Stokes County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

located in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 44,520. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

is Danbury. Stokes County is included in the

Winston-Salem Winston-Salem is a city in Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the fifth-most populous city in North Carolina and the 91st-most populous city in the Uni ...

, NC, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Greensboro–Winston-Salem–High Point, NC, Combined Statistical Area.

History

View of walls Rock House Stokes County North Carolina

The county was formed in 1789 from Surry County, and before 1770, it was part of Rowan County. It was named for John Stokes, an

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

captain severely wounded when British Colonel

Banastre Tarleton General Sir Banastre Tarleton, 1st Baronet (21 August 175415 January 1833) was a British military officer and politician. He is best known as the lieutenant colonel leading the British Legion at the end of the American Revolutionary War. He lat ...

's cavalry practically destroyed Col.

Abraham Buford Abraham Buford (July 21, 1747 – June 30, 1833) was a Continental Army officer during the American Revolutionary War, rising to colonel and best known as the commanding officer of the American forces at the Battle of Waxhaws. After the war ...

's Virginia regiment in the

Waxhaws The Waxhaws is a geographical area in the Piedmont region of North Carolina and South Carolina, United States. It encompasses the areas of Lancaster County, South Carolina and Union and Mecklenburg counties in North Carolina. The name is deriv ...

region in 1780. After the war, Captain Stokes was appointed a judge of the

United States district court The United States district courts are the trial courts of the United States federal judiciary, U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each United States federal judicial district, federal judicial district. Each district cov ...

for North Carolina. In 1849 the southern half of Stokes County became Forsyth County. Stokes was most heavily settled from 1750 to 1775. The

Great Wagon Road The Great Wagon Road, also known as the Philadelphia Wagon Road, is a historic trail in the eastern United States that was first traveled by indigenous tribes, and later explorers, settlers, soldiers, and travelers. It extended from British Penn ...

passed through the eastern portion of the county, and this influenced the pattern of European settlement so that most settlers came from the Virginia Piedmont, and some came from further away in Pennsylvania and other colonies. As North Carolina held their Secession Convention in May 1861, John Hill represented Stokes County. Unfortunately, while attending the convention in Raleigh, Hill had a stroke and died. He is buried in the Old Hill Burying Ground near Germanton. During the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

, Moratock Iron Furnace located near Danbury served as a

foundry A foundry is a factory that produces metal castings. Metals are cast into shapes by melting them into a liquid, pouring the metal into a mold, and removing the mold material after the metal has solidified as it cools. The most common metals pr ...

for the

Confederate Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fi ...

. It was destroyed in April 1865 when Union cavalry under the command of General

George Stoneman George Stoneman Jr. (August 8, 1822 – September 5, 1894) was a United States Army cavalry officer and politician who served as the 15th governor of California from 1883 to 1887. Stoneman trained at West Point, graduating in 1846, and served in ...

conducted extensive raiding through the region.

Hanging Rock State Park Hanging Rock State Park is a North Carolina state park in Stokes County, North Carolina in the United States. The park is north of Winston-Salem and is located approximately from Danbury in Stokes County. History On April 20, 1936, the ...

was formed primarily from blocks of land donated in 1936 and contained in 2005. Many of the facilities in the park were built by the

Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government unemployment, work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was ...

between 1935 and 1942. The park is located atop the

Sauratown Mountains The Sauratown Mountains, which are sometimes called "the mountains away from the mountains", are an isolated mountain range located within Stokes and Surry counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The vast majority of the range is located ...

, and contains a visitor center, a manmade lake, and plenty of hiking trails, climbing trails, picnic areas, and primitive campgrounds.

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.49%) is water. The county lies within the Piedmont region of western North Carolina, and most of the terrain consists of gently rolling countryside. The county is part of

Appalachia Appalachia ( ) is a geographic region located in the Appalachian Mountains#Regions, central and southern sections of the Appalachian Mountains in the east of North America. In the north, its boundaries stretch from the western Catskill Mountai ...

and the

run across the center of the county. The Sauras are named after the Saura Native American tribe which lived in the county before European settlement. A chain of jagged ridges, the Sauratown Mountains are an isolated remnant of the

Blue Ridge Mountains The Blue Ridge Mountains are a Physiographic regions of the United States, physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Highlands range. The mountain range is located in the Eastern United States and extends 550 miles southwest from southern ...

far to the west. Although the Sauratown Mountains occupy only 5% of Stokes County, they dominate the scenery from almost any direction, abruptly rising from 800 to above the surrounding terrain. Moore's Knob, the highest point in the chain, rises to . Most of the county is less than above sea level. The Dan River runs from the northwest corner to the southeastern section of Stokes County (covering over 56 miles of river recreation). Stokes County is home to

and also has the vast majority of

Belews Lake Belews Lake is a reservoir in Stokes County, North Carolina, Stokes, Rockingham County, North Carolina, Rockingham, Guilford County, North Carolina, Guilford and Forsyth County, North Carolina, Forsyth counties of North Carolina, near the towns of ...

