Granite Falls, North Carolina

Granite Falls, North Carolina
Town
Location of Granite Falls, North Carolina
Coordinates:
Country	United States
State	North Carolina
County	Caldwell
Area
• Total	5.3 sq mi (13.6 km2)
• Land	5.2 sq mi (13.5 km2)
• Water	0.04 sq mi (0.1 km2)
Elevation	1,191 ft (363 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	4,722
• Density	909/sq mi (350.9/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code	28630
Area code(s)	828
FIPS code	37-27420
GNIS feature ID	1020491
Website	www.granitefallsnc.com

Granite Falls is a town in Caldwell County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 4,722 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Hickory–Lenoir–Morganton Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography

Granite Falls is located near the southern border of Caldwell County at (35.800345, -81.432929). It is bordered to the south by the town of Rhodhiss, to the southwest by Rhodhiss Lake on the Catawba River, and to the west by the town of Sawmills. The center of town is located on a ridge between the Catawba River to the west and Gunpowder Creek, a tributary of the Catawba, to the east.

U.S. Route 321 (Hickory Boulevard) is a four-lane highway that passes through the east side of town; it leads 6 miles (10 km) southeast to the center of Hickory and 10 miles (16 km) northwest to Lenoir, the Caldwell County seat. US 321 Alternate runs through the center of Granite Falls as North and South Main Street.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 5.3 square miles (13.6 km²), of which 5.2 square miles (13.5 km²) is land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km²), or 0.84%, is water.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1890	207		—
1900	277		33.8%
1910	381		37.5%
1920	1,101		189.0%
1930	2,147		95.0%
1940	1,873		−12.8%
1950	2,286		22.1%
1960	2,644		15.7%
1970	2,388		−9.7%
1980	2,580		8.0%
1990	3,253		26.1%
2000	4,612		41.8%
2010	4,722		2.4%
Est. 2014	4,673		−1.0%
U.S. Decennial Census

As of the census of 2000, there were 4,612 people, 1,758 households, and 1,211 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,080.4 people per square mile (417.0/km²). There were 1,849 housing units at an average density of 433.1 per square mile (167.2/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 92.06% White, 2.34% African American, 0.17% Native American, 0.39% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 3.95% from other races, and 1.02% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.07% of the population.

There were 1,758 households out of which 33.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.3% were married couples living together, 12.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.1% were non-families. 25.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.01.

In the town the population was spread out with 24.4% under the age of 18, 8.8% from 18 to 24, 31.1% from 25 to 44, 20.7% from 45 to 64, and 15.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 89.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.9 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $38,596, and the median income for a family was $47,064. Males had a median income of $28,309 versus $21,374 for females. The per capita income for the town was $17,750. About 5.7% of families and 8.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.6% of those under age 18 and 9.7% of those age 65 or over.

Media

• Kicks 103.3, Kicks 103.3, local radio station
• WJRI, News Talk 1340 WJRI, local radio station
• WKGX, AM 1080 WKGX, local radio station
• WYCV AM 900, local radio station

Notable people

• Country music singer Eric Church grew up in Granite Falls.
• World Series MVP Madison Bumgarner

External links

• Town of Granite Falls official website