Goldsboro, North Carolina
Goldsboro | |
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![]() Seal | |
Location of Goldsboro in North Carolina | |
Coordinates: 35°22′55″N 77°58′41″W / 35.38194°N 77.97806°WCoordinates: 35°22′55″N 77°58′41″W / 35.38194°N 77.97806°W | |
Country | ![]() |
State | ![]() |
County | Wayne |
Founded / Incorporated | 1787 / 1847 |
Government | |
• Mayor | Vacant (June 2021) |
Area | |
• City | 28.70 sq mi (74.33 km2) |
• Land | 28.55 sq mi (73.93 km2) |
• Water | 0.15 sq mi (0.40 km2) |
Elevation | 108 ft (33 m) |
Population (2010) | |
• City | 36,437 |
• Estimate (2019)[3] | 34,186 |
• Density | 1,197.58/sq mi (462.39/km2) |
• Metro | 41,000 |
Time zone | UTC−5 (EST) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
ZIP codes | 27530-27534 |
Area code(s) | 919, 984 |
FIPS code | 37-26880[1] |
GNIS feature ID | 1020469[2] |
Website | http://www.goldsboronc.gov/ |
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/Goldsboro%2C_North_Carolina_%28circa_1915%29.jpg/220px-Goldsboro%2C_North_Carolina_%28circa_1915%29.jpg)
Goldsboro, originally Goldsborough, is a city and the county seat of Wayne County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 36,437 at the 2010 Census.[5] It is the principal city of and is included in the Goldsboro, North Carolina Metropolitan Statistical Area. The nearby town of Waynesboro was founded in 1787, and Goldsboro was incorporated in 1847. It is the county seat of Wayne County.[6] The city is situated in North Carolina's Coastal Plain and is bordered on the south by the Neuse River and the west by the Little River, approximately 40 miles (64 km) southwest of Greenville,[7] 50 miles (80 km) southeast of Raleigh, the state capital, and 75 miles (121 km) north of Wilmington in Southeastern North Carolina. Seymour Johnson Air Force Base is located in Goldsboro.
History[]
Around 1787, when Wayne County was formed, a town named Waynesborough grew around the county's courthouse. In 1787, William Whitfield III (son of William Whitfield II) and his son were appointed "Directors and Trustees" for designing and building the town.[8][9] Located on the east bank of the Neuse River, the town became the county seat. Population growth in Waynesborough continued through the 1830s. However, this changed once the Wilmington and Weldon Railroad was completed in the early 1840s. By then, a hotel had been built at the intersection of the railroad and New Bern Road, which grew into a community after the train started to transport passengers from there.
More and more citizens soon relocated from Waynesborough to this growing village, named eventually "Goldsborough's Junction" after Major Matthew T. Goldsborough, an Assistant Chief Engineer with the railroad line. Later this was shortened simply to Goldsborough. In 1847, the town was incorporated and became the new Wayne County seat following a vote of the citizens of Wayne County. Local legend has it the Goldsborough supporters put moonshine in the town's well to encourage people to vote for Goldsborough.
In the following decades, Goldsborough's growth continued in part by new railroad connections to Charlotte and Beaufort. By 1861, the town's population was estimated to be 1,500. It was the trading center of a rural area that started with yeoman farmers. By this time, it had been developed as large cotton plantations dependent on the labor of enslaved African Americans, as the invention of the cotton gin had enabled profitable cultivation of short-staple cotton in the upcounties.
Because of its importance as railroad junction, Goldsborough played a significant role in the Civil War, both for stationing Confederate troops and for transporting their supplies. The town also provided hospitals for soldiers wounded in nearby battles.
In December 1862, the Battle of Goldsborough Bridge was waged, in which both sides fought for possession of the strategically significant Wilmington and Weldon Railroad Bridge. Union General John Foster arrived with his troops on December 17, aiming to destroy this bridge in order to put an end to the vital supply chain from the port of Wilmington. He succeeded on that same day, his troops overpowering the small number of defending Confederate soldiers and burning down the bridge. On their way back to New Bern, Foster's men were attacked again by Confederate troops, but they survived with fewer casualties than the enemy. The important bridge at Goldsborough was rebuilt in a matter of weeks.
Goldsborough was the scene of another Union offensive in 1865, during Union General Sherman's Carolinas Campaign. After the battles of Bentonville and Wyse Fork, Sherman's forces met with the armies of Schofield, their troops taking over the city in March. During the following three weeks, Goldsborough was occupied by over 100,000 Union soldiers. After the war was over, some of these troops continued to stay in the city.
