.gov. Archived from the original on March 28, 2022. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
19. Simmons, Taj (December 3, 2018). "New Durham County Sheriff Takes Oath of Office". spectrumlocalnews.com. Archived from the original on April 19, 2019. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
20. "Anatomy of a swing state: What these 6 counties tell us about the upcoming NC election". The Charlotte Observer. November 4, 2022. Retrieved November 4, 2022.
21. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Archived from the original on March 23, 2018. Retrieved March 15, 2018.
22. Raleigh Durham Annexation Agreement Lines Archived October 19, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
23. "Federal Writers Project Papers".

Further reading

• "Durham County", Branson's North Carolina Business Directory, 1896, Raleigh, NC: Levi Branson, p. 243 – via archive.org
• "Durham County", North Carolina Year Book and Business Directory, 1916, Raleigh, N.C.: News and Observer Publishing Company – via hathitrust.org

External links

• Geographic data related to Durham County, North Carolina at OpenStreetMap
• Official website
• Greater Durham Chamber of Commerce
• Durham County Library website
• North Carolina Room of the Durham County Library, online archive which collects materials concerning the city and county of Durham
• Durham – Orange Genealogical Society of North Carolina