(located in the southeast corner).

Climate and weather

The climate in Stokes County can be described as mixed-humid, with the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

subtype being ''Cfa''. In the county seat of Danbury an average of 39.73" of rain and 9.0" of snow falls per year. Temperatures normally range between a low of in January to a high of 89 °F in July. Record extremes include: A maximum temperature reading of on August 21, 1983. A minimum temperature reading of on January 21, 1985. A three-day accumulated snowfall record of 34.0" was set during the

Blizzard of 1996 The North American blizzard of 1996 was a severe nor'easter that paralyzed the United States East Coast with up to of wind-driven snow from January 6 to January 8, 1996. The City University of New York reported that the storm "dropped 20 inches ...

State and local protected areas

* East Walnut Cove Community Park *

* Hill Farm Game Land

Major water bodies

* Belews Creek *

* Big Beaver Island Creek * Big Creek * Buffalo Creek * Crooked Creek *

Dan River Dan River may refer to: * Dan River (Virginia) * Dan River (China) * Dan River (Middle East) Other * Little Dan River * Browns Dan River * Dan Hole River See also * Dan (disambiguation) Dan or DAN may refer to: People * Dan (name), inc ...

* Flat Shoal Creek *

Little Dan River The Little Dan River is a river in the United States states of Virginia and North Carolina. See also *List of rivers of Virginia This is a list of rivers in the U.S. state of Virginia. By drainage basin This list is arranged by drainage basin, w ...

* Little Neatman Creek * Little Peters Creek * Little Yadkin River * Mill Creek * Neatman Creek * Oldfield Creek * Peters Creek * Pinch Gut Creek * Snow Creek * Vade Mecum Creek

Adjacent counties

Patrick County, Virginia Patrick County is a county located on the central southern border of the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the county's population was 17,608. Its county seat is Stuart. It is located within both the rolling hills and valley ...

– north *

Henry County, Virginia Henry County is a county located in the U.S. state of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 50,948. The county seat is usually identified as Martinsville; however, the administration building (where county offices are located ...

– northeast * Rockingham County – east *

Guilford County Guilford County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 541,299, making it the third-most populous county in North Carolina. The county seat and largest community is Greensboro. Since ...

– southeast * Forsyth County – south * Surry County – west

Major highways

* * * * * * * * * * *

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 44,520 people, 19,578 households, and 13,348 families residing in the county.

2000 census

At the 2000 census, there were 44,712 people, 17,579 households, and 13,043 families residing in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 19,262 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 93.43%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 4.66%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.24% Native American, 0.19% Asian, 0.05%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.88% from other races, and 0.54% from two or more races. 1.87% of the population were

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race. There were 17,579 households, out of which 33.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.60% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 9.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.80% were non-families. 22.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.90% 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 2.94. In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.50% under the age of 18, 7.30% from 18 to 24, 31.40% from 25 to 44, 25.00% from 45 to 64, and 11.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 96.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.60 males. The median income for a household in the county was $38,808, and the median income for a family was $44,615. Males had a median income of $30,824 versus $24,319 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the county was $18,130. About 6.90% of families and 9.10% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 10.00% of those under age 18 and 15.90% of those age 65 or over.

Government and politics

Government

Stokes County is a member of the Piedmont Triad Council of Governments, a regional voluntary association of 12 counties. Stokes County government is made up of five elected County Commissioners with an appointed County Manager, Clerk to the Board of County Commissioners, Finance Director, and Tax Administrator. Stokes County lies within the bounds of the 23rd Prosecutorial District, the 17B

Superior Court In common law systems, a superior court is a court of general jurisdiction over civil and criminal legal cases. A superior court is "superior" in relation to a court with limited jurisdiction (see small claims court), which is restricted to civil ...

District, and the 17B District Court District.

Politics

Stokes is at present a powerfully Republican county. The last Democratic presidential nominee to carry Stokes County was

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (October 1, 1924December 29, 2024) was an American politician and humanitarian who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party ...

in 1976, and no Democrat since 1980 has reached forty percent of the county's vote.

