Lincoln County, North Carolina

Lincoln County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 86,810, making it the most populous "Lincoln County" in the United States. Its county seat is Lincolnton.

Lincoln County is included in the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History
The county was formed in 1779 from the eastern part of Tryon County, which had been settled by Europeans in the mid-18th Century. It was named for Benjamin Lincoln, a general in the American Revolutionary War." During the American Revolution, the Battle of Ramsour's Mill occurred near a grist mill in Lincolnton.

In 1782 the southeastern part of Burke County was annexed to Lincoln County. In 1841, parts of Lincoln County and Rutherford County were combined to form Cleveland County. In 1842, the northern third of Lincoln County became Catawba County. In 1846, the southern half of what was left of Lincoln County became Gaston County.

Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 304.87 sqmi, of which 295.85 sqmi is land and 9.02 sqmi (2.96%) is water.

State and local protected areas

 * Mountain Island Educational State Forest (part)
 * Pee Wee's Mountain Bike Trail
 * Rock Springs Nature Preserve
 * South Fork Rail Trail

Major water bodies

 * Anderson Creek
 * Ballard Creek
 * Buffalo Creek
 * Catawba River
 * Crooked Creek
 * Howard Creek
 * Hoyle Creek
 * Indian Creek
 * Killian Creek
 * Lake Norman
 * Little Indian Creek
 * South Fork Catawba River
 * Tanyard Creek

Adjacent counties

 * Catawba County – north
 * Iredell County – northeast
 * Mecklenburg County – southeast
 * Gaston County – south
 * Cleveland County – west
 * Burke County – northwest

Major highways

 * (business route)
 * (truck route)
 * (business route)
 * (truck route)
 * (business route)
 * (truck route)
 * (truck route)
 * (truck route)

Major infrastructure

 * Lincoln County Airport

2020 census
As of the 2020 census, there were 86,810 people, 34,418 households, and 24,445 families residing in the county.

2010 census
At the 2010 census, there were 78,265 people, 30,343 households, and 22,221 families residing in the county. The population density was 261.76 /mi2. There were 33,641 housing units at an average density of 112.51 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 89.4% White, 5.5% Black or African American, 0.3% Native American, 0.5% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 2.7% from other races, and 1.6% from two or more races. 6.7% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 30,343 households, out of which 30.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.2% were married couples living together, 11.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.8% were non-families. 22.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 2.97.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.6% under the age of 18, 7.5% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 29.5% from 45 to 64, and 13.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40.4 years. For every 100 females there were 98.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.8 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $42,456, and the median income for a family was $48,298. Males had a median income of $41,441 versus $30,480 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,861. About 10.4% of families and 15.8% of the population were below the poverty line, as well as 25.3% of those under age 18 and 8.7% of those age 65 or over.

Government and politics
Lincoln County is a member of the regional Centralina Council of Governments.

Controversy
In February 2020, the Lincoln County Sheriff's Department received media attention when surveillance video was released showing first a pair of Atrium Health security guards assaulting a sixteen-year-old boy brought to the hospital's emergency room. When another pair of sheriff's deputies arrived, video shows one of the deputies hitting the boy, now handcuffed, in the face twice as the boy spit blood pooling in his mouth after being tackled from behind by security guards. The deputy then aggressively approached the mother, yelling at her before being pulled to the ground by a second deputy, In an interview with WBTV, Lincoln County Sheriff Bill Beam defended his deputies saying they did nothing wrong, denying that the officer struck the boy or that the officer was physically restrained by two additional sheriff's deputies. The boy was arrested and charged with felony assault on a police officer.

Post-secondary education

 * Gaston College - Community College located in Dallas, North Carolina with a satellite campus in Lincolnton offering associate degree, Certificate, and Diploma programs.

High schools

 * East Lincoln High School
 * Lincoln County School of Technology
 * Lincolnton High School
 * Newbold High School (1952-1968), a segregated school that served African Americans and became G. E. Massey Elementary School in 1968 after desegregation
 * Oaklawn High School (segregated school serving African Americans), replaced by Newbold High School in 1952
 * North Lincoln High School
 * West Lincoln High School

Middle school

 * Asbury Academy
 * East Lincoln
 * Lincolnton
 * North Lincoln
 * West Lincoln

Intermediate schools

 * Pumpkin Center Intermediate School

Elementary schools

 * Asbury
 * Battleground
 * Catawba Springs
 * G. E. Massey
 * Iron Station
 * Love Memorial
 * Norris S. Childers
 * North Brook
 * Pumpkin Center Primary
 * Rock Springs
 * S. Ray Lowder
 * St. James
 * Union

Charter schools
 * Lincoln Charter School

City

 * Lincolnton (county seat and largest community)

Town

 * Boger City (former town)
 * Maiden (part)

Census-designated places

 * Crouse
 * Denver
 * Iron Station
 * Lowesville
 * Westport

Unincorporated communities

 * Flay
 * Laboratory
 * Laurel Hill
 * Polkadot
 * Reepsville
 * Toluca (part)
 * Vale

Townships

 * Catawba Springs
 * Howards Creek
 * Ironton
 * Lincolnton
 * North Brook