# Durham County, North Carolina

Durham County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 324,833, making it the sixth-most populous county in North Carolina. Its county seat is Durham, which is the only incorporated municipality predominantly in the county, though very small portions of cities and towns mostly in neighboring counties also extend into Durham County. The central and southern parts of Durham County are highly urban, consisting of the city as well as several unincorporated suburbs. Southeastern Durham County is dominated by the Research Triangle Park, most of which is in Durham County. The northern third of Durham County is rural in nature. Durham County is the core of the Durham-Chapel Hill, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Raleigh-Durham-Cary, NC Combined Statistical Area, which had an estimated population of 2,368,947 in 2023.

## History

The county was formed on April 17, 1881, from parts of Orange County and Wake County, taking the name of its own county seat. In 1911, parts of Cedar Fork Township of Wake County were transferred to Durham County and became Carr Township.

## Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 297.86 square miles (771.5 km$^2$), of which 286.53 square miles (742.1 km$^2$) is land and 11.33 square miles (29.3 km$^2$) (3.80%) is water.

### State and local protected areas/sites

* Bennett Place State Historic Site
* Butner-Falls of Neuse Game Land (part)
* Duke Homestead and Tobacco Factory
* East Durham Historic District
* Eno River State Park (part)
* Falls Lake State Recreation Area (part)
* Historic Stagville
* Hollow Rock Nature Park (part)
* Horton Grove Nature Preserve
* Jordan Game Land (part)
* Little River Regional Park and Natural Area (part)
* Mason Farm Biological Reserve (part)
* Museum of Life and Science
* Rolling View State Recreation Area (part)

### Major water bodies

* B. Everett Jordan Lake
* Crabtree Creek
* Ellerbe Creek
* Eno River
* Falls Lake
* Flat River
* Lake Michie
* Little River
* New Hope Creek
* Stirrup Iron Creek

### Adjacent counties

* Person County – north
* Granville County – northeast
* Wake County – east-southeast
* Chatham County – south
* Orange County – west

### Major highways

* I-40
* I-85
* I-540 / NC 540 Toll
* I-885 / NC 885 Toll
* US 15
* US 15 Bus.
* US 70
* US 70 Bus. (Durham)
* US 70 Bus. (to Orange County)
* US 501
* NC 54
* NC 55
* NC 98
* NC 147
* NC 157
* NC 751
* NC 751 Truck (truck route)

### Major infrastructure

* Durham Station

## Demographics
### 2020 census

Durham County racial composition :
| Race | Number | Percentage |
| White (non-Hispanic) | 133,768 | 41.18% |
| Black or African American (non-Hispanic) | 109,225 | 33.62% |
| Native American | 704 | 0.22% |
| Asian | 16,707 | 5.14% |
| Pacific Islander | 83 | 0.03% |
| Other/Mixed | 14,242 | 4.38% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 50,104 | 15.42% |
As of the 2020 census, there were 324,833 people, 131,140 households, and 75,291 families residing in the county.

### 2000 census

At the 2000 census, there were 223,314 people, 89,015 households, and 54,032 families residing in the county. The population density was 769 people per square mile (297 people/km$^2$). There were 95,452 housing units at an average density of 329 units per square mile (127 units/km$^2$). The racial makeup of the county was 50.91% White, 39.46% Black or African American, 0.30% Native American, 3.29% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 4.21% from other races, and 1.80% from two or more races. 7.63% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 89,015 households, out of which 29.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.00% were married couples living together, 14.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.30% were non-families. 30.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 2.99.
In the county, the age distribution was as follows: 22.90% under the age of 18, 12.80% from 18 to 24, 34.80% from 25 to 44, 19.80% from 45 to 64, and 9.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 93.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.70 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $43,337, and the median income for a family was $53,223. Males had a median income of $35,939 versus $30,683 for females. The per capita income for the county was $23,156. About 9.80% of families and 13.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.20% of those under age 18 and 12.30% of those age 65 or over.

## Law and government

Durham County is a member of the regional Triangle J Council of Governments. Durham County is governed by a five-member board of county commissioners, currently consisting of Chair Brenda A. Howerton, Vice Chair Wendy Jacobs, Nimasheena Burns, Heidi Carter, and Nida Allam. All are elected concurrently, and each elected member serves a four-year term. The current sheriff, Clarence Birkhead, was elected in 2018 and is the county's first African American Sheriff to hold office.

