Albemarle () is a small city and the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

Stanly County, North Carolina Stanly County is a county in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 62,504. Its county seat is Albemarle. Stanly County comprises the Albemarle, NC Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included i ...

, United States. The population was 15,903 in the 2010 Census. Gerald R. "Ronnie" Michael (a former police chief in the city) serves as Mayor and Albemarle has a seven-member City Council elected in a combination of at-large and district seats. Albemarle has operated under the Council-Manager form of government since 1962. Michael Ferris has served as City Manager since December 2014 and previously served as Assistant City Manager for nearly two decades. The City Manager is appointed by the City Council, and is responsible for the day-to-day administration of City government. The City's Department Heads report directly to the City Manager, who is also responsible for development and administration of the City's annual budget.

History

Etymology

This place-name is derived from the English surname Albemarle. According to a 1905 publication by the United States Geologic Survey, based on research by University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill history professor Kemp P. Battle, it was named specifically for General George Monck, the first Duke of Albemarle and one of the original proprietors of the colony of Carolina, which included the town.

Ancient and colonial

The site of modern-day Albemarle was originally peopled by small tribes of

hunter-gatherers A traditional hunter-gatherer or forager is a human living an ancestrally derived lifestyle in which most or all food is obtained by foraging, that is, by gathering food from local sources, especially edible wild plants but also insects, fungi, ...

and

mound builders A number of pre-Columbian cultures are collectively termed "Mound Builders". The term does not refer to a specific people or archaeological culture, but refers to the characteristic mound earthworks erected for an extended period of more than 5 ...

whose artifacts and settlements have been dated back nearly 10,000 years. Large-scale European settlement of the region came in the mid-18th century via two primary waves: immigrants of Dutch, Scots-Irish and German descent moved from

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

and

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

seeking enhanced religious and political tolerance, while immigrants of English backgrounds came to the region from

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

and the

Cape Fear River The Cape Fear River is a long blackwater river in east central North Carolina. It flows into the Atlantic Ocean near Cape Fear, from which it takes its name. The river is formed at the confluence of the Haw River and the Deep River (North Carol ...

Basin in Eastern

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

. In early English colonial times, the Albemarle area was politically part of the New Hanover Precinct, out of which the Bladen Precinct was created in 1734. The renamed

Bladen County Bladen County ()
, from the North Carolina Collection's website at the

was subdivided to create Anson County in 1750, which in turn spawned Montgomery County in 1779.

Establishment of Stanly County and Albemarle

Stanly County Courthouse, North Carolina

The Albemarle region's first post office was established in 1826; it was then known as Smith's Store. The nearby crossroads of the Old Turnpike Road from Fayetteville to

Salisbury Salisbury ( ) is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers Avon, Nadder and Bourne. The city is approximately from Southampton and from Bath. Salisbury is in the southeast of ...

and the Old Stage Road connecting

Charlotte Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

and

Raleigh Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the seat of Wake County in the United States. It is the second-most populous city in North Carolina, after Charlotte. Raleigh is the tenth-most populous city in the Southeas ...

emerged as an important hub for regional commerce and trade. The region remained part of Montgomery County until 1841, when after years of attempted separation, prominent residents of the increasingly populous areas west of the Yadkin/ Pee Dee River system successfully petitioned the North Carolina General Assembly for the establishment of Stanly County as an independent entity. Soon after the new county was formed, its Board of Commissioners was tasked with establishing a permanent county seat within eight miles (13 km) of the home of Eben Hearne (the County's first sheriff), and with laying out a new town, in which a courthouse would be erected. Nehemiah Hearne's heirs donated from his plantation near the intersection of the Old Turnpike and Old Stage Roads for the construction of the new County Seat. The County Commissioners established the town's boundaries, laid out streets and surveyed and marked parcels of property within Hearne's donated land. The first land lot sale financed the new town's public buildings and paid some part of the elected officials' salaries. The courthouse was erected in 1842 and used for 50 years. The City of Albemarle was formally incorporated in 1857. The town was named for Albemarle County, the first county established in North Carolina, which was in turn named for the Duke of Albemarle,

George Monck George Monck, 1st Duke of Albemarle JP KG PC (6 December 1608 – 3 January 1670) was an English soldier, who fought on both sides during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. A prominent military figure under the Commonwealth, his support was cruc ...