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...

barely cracked twenty percent in 2016, receiving a proportion smaller than

Hubert Humphrey Hubert Horatio Humphrey Jr. (May 27, 1911 – January 13, 1978) was an American politician who served from 1965 to 1969 as the 38th vice president of the United States. He twice served in the United States Senate, representing Minnesota from 19 ...

obtained in the three-way 1968 race. In earlier years Stokes swung from Democratic-leaning during the

Third Party System The Third Party System was a period in the history of political parties in the United States from the 1850s until the 1890s, which featured profound developments in issues of American nationalism, modernization, and race. This period was marke ...

to Republican enough to be alongside Yadkin and Surry as the only North Carolina counties to stick with

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) served as the 27th president of the United States from 1909 to 1913 and the tenth chief justice of the United States from 1921 to 1930. He is the only person to have held both offices. ...

during his disastrous 1912 campaign, back to Democratic enough to support

Adlai Stevenson II Adlai Ewing Stevenson II (; February 5, 1900 – July 14, 1965) was an American politician and diplomat who was the United States ambassador to the United Nations from 1961 until his death in 1965. He previously served as the 31st governor of Ill ...

in 1952. In the November 2020 elections, Republican candidates across the county took between 70 and 80 percent of the vote.

Economy

Stokes County has long been a "bedroom community" or "

commuter town A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...

" for larger towns surrounding, such as

Greensboro Greensboro (; ) is a city in Guilford County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 census, its population was 299,035; it was estimated to be 307,381 in 2024. It is the third-most populous city in North Carolina, af ...

, Mount Airy, etc. Stokes County has struggled with economic development for several reasons such as infrastructure. Several medium and small businesses have found success in Stokes, as well as retail stores, restaurants, and service professionals. The largest employer in the county is the government/school system. For 2023, the North Carolina Department of Commerce rated Stokes as a Tier 2 county, between the state's most prosperous and economically distressed.

Education

Stokes County is served by Stokes County Schools, which supports 11 elementary schools, 3 middle schools, and 5 high schools, including The Stokes Early College.

Communities

Map of Stokes County North Carolina With Municipal and Township Labels

Cities

* Danbury (county seat) *

King King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...

(largest community; also in Forsyth County)

Town

* Walnut Cove * Stokesdale (mostly in Guilford County)

Village

* Tobaccoville (also in Forsyth County)

Census-designated places

* Germanton *

Pinnacle A pinnacle is an architectural element originally forming the cap or crown of a buttress or small turret, but afterwards used on parapets at the corners of towers and in many other situations. The pinnacle looks like a small spire. It was main ...

Unincorporated communities

* Aarons Corner * Asbury * Boyles Chapel * Brook Cove * Brown Mountain * Campbell * Capella *

Ceramic A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant, and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcela ...

* Chestnut Grove * Collinstown *

Dalton Dalton may refer to: Science * Dalton (crater), a lunar crater * Dalton (program), chemistry software * Dalton (unit) (Da), a.k.a. unified atomic mass unit * John Dalton, chemist, physicist and meteorologist * 12292 Dalton, an asteroid Ent ...

Delta Delta commonly refers to: * Delta (letter) (Δ or δ), the fourth letter of the Greek alphabet * D (NATO phonetic alphabet: "Delta"), the fourth letter in the Latin alphabet * River delta, at a river mouth * Delta Air Lines, a major US carrier ...

Dillard Dillard may refer to: People * Dillard (name) Places in the United States * Dillard, Alabama * Dillard, Georgia * Dillard, New Orleans, Louisiana * Dillard, Missouri * Dillard, North Carolina * Dillard, Oklahoma * Dillard, Oregon Arts, entertai ...

* Dodgetown * Flat Rock * Flat Shoals *

Francisco Francisco is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the masculine given name ''Franciscus''. Meaning of the name Francisco In Spanish, people with the name Francisco are sometimes nicknamed "Paco (name), Paco". Francis of Assisi, San Francisco de A ...

* Gap *

Hartman Hartman is a name that occurs as a surname and a given name. Surname Hartman is surname of German language, German origin. Notable people with the surname include: A *Angélica María, Angélica María Hartman (born 1944), American-born Mex ...

* Lawsonville *

Meadows A meadow ( ) is an open habitat or field, vegetated by grasses, herbs, and other non-woody plants. Trees or shrubs may sparsely populate meadows, as long as they maintain an open character. Meadows can occur naturally under favourable condition ...

* Moores Springs * Mountain View * Mount Olive * Neatman * Oak Ridge * Pine Hall * Poplar Springs * Prestonville * Quaker Gap * Rosebud * Sandy Ridge *

Volunteer Volunteering is an elective and freely chosen act of an individual or group giving their time and labor, often for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency ...

* Westfield

Townships

* Beaver Island * Big Creek * Danbury *

* Peters Creek * Quaker Gap * Sauratown * Snow Creek * Yadkin

References

External links

* *
Stokes County Historical Society

Stokes Arts Council

NCGenWeb Stokes County
free genealogy resources for the county {{Authority control 1789 establishments in North Carolina Populated places established in 1789