### Politics

Durham County is consistently one of the most Democratic counties in North Carolina, favoring Democrats in national, state, and local elections. having only voted for the Republican candidate twice since 1884, the Republican landslides of 1928 and 1972. George H. W. Bush is the last Republican to manage even 40 percent of the county's vote. Since the 1990s, Durham County has been one of the most Democratic urban counties in the South.
United States presidential election results for Durham County, North Carolina :
| Year | Republican | Republican | Democratic | Democratic | Third party(ies) | Third party(ies) |
| Year | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % |
| 2024 | 32,853 | 18.16% | 144,450 | 79.85% | 3,609 | 1.99% |
| 2020 | 32,459 | 18.04% | 144,688 | 80.42% | 2,767 | 1.54% |
| 2016 | 28,350 | 18.16% | 121,250 | 77.66% | 6,534 | 4.18% |
| 2012 | 33,769 | 23.01% | 111,224 | 75.80% | 1,742 | 1.19% |
| 2008 | 32,353 | 23.63% | 103,456 | 75.57% | 1,088 | 0.79% |
| 2004 | 34,614 | 31.57% | 74,524 | 67.96% | 513 | 0.47% |
| 2000 | 30,150 | 35.64% | 53,907 | 63.72% | 547 | 0.65% |
| 1996 | 27,825 | 34.39% | 49,186 | 60.79% | 3,899 | 4.82% |
| 1992 | 27,581 | 33.36% | 47,331 | 57.24% | 7,770 | 9.40% |
| 1988 | 29,928 | 45.43% | 35,441 | 53.79% | 514 | 0.78% |
| 1984 | 29,185 | 47.39% | 32,244 | 52.36% | 155 | 0.25% |
| 1980 | 19,276 | 40.24% | 24,969 | 52.13% | 3,656 | 7.63% |
| 1976 | 18,945 | 45.61% | 22,425 | 53.99% | 163 | 0.39% |
| 1972 | 25,576 | 61.38% | 15,566 | 37.36% | 525 | 1.26% |
| 1968 | 12,705 | 29.68% | 16,563 | 38.69% | 13,542 | 31.63% |
| 1964 | 15,264 | 40.02% | 22,874 | 59.98% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1960 | 14,322 | 42.60% | 19,298 | 57.40% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1956 | 13,226 | 48.87% | 13,835 | 51.13% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1952 | 11,301 | 37.42% | 18,897 | 62.58% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1948 | 4,531 | 25.73% | 11,530 | 65.46% | 1,552 | 8.81% |
| 1944 | 3,690 | 22.43% | 12,763 | 77.57% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1940 | 2,491 | 14.40% | 14,810 | 85.60% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1936 | 2,189 | 14.60% | 12,804 | 85.40% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1932 | 2,770 | 25.94% | 7,559 | 70.78% | 351 | 3.29% |
| 1928 | 8,723 | 66.06% | 4,482 | 33.94% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1924 | 3,093 | 37.95% | 4,837 | 59.34% | 221 | 2.71% |
| 1920 | 3,550 | 43.31% | 4,646 | 56.69% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1916 | 1,837 | 42.72% | 2,463 | 57.28% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1912 | 124 | 3.52% | 2,197 | 62.31% | 1,205 | 34.17% |
| 1908 | 1,820 | 49.35% | 1,859 | 50.41% | 9 | 0.24% |
| 1904 | 1,080 | 40.10% | 1,603 | 59.52% | 10 | 0.37% |
| 1900 | 2,026 | 45.86% | 2,373 | 53.71% | 19 | 0.43% |
| 1896 | 1,924 | 43.62% | 2,435 | 55.20% | 52 | 1.18% |
| 1892 | 1,264 | 35.93% | 1,490 | 42.35% | 764 | 21.72% |
| 1888 | 1,618 | 45.77% | 1,835 | 51.91% | 82 | 2.32% |
| 1884 | 1,193 | 42.79% | 1,595 | 57.21% | 0 | 0.00% |

## Communities

The city of Durham is the only incorporated municipality to predominantly exist within Durham County, and the only one whose urban core lies within the county, though small portions of municipalities from neighboring counties extend into Durham County, and the city of Durham also itself extends slightly into neighboring counties. All other towns and places within Durham County are unincorporated communities.

### Cities

* Durham (county seat and largest community; small portions extend into Wake and Orange counties)
* Raleigh (mostly in Wake County)

### Towns

* Chapel Hill (mostly in Orange County)
* Morrisville (mostly in Wake County)

### Townships

* Carr
* Durham
* Lebanon
* Mangum
* Oak Grove
* Triangle

### Census-designated places

* Gorman
* Rougemont (small portions extend into neighboring Person County)

### Unincorporated communities

* Bahama
* Bethesda
* Genlee
* Lowe's Grove
* Nelson
* Oak Grove
* Braggtown

## Notable person

* Margaret O'Neal (1884–?), sharecropper