, one of the

Lords Proprietors A lord proprietor is a person granted a royal charter for the establishment and government of an English colony in the 17th century. The plural of the term is "lords proprietors" or "lords proprietary". Origin In the beginning of the European ...

granted the province of Carolina in 1663 by King Charles II.

Economic history

The Albemarle region's early economic growth was fueled by agriculture (with cotton as the primary crop), regional mercantile trade and a short-lived gold rush in the nearby Uwharrie Mountains, all later supplanted by textile manufacturing. The Efird Manufacturing Co. (later American and Efird Mills) opened its first mill in Albemarle in 1896, and was followed soon thereafter by the Wiscasset Mill Company, the Cannon Mill Company, the Lillian Knitting Mill and others. In 1899, Wiscassett Mills Company established Cabarrus Bank and Trust, the first bank in Albemarle. By 1910, an electrical distribution plan for the city was underway. The Yadkin Railroad began rail service to Albemarle from

in 1891. In 1911, the Winston-Salem Southbound Railway (WSS) constructed its own line through Albemarle to support the booming textile and market, eventually driving the Yadkin Railroad into obsolescence. The WSS still provides freight service through Albemarle, but since 1933 there has been no passenger service to the city. The Old Market Street Station on the WSS line has been restored, and is now the site of a popular farmer's market. The railbed of the Yadkin Railroad has been ripped up and paved over, though a one-mile (1.6 km) segment of its route south of Albemarle now serves as a hiking trail in Rock Creek Park. In 1923, a state contract was let to construct NC-24/27 to

, the first paved highway out of Albemarle. In 1950, Stanly County Memorial Hospital opened on land donated by Wiscassett Mills.

Historic preservation

Albemarle, North Carolina Downtown Historic District

Albemarle was recognized by the National Trust for Historic Preservation as a National Main Street City in 1993. There are a number of historic preservation and

adaptive reuse Adaptive reuse refers to the process of reusing an existing building for a purpose other than which it was originally built or designed for. It is also known as recycling and conversion. Adaptive reuse is an effective strategy for optimizing the o ...

projects in its downtown that have been recently completed or are underway, including an initiative to create a greenway linking many of the City's parks and historic sites. The Freeman-Marks House, probably built during the 1820s, is the oldest known surviving house in Albemarle. It is listed in the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

, along with the

Romanesque Revival Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended to ...

Opera House/Starnes Jewelers Building (1908) and three small historic districts in the city's downtown area. Another important historic property is the Isaiah W. "Buck" Snuggs House, an antebellum home on Third Street then owned and now named for a Stanly County sheriff who lost his leg in the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

Battle of Spotsylvania Court House The Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, sometimes more simply referred to as the Battle of Spotsylvania (or the 19th-century spelling Spottsylvania), was the second major battle in Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant and Maj. Gen. George G. Meade's 186 ...

. The Stanly County Museum in Albemarle provides a focal point for regional historic research and preservation. The Albemarle Graded School-Central Elementary School, Thomas Marcellus Denning House, Downtown Albemarle Historic District, Five Points Historic District, Opera House-Starnes Jewelers Building, Pee Dee Avenue Historic District, Second Street Historic District, and Isaiah Wilson Snugs House are listed on the

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), 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 Census Bureau is part of t ...

, Albemarle has a total area of , of which is land and (0.44%) is water. The city is centered on the junction of U.S. Route 52 and the duplexed NC-24/27 in the Piedmont Region of North Carolina. Its topography is characterized by rolling, eroded hills, deciduous forests, and fast-running, narrow, shallow streams that feed the Yadkin/ Pee Dee River Basin. Little Long Creek and Town Creek are the major non-seasonal streams through Albemarle; both flow generally southward into the Long and Big Bear Creek Sub-basin.

