Rutherford County, North Carolina

Rutherford County is a county in the southwestern area of the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 64,444. Its county seat is Rutherfordton. Rutherford County comprises the Forest City, NC Micropolitan Statistical Area.

History
In the region's earliest history, it was inhabited by the Cherokee. It was a part of Mecklenburg County before being incorporated into Tryon County in 1768. Tryon County was divided into Rutherford County and Lincoln County in 1779. The first county seat was Gilbert Town. Rutherford Town (now Rutherfordton) was founded in 1787 to be the new county seat. The county and town are named for Griffith Rutherford, leader of an expedition against the Cherokee in 1776 and a general in the American Revolutionary War.

In 1791 parts of Rutherford County and Burke County were combined to form Buncombe County. In 1841 parts of Rutherford and Lincoln counties were combined to form Cleveland County. In 1842, additional parts of Rutherford and Burke counties were combined to form McDowell County. Finally, in 1855, parts of Rutherford and Henderson counties were combined to form Polk County.

In 1790, the county had 7,775 residents, including 164 families and 611 enslaved people. Many areas of the county were agriculturally productive or lay on important crossroads. The number of unincorporated communities in the county steadily increased, and the population reached had nearly doubled by 1810. The most important crops in the county during the 1800s were corn, wheat, oats, rye, cotton, wool and tobacco.

The county existed at the crossroads of stagecoach routes that connected places like Asheville, Salisbury and Charlotte. The Hickory Nut Turnpike was completed in 1847 to help make the route even safer and more appealing to travelers.

Rutherford County was the most important gold-producing region in America from 1790 until the California gold rush of the 1840s. The town of Rutherfordton was at the center of this. German goldsmith Christopher Bechtler and his sons set up a mint just north of Rutherfordton, where they produced millions of dollars worth of US coins. The Bechtlers produced the first gold dollars in the United States.

The county has a strong militia tradition, stretching back to the 18th century when it had the most well organized militia in North Carolina. Its militiamen served in the Battle of Kings Mountain and Battle of Cowpens. During the Civil War, Rutherfordton and Burnt Chimney (now Forest City) competed to raise militias to serve in the Confederate States Army.

After the Civil War ended, many farmers in the region were forced to tenant farming, as they owned no land of their own. This meant that many Rutherford County residents were trapped in debt by predatory crop liens and other economic imbalances. The Rutherford Farmer's Alliance was established by D.N. Caviness in June 1888 to fight for farmer's rights, and had 300 members by 1891. The Alliance's first president was Colonel John L. McDowell. The underlying economic and racial tensions led to events like the Forest City lynching.

During this period of upheaval, when family and political feuds had been recently inflamed by the Civil War, Rutherford County experienced a rash of violence wreaked by the KKK, but local investigations in Rutherford County led to the prosecution of over 300 hundred Klan members and by 1872, the KKK had begun to "disappear".

The construction of railroads and cotton mills in Rutherford County during the 1880s and 1890s invigorated the county's communities, none more so than Forest City. The Rutherford Railway Construction Company built a line from Rutherfordton to South Carolina, and Southern Railway and Seaboard Air Line Railroad also ran through the county.

A disproportionate number of Rutherford County natives served during WWII, with about 12% participating in the war effort in some capacity. 149 Rutherford County natives died in the war, proportionately 3.5 times as many losses as other counties. The first soldier from Rutherford County to die in the war was SFC Mark Alexander Rhodes, who died aboard the USS Arizona during the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor.

In May 1989, Rutherford County was hit by an EF4 tornado from a storm that came out of South Carolina. This tornado was part of the May 1989 tornado outbreak, that hit the states of Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia.

Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 567.25 sqmi, of which 565.44 sqmi is land and 1.81 sqmi (0.32%) is water.

In addition to gold and platinum, minerals like rock crystal, garnet, tourmaline, slate, wolframite, and the rare-earth element samarskite have been mined in Rutherford County. Diamonds have also been found there, including one mined at the JD Twitty Gold Placer Mine in 1845.

State and local protected areas

 * Bechtler Mint Site Historic Park
 * Bradley Nature Preserve at Alexander's Ford (part)
 * Chimney Rock State Park (part)
 * Purple Martin Greenway Trail
 * South Mountains Game Lands (part)
 * South Mountains State Park (part)

Major water bodies

 * Broad River
 * Catheys Creek
 * Cedar Creek
 * Duncans Creek
 * Floyds Creek
 * Green River
 * Hills Creek
 * Hollands Creek
 * Lake Lure
 * McKinney Creek
 * Mountain Creek
 * North Fork First Broad Creek
 * Roberson Creek
 * Second Broad River

Adjacent counties

 * McDowell County – north
 * Burke County – northeast
 * Cleveland County – east
 * Cherokee County, South Carolina – south
 * Spartanburg County, South Carolina – south
 * Polk County – southwest
 * Henderson County – west
 * Buncombe County – northwest

Major infrastructure

 * Rutherford County Airport
 * Summey Airpark, near Forest City

2020 census
As of the 2020 census, there were 64,444 people, 27,970 households, and 18,874 families residing in the county.

