New London is a town in Stanly County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2020 census, New London had a population of 607. The town lies between Albemarle and Richfield along U.S. 52 in the southern Piedmont region of the state, approximately east-northeast of Charlotte. It was the site of a gold mine, which was active during periods of the mid-1800s and early 1900s.
History
New London was founded as the unincorporated settlement of Bilesville, north of Albemarle, circa 1830, and named after Thomas "Uncle Tommy" Biles, a local landowner and farmer. At the time, the land was part of Montgomery County until Stanly County was formed in 1841. Near the area where the first Carolina Gold Rush took place, gold was found near Bilesville and the first mine was opened in 1859, though it closed during the Civil War. When the New London & States Company purchased the mine to reopen it in the early 1870s, and at the suggestion of company executive W. A. Judd, the settlement voted to rename itself after the company. The settlement became officially incorporated as a town on March 25, 1891. The main gold mine, known as the Parker Mine (after the farmer on whose land it was discovered) ceased operation in 1894, though several other local industries continued to provide employment for the town, including a cordage mill, a lumber mill, a brick mill, and a livery stable. In 1923, less than three years after the adoption of the Nineteenth Amendment granting women the right to vote, the town elected Mrs. T. V. Staton as their mayor, becoming the first female mayor, as well as the first female to serve in municipal government in the state. The mine was reopened for a time starting in 1934, and throughout the 1920s and 1930s, modern amenities such as telephone service, electrical service, paved roads, and a state highway were built in town. Town sewer and water service was completed in 2002.
Government
As of January 2021, The Town Board of New London consists of:
- Tate Daniels, Mayor
- Bill Peak, Mayor Pro-Tem
- Christy Starnes, Commissioner
- Dan Phillips, Commissioner
- Johnny Chestnut, Commissioner
- Marcus Mullis, Commissioner
- Virginia Thompson, Deputy Clerk
- Susan Almond, Town Administrator
- Jame Russell, Future School Board Supervisor
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all land.
Demographics
2020 census
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:right"
|+New London racial composition
!scope="col"| Race
!scope="col"| Number
!scope="col"| Percentage
|-
!scope="row"| White (non-Hispanic)
| 510
| 84.02%
|-
!scope="row"| Black or African American (non-Hispanic)
| 35
| 5.77%
|-
!scope="row"| Native American
| 2
| 0.33%
|-
!scope="row"| Asian
| 26
| 4.28%
|-
!scope="row"| Other/Mixed
| 22
| 3.62%
|-
!scope="row"| Hispanic or Latino
| 12
| 1.98%
|}
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 607 people, 245 households, and 189 families residing in the town.
2000 census
As of the census
- Rhett Lowder (born 2002), Wake Forest University pitcher
- Antonio Williams (born 1997), Buffalo Bills running back