Pasquotank County, North Carolina

Pasquotank County ( ) is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,568. Pasquotank County is part of the Elizabeth City, NC Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake, VA-NC Combined Statistical Area.

History

The county was originally created as Pasquotank Precinct and gained county status in 1739. The largest community and county seat is Elizabeth City.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (21.58%) is water. It is the fifth-smallest county in North Carolina by land area.

Almost all of the terrain in Pasquotank County is flatland with a topography near sea level, a characteristic of most of North Carolina's Coastal Plain. The county is flanked by two rivers: the Pasquotank and the Little River.

National protected area

Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge (part)

State and Local protected site

Museum of the Albemarle

Major water bodies

Albemarle Sound
Big Flatty Creek
Intracoastal Waterway
Little River
Newbegun Creek
Pasquotank River

Adjacent counties

Gates County – northwest
Camden County – east
Tyrrell County – south
Perquimans County – southwest

Major highways

Major infrastructure

Elizabeth City Regional Airport

Demographics

thumb|2020 population density of Pasquotank County NC by census block

2020 census

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"

|+Pasquotank County, North Carolina – Racial and ethnic composition

!Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)

!Pop 1980

!Pop 1990

!Pop 2000

!Pop 2010

!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" | Pop 2020

!% 1980

!% 1990

!% 2000

!% 2010

!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" |% 2020

|White alone (NH)

|17,767

|19,259

|19,665

|22,369

|style='background: #ffffe6; |21,577

|62.42%

|61.53%

|56.35%

|55.01%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |53.19%

|Black or African American alone (NH)

|10,322

|11,557

|13,932

|15,256

|style='background: #ffffe6; |14,316

|36.27%

|36.93%

|39.92%

|37.52%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |35.29%

|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

|23

|55

|120

|124

|style='background: #ffffe6; |150

|0.08%

|0.18%

|0.34%

|0.30%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.37%

|Asian alone (NH)

|148

|176

|298

|449

|style='background: #ffffe6; |458

|0.52%

|0.56%

|0.85%

|1.10%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1.13%

|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)

|13

|15

|style='background: #ffffe6; |28

|0.04%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.07%

|Other race alone (NH)

|13

|36

|63

|style='background: #ffffe6; |178

|0.05%

|0.02%

|0.10%

|0.15%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.44%

|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)

|404

|743

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1,624

|1.16%

|1.83%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |4.00%

|Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|189

|246

|429

|1,642

|style='background: #ffffe6; |2,237

|0.66%

|0.79%

|1.23%

|4.04%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |5.51%

|Total

|28,462

|31,298

|34,897

|40,661

|style='background: #ffffe6; |40,568

|100.00%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |100.00%

As of the 2020 census, there were 40,568 people, 15,616 households, and 9,829 families residing in the county. The median age was 39.8 years, with 21.2% of residents under the age of 18 and 18.5% of residents 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 95.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 93.2 males age 18 and over.

54.9% of residents lived in urban areas, while 45.1% lived in rural areas.

There were 15,616 households in the county, of which 30.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 44.2% were married-couple households, 17.4% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 32.1% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 28.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. there were 40,661 people, 13,907 households, and 9,687 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 14,289 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 56.7% White, 37.8% Black or African American, 0.3% Native American, 1.1% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander, 1.8% from other races, and 2.2% from two or more races. 4.0% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 12,907 households, out of which 33.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.4% were married couples living together, 16.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.5% were non-families. 25.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 3.01.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.9% under the age of 18, 11.3% from 18 to 24, 28.4% from 25 to 44, 21.3% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 93.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.1 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $30,444, and the median income for a family was $36,402. Males had a median income of $30,072 versus $21,652 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,815. 18.4% of the population and 15.5% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 25.5% are under the age of 18 and 17.9% are 65 or older.

Government and politics

Pasquotank County is a member of the Albemarle Commission regional council of governments.

Education

Schools in Pasquotank county include College of The Albemarle, Elizabeth City State University, Mid-Atlantic Christian University, and Pasquotank County High School.

Communities

thumb|250px|Map of Pasquotank County with municipal and township labels

City

Elizabeth City (county seat and largest community; partly in Camden County)

Unincorporated communities

Nixonton
Weeksville

Townships

Elizabeth City
Mount Hermon
Newland
Nixonton
Providence
Salem