Rowland is a town in Rowland Township,

Robeson County Robeson County ( )Talk Like a Tarheel
, from the North Carolina C ...

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 population was 885 at the 2020 census.

History

The congregation of the Ashpole Presbyterian Church was founded in the eventual bounds of the community in 1796. Rowland was incorporated in 1889 and named in honor of

Alfred Rowland Alfred Rowland (February 9, 1844 – August 2, 1898) was a U.S. Representative from North Carolina. Born in Lumberton, North Carolina, Rowland attended the common schools in the area. He entered the Confederate States Army in May, 1861 and ser ...

. The first brick building in the town, a hotel and store, was erected in 1892. Rowland served as a key market for regional tobacco production until the sector declined in the 1970s. By the mid-2000s the downtown was in physical decline, though by 2015 work had been done to clean up the main thoroughfare and maintain its buildings. The Ashpole Presbyterian Church, Centenary Methodist Church, Rowland Depot, and

Rowland Main Street Historic District Rowland Main Street Historic District is a national historic district located at Rowland, Robeson County, North Carolina. The district encompasses 35 contributing buildings and 1 contributing structure in the central business district of Rowla ...

are 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 ...

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. On

Interstate 95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, north to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the ...

, it is one exit north of a

roadside attraction A roadside attraction is a feature along the side of a road meant to attract tourists. In general, these are places one might stop on the way to somewhere, rather than being a destination. They are frequently advertised with billboard (advertis ...

called South of the Border.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 885 people, 441 households, and 244 families residing in the town.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 1,037 people living in the town. The racial makeup of the town was 70.2% Black, 20.7% White, 5.8% Native American and 1.6% from two or more races. 1.6% were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

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 1,146 people, 487 households, and 302 families living in the town. The population density was . There were 542 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 26.70%

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 ...

, 67.98%

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 ...

, 4.45% Native American, 0.17% from other races, and 0.70% 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 0.35% of the population. There were 487 households, out of which 25.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 31.8% 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, 25.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.8% were non-families. 35.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 20.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 3.05. In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.4% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 25.0% from 25 to 44, 23.3% from 45 to 64, and 18.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 80.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 69.8 males. The median income for a household in the town was $18,021, and the median income for a family was $27,679. Males had a median income of $23,571 versus $20,125 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 $14,411. About 23.1% of families and 31.3% 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 44.9% of those under age 18 and 35.3% of those age 65 or over.

References

Works cited

* * {{authority control Towns in Robeson County, North Carolina Towns in North Carolina