Geology

Albemarle is located in the Floyd Church Formation of the Carolina Slate Belt. Thickly bedded, axially cleaved meta- mudstone and meta-

argillite :''"Argillite" may also refer to Argillite, Kentucky.'' Argillite () is a fine-grained sedimentary rock composed predominantly of indurated clay particles. Argillaceous rocks are basically lithified muds and oozes. They contain variable amounts ...

are common in this formation, interbedded with meta-

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates ...

, meta- conglomerate and meta-

volcanic rock Volcanic rock (often shortened to volcanics in scientific contexts) is a rock formed from lava erupted from a volcano. In other words, it differs from other igneous rock by being of volcanic origin. Like all rock types, the concept of volcanic ...

. Biotite is the most prevalent

Paleozoic The Paleozoic (or Palaeozoic) Era is the earliest of three geologic eras of the Phanerozoic Eon. The name ''Paleozoic'' ( ;) was coined by the British geologist Adam Sedgwick in 1838 by combining the Greek words ''palaiós'' (, "old") and ' ...

metamorphic rock Metamorphic rocks arise from the transformation of existing rock to new types of rock in a process called metamorphism. The original rock ( protolith) is subjected to temperatures greater than and, often, elevated pressure of or more, caus ...

in the region.

Climate

Albemarle has a humid subtropical climate (

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

''Cfa''), with cool to mild winters and hot, humid summers.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the

2020 United States census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...

, there were 16,432 people, 6,220 households, and 4,108 families residing in the city.

2010 census

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of 2010, there were 15,489 people, 6,291 households, and 4,158 families residing in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: 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 geographical ...

was 999.0 people per square mile (385.6/km). There were 6,954 housing units at an average density of 443.1 per square mile (171.0/km). The racial makeup of the city was 72.85%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

, 20.50%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.24% Native American, 4.16% Asian, 0.03%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 1.07% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 1.14% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

people of any race were 1.87% of the population. There were 6,291 households, out of which 30.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.8% were married couples living together, 14.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.9% were non-families. 30.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 3.02. In the city, the population was spread out, with 26.0% under the age of 18, 8.4% from 18 to 24, 26.9% from 25 to 44, 21.3% from 45 to 64, and 17.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.4 males. The median income for a household in the city was $31,442, and the median income for a family was $41,729. Males had a median income of $31,001 versus $20,589 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the city was $17,511. About 11.8% of families and 15.7% 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 t ...

, including 21.6% of those under age 18 and 10.8% of those age 65 or over.

Parks and recreation

Courthouse Square Park, Albemarle, North Carolina

Albemarle's Parks and Recreation Department was established in 1963. It currently operates and administers five parks within the city's limits, as well as a soccer complex and a ceramics facility. The newest facility under the Department's purview is City Lake, a park on a lake that was opened in 2003, joining Rock Creek Park, Chuck Morehead Memorial Park, Roosevelt Ingram Memorial Park and Don Montgomery Memorial Park.

Morrow Mountain State Park Morrow Mountain State Park is a state park in Stanly County, North Carolina, U.S. Located near Albemarle, the park includes within the Uwharrie Mountains. Geography Morrow Mountain is one of the highest peaks in the Uwharrie Mountains of ...

is a large state park located east of the city. It is situated on a high elevation in the Uwharrie Mountains adjoining the

Yadkin River The Yadkin River is one of the longest rivers in North Carolina, flowing . It rises in the northwestern portion of the state near the Blue Ridge Parkway's Thunder Hill Overlook. Several parts of the river are impounded by dams for water, p ...

, and offers many recreational activities. The park features a natural history museum and the restored 19th-century home site of Dr. Francis J. Kron.

