Wake County, North Carolina
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Wake County, North Carolina | |
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| Map | |
 Location in the state of North Carolina |
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| Statistics | |
| Formed | 1771 |
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| Seat | Raleigh |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
2,220 km² (857 mi²) 2,155 km² (832 mi²) 66 km² (25 mi²), 2.95% |
| Population - (2000) - Density |
627,846 291/km² |
| Website: www.wakegov.com | |
Wake County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of 2005, the population was 748,815. Its county seat is Raleigh6, also the state capital.
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[edit] History
The county was formed in 1771 from parts of Cumberland County, Johnston County, and Orange County. It was named for Margaret Wake, wife of Governor William Tryon.
In 1881 parts of Wake County and Orange County were combined to form Durham County. In 1911 Cedar Fork Township of Wake County was transferred to Durham County and became Carr Township.
[edit] Law and government
Wake County is a member of the regional Triangle J Council of Governments. The county is governed by a seven-member board of County Commissioners.[1]
[edit] Politics
Wake County is the second most heavily populated county in North Carolina, with, as of July 2005, a population of approximately 750,000. Although Democratic presidential candidates have only won the county in three of the last 12 elections (Kennedy in 1960, Johnson in 1964 and Clinton in 1992), the races have almost always been close, such as in 1980, when Ronald Reagan won by a landslide nationwide, but by a mere 1% in Wake County. Recently, Republican George W. Bush won the county in 2000 with 53%, but he was defeated by John Kerry in 2004 by a slim 51% to 49%.
Recently, statewide Democrats have fared well here; in the 1998 Senate Race, Democrat John Edwards won in Wake County, which helped him in his defeat of incumbent Republican Lauch Faircloth. In 2000 Democrat Governor Mike Easley won here with 55% of the vote. In 2004, Easley won again in Wake County by nearly 20%, winning with 59% to 40% for opponent Patrick Ballantine. Democratic candidate for US Senate Erskine Bowles won in Wake County with 52 percent, despite losing statewide to Richard Burr by the same margin. In 2002, however, Republican Elizabeth Dole defeated Bowles with 55% of the vote here, and won by a large margin statewide.
Democratic voters are mainly located in the city of Raleigh, while Republicans are the majority in the rural areas in the north and western parts of the county. The outskirts of Raleigh, and the cities of Cary and Apex are where most of the swing voters are located.
[edit] Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 2,220 km² (857 mi²). 2,155 km² (832 mi²) of it is land and 66 km² (25 mi²) of it (2.95%) is water.
[edit] Townships
The county is divided into twenty townships: Bartons Creek, Buckhorn, Cary, Cedar Fork, Holly Springs, House Creek, Leesville, Little River, Marks Creek, Meredith, Middle Creek, Neuse, New Light, Panther Branch, Raleigh, St. Mary's, St. Matthew's, Swift Creek, Wake Forest, and White Oak.
[edit] Adjacent Counties
- Granville County, North Carolina - north
- Franklin County, North Carolina - northeast
- Johnston County, North Carolina - southeast
- Harnett County, North Carolina - southwest
- Chatham County, North Carolina - west
- Durham County, North Carolina - northwest
- Nash County, North Carolina - northeast
[edit] Demographics
As of the census² of 2000, there were 627,846 people, 242,040 households, and 158,778 families residing in the county. The population density was 291/km² (755/mi²). There were 258,953 housing units at an average density of 120/km² (311/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 72.40% White, 19.72% Black or African American, 0.34% Native American, 3.38% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 2.48% from other races, and 1.64% from two or more races. 5.41% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 242,040 households out of which 34.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.50% were married couples living together, 9.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.40% were non-families. 25.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 3.06.
In the county the population was spread out with 25.10% under the age of 18, 10.70% from 18 to 24, 36.50% from 25 to 44, 20.40% from 45 to 64, and 7.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 98.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.50 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $54,988, and the median income for a family was $67,149. Males had a median income of $44,472 versus $31,579 for females. The per capita income for the county was $27,004. About 4.90% of families and 7.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.60% of those under age 18 and 8.90% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Cities and towns
[edit] Municipalities
- Apex
- Cary
- Fuquay-Varina
- Garner
- Holly Springs
- Knightdale
- Morrisville
- Raleigh
- Rolesville
- Wake Forest
- Wendell
- Zebulon
[edit] Unincorporated communities
- Bonsal
- Carpenter
- Feltonville
- Friendship
- Green Level
- New Hill
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Wake County Real Estate Records
- Wake County government official website
- Wake County Public School System
- North Carolina QuickFacts from US census
- Wake County SPCA