In 1869, the spelling of the city was officially changed to Goldsboro. Wayne County was part of North Carolina's 2nd congressional district following the Civil War, when it was known as the "Black Second", for its majority-black population. This district elected four Republican African Americans to Congress in the 19th century, three of them after the Reconstruction era. The attorney George Henry White was the last to serve, being elected in 1894 and serving two terms.
The Democrat-dominated legislature established legal racial segregation in public facilities. To further this, in the 1880s it authorized a facility to serve the black mentally ill, the State Hospital in Goldsboro. In 1899 the legislature authorized an addition but did not appropriate sufficient funds.[10] This operated until after passage of civil rights legislation requiring integration of public facilities. In addition, the hospital was affected by the 1970s movement to de-institutionalize care for the mentally ill. Most states have failed to adequately support community programs to replace such facilities.
During World War II the North Carolina Congressional delegation was successful in gaining the present-day Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, which opened on the outskirts of Goldsboro in April 1942 as a US Army Air Forces installation named Seymour Johnson Field. From this point on, the city's population and businesses increased as a result of the federal defense installation. The base's name was changed to Seymour Johnson AFB in 1947 following the establishment of the US Air Force as an independent service.
The city is home to Goldsboro Milling Company, the 10th largest producer of hogs in the U.S., and also a major producer of turkeys.
The Borden Manufacturing Company, First Presbyterian Church, L. D. Giddens and Son Jewelry Store, Goldsboro Union Station, Harry Fitzhugh Lee House, Odd Fellows Lodge, and Solomon and Henry Weil Houses are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[11]
Nuclear accident[]
In 1961, two 3.8 megaton hydrogen bombs were dropped accidentally on the village of Faro, 12 miles (19 km) north of Goldsboro, after a B-52 aircraft broke up in mid air. The two Mark 39 weapons were released after the crew abandoned a B-52 bomber which had suffered mid-flight structural failure. Both bombs went through several steps in the arming sequence, but neither detonated.[12] One bomb was recovered. Although much of the second bomb was also recovered, a missing piece containing uranium was believed to have sunk deep into the swampy earth and could not be recovered. The piece remains in land that the Air Force eventually purchased in order to prevent any land use or digging.[13] In 2013, it was revealed that three safety mechanisms on one bomb had failed, leaving just one low-voltage switch preventing detonation.[14]
Geography[]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 24.8 square miles (64 km2), of which 24.8 square miles (64 km2) is land and 0.04 square miles (0.10 km2) (0.08%) is water.
The Neuse River defines the southern boundary of the city. Little River is a class WS-III river that provides the water source for Goldsboro. It runs through the west of the city, and joins the Neuse River about 2 miles (3.2 km) south of US 70.[15] Stoney Creek runs through the east of the city between downtown and the Seymour Johnson Air Force Base.[16] As of 1982 the Goldsboro waste-water treatment plant accounted for 59% of total effluent discharged into the Neuse between Clayton and Kinston.[17]
The closest lakes to the city center are McArthur Lake, 3.3 miles (5.3 km) to the southwest, Cedar Lake, 4.6 miles (7.4 km) to the north and Quaker Neck Lake, 4.7 miles (7.6 km) to the west.[18] Quaker Neck Lake is an artificial lake that supplies cooling water to the H.F. Lee Energy Complex.[17] The closest reservoirs are Cogdells Pond, 2.6 miles (4.2 km) to the northeast and Wills Pond, 5.4 miles (8.7 km) to the west. Wills Pond is also known as Bear Creek W/S Lake Number Four.[19] Wills Pond impounds Old Mill Branch, a tributary of Bear Creek that flows east and enters Bear Creek near its headwaters.[20]
Climate[]
Goldsboro's location on the Atlantic Coastal Plain lends it a Humid subtropical climate, with hot humid summers and cool winters. The hottest month is July, with an average high temperature of 91 °F (33 °C), and an average low of 71 °F (22 °C). The coldest month is January, with an average high of 54 °F (12 °C), and an average low of 33 °F (1 °C). Annual total rainfall is 49.84 inches, falling relatively evenly with a slight wet season in the late summer/early fall. Some light to moderate snowfall can take place in winter, but amounts can fluctuate greatly and can range from only a trace to totals over one foot (30 cm) in some years.