2000 census
At the 2000 census, the county had 62,899 people, 25,191 households, and 17,935 families. The population density was 112 /mi2. There were 29,535 housing units at an average density of 52 /mi2. The county's racial makeup was 86.79% White, 11.23% Black or African American, 0.20% Native American, 0.22% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.67% from other races, and 0.74% from two or more races. 1.81% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 25,191 households, out of which 30.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.40% were married couples living together, 11.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.80% were non-families. 25.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.90.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.80% under the age of 18, 8.00% from 18 to 24, 27.90% from 25 to 44, 24.30% from 45 to 64, and 16.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 93.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.60 males.

The county's median household income was $31,122, and the median family income was $37,787. Males had a median income of $28,890 versus $21,489 for females. The county's per capita income was $16,270. About 10.40% of families and 13.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.30% of those under age 18 and 13.80% of those age 65 or over.

Ancestry/ethnicity
As of 1983, the largest ancestry/ethnicity groups in Rutherford County were:

Government and politics
Rutherford is currently a powerfully Republican county. No Democratic presidential candidate has carried Rutherford County since Jimmy Carter did so in 1976. Before 1928 when Herbert Hoover won it, however, the county was a clear-cut part of the Democratic "Solid South".

Rutherford County is governed by a board of commissioners. The County Board of Commissioners includes: Chairman Bryan King, Com. Greg Lovelace, Com. David Hunt, Com. Michael Benfield, and Com. Alan Toney. The Board of Commissioners appoints a county manager to serve as the chief administrator. The current county manager is Steve Garrison who has been serving since March 16, 2015.

Rutherford County is a member of the Isothermal Planning and Development Commission regional council of governments.

The county is policed by the Rutherford County Sheriff's Office. The current sheriff is Aaron Ellenburg.

Economy
Rutherfordton County has a large timber industry, as well as textile and construction materials manufacturing. The agricultural industry in Rutherfordton produces soybeans, wheat, corn, cotton, and livestock.

In 2010, Rutherford County was selected as the location for a new $450 million data center for Facebook.

Horsehead Corporation announced the construction of its new, state-of-the-art zinc and diversified metals production facility in Rutherford County, NC, near the municipality of Forest City. Camp Bud Scheile A Boy Scout camp run by the Piedmont Council BSA is located North of Forest City. It can accommodate as many as 1800 campers every summer.

Culture
Rutherford County has a tourism industry which includes areas like Lake Lure and Chimney Rock.

Several films have been shot in Rutherford County, including Firestarter (1984), The Last of the Mohicans (1992), and Dirty Dancing (1987).

Towns

 * Bostic
 * Ellenboro
 * Forest City (largest community)
 * Lake Lure
 * Ruth
 * Rutherfordton (county seat)
 * Spindale

Village

 * Chimney Rock

Census-designated places

 * Caroleen
 * Cliffside
 * Henrietta

Unincorporated communities

 * Corinth
 * Danieltown
 * Harris
 * Hopewell
 * Mount Vernon
 * Union Mills
 * Sandy Mush
 * Hollis

Former community

 * Alexander Mills

Townships

 * Camp Creek
 * Chimney Rock
 * Colfax
 * Cool Spring
 * Duncans Creek
 * Gilkey
 * Golden Valley
 * Green Hill
 * High Shoals
 * Logan Store
 * Morgan
 * Rutherfordton
 * Sulphur Springs
 * Union

Notable people

 * William Chivous Bostic Sr., physician and researcher
 * Smoky Burgess, record-setting major league baseball player
 * Christopher Bechtler, German-born goldsmith
 * Bryan Coker, 12th President of Maryville College
 * Walter Dalton, former lieutenant governor of North Carolina (in office 2009–2013)
 * Tim Earley, American poet
 * Pleasant Daniel Gold, American publisher and clergyman
 * James Holland, former U.S. congressman
 * Kay Hooper, best-selling author
 * Lewis Jolley, running back for the Houston Oilers
 * Robert McNair, former owner of the Houston Texans
 * Phil Prince, 12th president of Clemson University
 * Merle Davis Umstead, former first lady of North Carolina
 * Felix Walker, former U.S. congressman