Salem is a census-designated place (CDP) in Burke County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2020 census, Salem had a population of 2,356. It is part of the Hickory–Lenoir–Morganton Metropolitan Statistical Area.
History
Gilboa Methodist Church was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.
Geography
Salem is located in central Burke County. It is bordered to the north by the city of Morganton, the county seat.
U.S. Route 64 (Burkemont Avenue) is the main road through the community, leading north into Morganton and southwest to Rutherfordton. Interstate 40 passes along the northern edge of the CDP, with access from Exit 103 (US-64).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , all land.
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, Salem had a population of 2,356. The median age was 46.1 years. 20.5% of residents were under the age of 18 and 23.8% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 92.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 88.9 males age 18 and over.
89.9% of residents lived in urban areas, while 10.1% lived in rural areas.
There were 981 households in Salem, of which 23.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 49.1% were married-couple households, 20.3% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 24.5% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 31.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
!scope="col"| Race
!scope="col"| Number
!scope="col"| Percentage
|-
!scope="row"| White (non-Hispanic)
| 1,960
| 83.19%
|-
!scope="row"| Black or African American (non-Hispanic)
| 68
| 2.89%
|-
!scope="row"| Native American
| 7
| 0.3%
|-
!scope="row"| Asian
| 30
| 1.27%
|-
!scope="row"| Pacific Islander
| 5
| 0.21%
|-
!scope="row"| Other/Mixed
| 99
| 4.2%
|-
!scope="row"| Hispanic or Latino
| 187
| 7.94%
|}
2000 census
As of the census