Smithfield, North Carolina

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Smithfield is a town in Johnston County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 11,510 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Johnston County^GR6. Smithfield is located in North Carolina's Inner Banks region.

Actress Ava Gardner was born a short distance from Smithfield, in Brogden, North Carolina,and is buried here. The town has an Ava Gardner Museum. Smithfield is also the birthplace of professional wrestler Gregory Helms.

[edit] Geography

Smithfield is located at 35°30′33″N, 78°20′47″W (35.509129, -78.346456)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 29.6 km² (11.4 mi²). 29.6 km² (11.4 mi²) of it is land and 0.09% is water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 11,510 people, 4,417 households, and 2,676 families residing in the town. The population density was 389.1/km² (1,007.6/mi²). There were 4,674 housing units at an average density of 158.0/km² (409.2/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 62.66% White, 30.99% African American, 0.43% Native American, 0.63% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 4.14% from other races, and 1.13% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 9.90% of the population.

There were 4,417 households out of which 26.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.1% were married couples living together, 14.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.4% were non-families. 35.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.97.

In the town the population was spread out with 21.3% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 29.2% from 25 to 44, 22.9% from 45 to 64, and 18.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 99.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.6 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $27,813, and the median income for a family was $37,929. Males had a median income of $29,567 versus $24,440 for females. The per capita income for the town was $18,012. About 14.5% of families and 20.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.1% of those under age 18 and 19.2% of those age 65 or over.