Clyde is a town in Haywood County,

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 ...

, United States. The 2010 census recorded the population at 1,223 people. It is part of the Asheville Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Prior to

European colonization The phenomenon of colonization is one that stretches around the globe and across time. Ancient and medieval colonialism was practiced by various civilizations such as the Phoenicians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Han Chinese, and A ...

, the area that is now Clyde was inhabited by the

Cherokee people The Cherokee (; , or ) people are one of the Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, they were concentrated in their homelands, in towns along river valleys of what is now southwestern ...

and other Indigenous peoples for thousands of years. The Cherokee in Western North Carolina are known as the

Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI), (Cherokee language, Cherokee: ᏣᎳᎩᏱ ᏕᏣᏓᏂᎸᎩ, ''Tsalagiyi Detsadanilvgi'') is a List of federally recognized tribes in the contiguous United States, federally recognized Indian Tribe, ...

, a federally recognized tribe. The city of Clyde was founded in 1890. On March 3, 1900, an African-American man named George Ratliffe was lynched in Clyde after being accused of raping an 8 year old white girl named Hester Wagstaff. The girl was the granddaughter of Ratliffe's employers, Matthias and Nithis Holland. Ratliffe was accused of committing the crime at 4:00 PM of March 3, 1900, three miles outside of Clyde. Arrested on the evening of the same day, and subjected to an initial trial in Clyde before being taken to the jail in Waynesville on March 4, a mob of 40-50 "masked men" attempted to break into the jail cell where Ratcliffe was held. Failing to break into the jail, the mob of white men fired 40 shots, killing Ratcliffe in his jail cell before he could go to trial or even speak with a lawyer. The Haywood County branch of the

NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is an American civil rights organization formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E. B. Du&nbs ...

has supported the creation of a monument recognizing the murder of George Ratliffe. The area is prone to flooding. The town was damaged by

Hurricane Ivan Hurricane Ivan was a large, long-lived, and devastating tropical cyclone that caused widespread damage in the Caribbean and United States. The ninth named storm, the sixth hurricane, and the fourth major hurricane of the active 2004 Atlantic h ...

(2004),

Tropical Storm Fred The name Fred has been used for a total of six tropical cyclones worldwide, three in the Atlantic Ocean, two in the Western Pacific Ocean, and one in the Australian region of the Indian Ocean. In the Atlantic: * Hurricane Fred (2009) – Category& ...

(2021) and

Hurricane Helene Hurricane Helene ( ) was a deadly and devastating tropical cyclone that caused widespread catastrophic damage and numerous fatalities across the Southeastern United States in late September 2024. It was the strongest hurricane on record to ...

in 2024. The Shook-Welch-Smathers House was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 2008.

Geography

According to the

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

, the town has a total area of , all land.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,368 people, 509 households, and 351 families residing in the town.

2000 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 1,324 people, 547 households, and 373 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 607 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 94.94%

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 ...

, 2.49%

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 ...

, 0.98% Native American, 0.83% from other races, and 0.76% from two or more races.

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 were 1.89% of the population. There were 547 households, out of which 29.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.6% 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, 12.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.8% were non-families. 26.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.33 and the average family size was 2.82. In the town, the population was spread out, with 22.6% under the age of 18, 9.3% from 18 to 24, 28.1% from 25 to 44, 22.1% from 45 to 64, and 18.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 85.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.1 males. The median income for a household in the town was $33,000, and the median income for a family was $39,531. Males had a median income of $28,542 versus $21,034 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 town was $15,991. About 11.0% of families and 15.0% 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 22.1% of those under age 18 and 12.1% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Haywood County's only institution of higher education is Haywood Community College, a two-year college located just outside the city limits of Clyde. The town also has Haywood Early College High School which is located on Haywood Community College's campus. Elementary Schools are Clyde Elementary and Junaluska Elementary. Students attend middle school at Canton Middle School then move to Pisgah High School. Clyde is also home to Haywood county’s alternative school central Haywood high school. Clyde NC WTC monument

History

Geography

Demographics

2020 census

2000 census

Education

Points of interest

References

External links