Tyrrell County ( ) is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,245,

History

The county was formed in 1729 as Tyrrell Precinct of Albemarle County, from parts of Bertie Precinct, Chowan Precinct, Currituck Precinct, and Pasquotank Precinct. It was named for Sir John Tyrrell, one of the Lords Proprietors of Carolina.

With the abolition of Albemarle County in 1739, all of its constituent precincts became counties. In 1774, the western part of Tyrrell County was combined with part of Halifax County to form Martin County. In 1799, the western third of what remained of Tyrrell County became Washington County. In 1870, the half of Tyrrell County east of the Alligator River was combined with parts of Currituck County and Hyde County to form Dare County.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (34.56%) is water. Tyrrell County, due to its proximity to the Outer Banks, has been designated as part of the Inner Banks.

Wildlife in the county includes bears, red wolves, and pitcher plants.

  • Alligator River Area Outstanding Resource Water (part)
  • Buckridge Coastal Reserve Dedicated Nature Preserve
  • Buckridge Game Land
  • Intracoastal Waterway
  • Lake Phelps
  • Scuppernong River

Adjacent counties

  • Perquimans County – north
  • Pasquotank County – north
  • Camden County – north
  • Currituck County – northeast
  • Dare County – east
  • Hyde County – south
  • Washington County – west
  • Chowan County – northwest

Major highways

Demographics

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

Racial and ethnic composition

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

|+Tyrell County, North Carolina – Racial and ethnic composition<br><small></small>

!Race / Ethnicity <small>(NH = Non-Hispanic)</small>

!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)

|2,404

|2,294

|2,303

|2,350

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1,879

|60.48%

|59.49%

|55.51%

|53.32%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |57.90%

|-

|Black or African American alone (NH)

|1,550

|1,542

|1,633

|1,677

|style='background: #ffffe6; |934

|38.99%

|39.99%

|39.36%

|38.05%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |28.78%

|-

|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

|3

|4

|8

|7

|style='background: #ffffe6; |5

|0.08%

|0.10%

|0.19%

|0.16%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.15%

|-

|Asian alone (NH)

|0

|5

|31

|80

|style='background: #ffffe6; |43

|0.00%

|0.13%

|0.75%

|1.82%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1.33%

|-

|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)

|x

|x

|0

|1

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0

|x

|x

|0.00%

|0.02%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.00%

|-

|Other race alone (NH)

|4

|0

|0

|1

|style='background: #ffffe6; |13

|0.10%

|0.00%

|0.00%

|0.02%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.40%

|-

|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)

|x

|x

|24

|51

|style='background: #ffffe6; |99

|x

|x

|0.58%

|1.16%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |3.05%

|-

|Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|14

|11

|150

|240

|style='background: #ffffe6; |272

|0.35%

|0.29%

|3.62%

|5.45%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |8.38%

|-

|Total

|3,975

|3,856

|4,149

|4,407

|style='background: #ffffe6; |3,245

|100.00%

|100.00%

|100.00%

|100.00%

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

|}

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Tyrrell County had 3,245 residents, making it North Carolina's least-populous county.

The median age was 47.2 years, 20.7% of residents were younger than 18, and 22.0% were 65 or older; for every 100 females there were 94.0 males and 90.8 males age 18 and over.

Less than 0.1% of residents lived in urban areas while 100.0% lived in rural areas.

There were 1,444 households, of which 26.7% had children under 18; 40.5% were married-couple households, 22.2% had a male householder with no spouse or partner present, and 31.0% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 34.2% of all households consisted of individuals, and 16.9% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses, Tyrrell's population dropped by 26 percent, the largest population drop by percentage in the state. To save money, some of Tyrrell's government services are consolidated with other neighboring rural counties such as Hyde and Washington.

In 2022, Tyrrell County is represented by Ed Goodwin in the 1st district in the North Carolina House of Representatives and Bobby Hanig in the 1st district in the North Carolina Senate.

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In the 2020 elections in Tyrrell County, Republicans took more votes than Democrats in federal and statewide contests.

Economy

Tyrrell County's economy is heavily reliant on agriculture—with its largest crop being potatoes

Communities

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

Town

  • Columbia (county seat and largest community)

Townships

  • Alligator
  • Columbia
  • Gum Neck
  • Scuppernong
  • South Fork

Unincorporated communities

  • Fort Landing
  • Frying Pan
  • Jerry
  • Pleasant View
  • Kilkenny

See also

  • List of counties in North Carolina
  • National Register of Historic Places listings in Tyrrell County, North Carolina
  • Roanoke Colony, first attempted permanent English settlement in the Americas, now located in Dare County

References

  • NCGenWeb Tyrrell County, genealogy resources for the county