Mars Hill is a town in Madison County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 2,007 at the 2020 census,

Geography

Mars Hill is in eastern Madison County, by road north of Asheville. Interstate 26 passes just east of the town, with access from Exit 11 (NC 213). The Interstate leads south to Asheville and north to Johnson City, Tennessee. U.S. Route 19 leads northeast from Mars Hill to Cane River, and State Highway 213 passes through the center of town, leading west to Marshall.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all land. Due to the presence of the university, residents of the town of Mars Hill enjoy a much greater variety of cultural, intellectual, and entertainment offerings than would usually be found in a town of its size.

Demographics

2020 census

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:right"

|+Mars Hill racial composition

!scope="col"| Race

!scope="col"| Number

!scope="col"| Percentage

|-

!scope="row"| White (non-Hispanic)

| 1,615

| 80.47%

|-

!scope="row"| Black or African American (non-Hispanic)

| 139

| 6.93%

|-

!scope="row"| Native American

| 5

| 0.25%

|-

!scope="row"| Asian

| 23

| 1.15%

|-

!scope="row"| Pacific Islander

| 1

| 0.05%

|-

!scope="row"| Other/Mixed

| 98

| 4.88%

|-

!scope="row"| Hispanic or Latino

| 126

| 6.28%

|}

As of the 2020 census, Mars Hill had a population of 2,007 people, with 617 households, including 440 families. The median age was 26.1 years. 12.9% of residents were under the age of 18 and 16.9% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females, there were 85.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.1 males age 18 and over.

0.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.

Of all households in Mars Hill, 25.3% had children under the age of 18 living in them. 43.3% were married-couple households, 15.6% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 33.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 32.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

  • Tommy Hunter fiddler
  • Bascom Lamar Lunsford folklorist and performer of traditional folk and country music from Western North Carolina
  • Graham Martin former United States Ambassador to South Vietnam
  • Ray Rapp former member of the North Carolina General Assembly

References