Education

* Albemarle High School * Stanly Community College

Media

Albemarle and its environs are served by the '' Stanly News and Press'', which was founded in 1880 and is currently owned by Boone Newspapers, Inc. ''The Weekly Post'' is a newspaper focusing on local community events in the area. Albemarle is also within the outer coverage and delivery area of ''

The Charlotte Observer ''The Charlotte Observer'' is an American English-language newspaper serving Charlotte, North Carolina, and its metro area. The Observer was founded in 1886. As of 2020, it has the second-largest circulation of any newspaper in the Carolinas. I ...

'' Albemarle and Stanly County are served by two local radio stations,

WSPC WSPC (1010 AM) is a commercial radio station in Albemarle, North Carolina. It broadcasts a talk radio format and is owned by Stanly Communications. The radio studios and transmitter are on Magnolia Street in Albemarle. By day, WSPC transmits w ...

at 1010 AM with a news/talk format, and WZKY at 1580 AM with an oldies music format. Both are owned by Stanly Communications, Inc. WSPC was previously known as WABZ AM in a former bank at 108 East North Street, across the street from the First Baptist Church. Television stations available are from the Charlotte Designated Market Area, which Stanly County and Albemarle are a part of. Additionally, the local cable provider carries one station from

Greensboro Greensboro (; formerly Greensborough) is a city in and the county seat of Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, third-most populous city in North Carolina after Charlotte, North Car ...

WFMY-TV WFMY-TV (channel 2) is a television station licensed to Greensboro, North Carolina, United States, serving as the CBS affiliate for the Piedmont Triad region. Owned by Tegna Inc., the station maintains studios on Phillips Avenue in Greensboro, a ...

Notable people

Denico Autry Denico Autry (born July 15, 1990) is an American football outside linebacker for the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League (NFL). He attended Albemarle High School in Albemarle, North Carolina and first enrolled at East Mississippi Co ...

, football defensive end for the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their hom ...

of the NFL; he attended Albemarle High School *

W. Horace Carter Walter Horace Carter (January 20, 1921 – September 16, 2009) was an American newspaper publishing, publisher in Tabor City, North Carolina, whose paper won a 1953 Pulitzer Prize for his reporting on the activities of the Ku Klux Klan and his edit ...

, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist * Louis Cato, multi-instrumentalist and bandleader of The Late Show Band, the house band for ''

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert ''The Late Show with Stephen Colbert'' is an American late-night news and liberal political satire talk show hosted by Stephen Colbert, which premiered on September 8, 2015. Produced by Spartina Productions and CBS Studios, it is the second ...

'' * Willie Drye, journalist and author *

Woody Durham Woody Lombardi Durham (August 8, 1941 – March 7, 2018) was an American play-by-play radio announcer for the North Carolina Tar Heels football and men’s basketball programs from 1971 to 2011. Early life Born in Mebane, North Carolina, Durham ...

, radio play-by-play announcer for the Carolina Tar Heels; started his radio career at radio station WZKY 1580 AM in Albemarle * Stuart Daniel Baker, better known as Unknown Hinson, musician and voice actor *

Danny Kepley Daniel "Danny" Kepley (born August 24, 1953) is a former star linebacker for the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League. Kepley played college football at East Carolina University. He tried out with the NFL's Dallas Cowboys before star ...

, former all-star linebacker for the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

Edmonton Eskimos; member of the Canadian Football Hall of Fame * T.A. McLendon, football running back, holds several national high school records; starred for the North Carolina State Wolfpack; played at Albemarle High School * Monty Montgomery, former

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

player *

Kellie Pickler Kellie Dawn Pickler (born June 28, 1986) is an American country music singer, songwriter, and television personality. Pickler gained fame as a contestant on the fifth season of ''American Idol'' and finished in sixth place. In 2006, she signed ...

, 2006 ''

American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to Ap ...

'' contestant; country recording artist; three-time Stanly County AIDS Rodeo for Charity Champion (2002-2004); Season 16 winner of '' Dancing with the Stars'' (2013) * Tommy Smith, former