Monthly normal and record high and low temperatures | ||||||||||||
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Rec High °F (°C) | 85 (29) | 87 (31) | 96 (36) | 98 (37) | 102 (39) | 106 (41) | 108 (42) | 107 (42) | 105 (41) | 99 (37) | 90 (32) | 86 (30) |
Norm High °F (°C) | 54 (12) | 58 (14) | 66 (19) | 75 (24) | 82 (28) | 88 (31) | 91 (33) | 89 (32) | 84 (29) | 75 (24) | 66 (19) | 57 (14) |
Norm Low °F (°C) | 33 (1) | 35 (2) | 42 (6) | 50 (10) | 58 (14) | 66 (19) | 71 (22) | 70 (21) | 64 (18) | 51 (11) | 43 (6) | 35 (2) |
Rec Low °F (°C) | -1 (-18) | 2 (-17) | 10 (-12) | 16 (-9) | 32 (0) | 40 (4) | 43 (6) | 45 (7) | 31 (-1) | 22 (-6) | 15 (-9) | 1 (-17) |
Precip in (mm) | 4.54 (115.3) | 3.61 (91.7) | 4.48 (113.8) | 3.39 (86.1) | 3.8 (96.5) | 3.97 (100.8) | 5.39 (138.9) | 5.7 (144.8) | 5.34 (135.6) | 3.07 (78) | 3.19 (81) | 3.36 (85.3) |
Source: USTravelWeather.com [21] |
Demographics[]
Historical population | |||
---|---|---|---|
Census | Pop. | %± | |
1860 | 885 | — | |
1870 | 1,134 | 28.1% | |
1880 | 3,286 | 189.8% | |
1890 | 4,017 | 22.2% | |
1900 | 5,877 | 46.3% | |
1910 | 6,107 | 3.9% | |
1920 | 11,296 | 85.0% | |
1930 | 14,985 | 32.7% | |
1940 | 17,274 | 15.3% | |
1950 | 21,454 | 24.2% | |
1960 | 28,873 | 34.6% | |
1970 | 26,960 | −6.6% | |
1980 | 31,871 | 18.2% | |
1990 | 40,709 | 27.7% | |
2000 | 39,043 | −4.1% | |
2010 | 36,437 | −6.7% | |
2019 (est.) | 34,186 | [3] | −6.2% |
U.S. Decennial Census[22] |
As of 2019 census estimates,[23] there were 34,186 people and 14,339 households residing in the city. The population density was 1,214.9 inhabitants per square mile (469.0/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 52.7% African American, 39.9% White, 0.3% Native American, 2.2% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, and 4.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.8% of the population.
The median income for a household in the city was $33,043, and the median income for a family was $59,844. Males had a median income of $55,223 versus $56,850 for females. The per capita income for the city was $21,666. About 26.2% of the population were below the poverty line.
Arts and culture[]
Sites of interest[]
- Cliffs of the Neuse State Park is a state park located near the city. It covers 751 acres (3.04 km2) along the southern banks of the Neuse River. It has a swimming area, several hiking trails, fishing areas, a nature museum, and picnic areas. The cliffs rise 90 feet above the Neuse River.
- Waynesborough Historical Village is a reconstructed "village" located near the original site of the town of Waynesborough. It is home to historical Wayne County buildings ranging from various periods of time. These buildings include a family home, a medical office, a one-room school, a law office, and a Quaker Meeting House.
- Herman Park includes a recreational center, miniature train, tennis courts, picnic shelters, a turn-of-the-century park house, gazebo, goldfish pond, fountain, and children's playground.
- The Oheb Shalom synagogue's Romanesque Revival building is one of fewer than a hundred nineteenth-century synagogues still standing in the United States, and the second oldest synagogue building in the state.[24]
Government[]
Chuck Allen served as the city's Mayor, succeeding Alfonzo "Al" King in 2016 who succeeded Hal Plonk in 2002. As mayor, Allen was the official and ceremonial head of city government and presides at all City Council meetings. The mayor and the city council are elected to office for a four-year term. Goldsboro has a council-manager government. As of 2020, the city manager is Tim Salmon.[25]
In June 2021, Allen abruptly resigned citing health issues.[26]
City council[]
- 1st District: Hiawatha Jones
- 2nd District: Bill Broadway
- 3rd District: Taj Polak
- 4th District: Brandi Matthews
- 5th District: David Ham
- 6th District: Gene Aycock
Federal representatives[]
Goldsboro has been in North Carolina's 7th congressional district since January 3, 2017, and is currently represented by Republican David Rouzer. Beginning on January 3, 2021, Goldsboro will be in North Carolina's 1st congressional district and will be represented by Democrat G. K. Butterfield.
Goldsboro is represented in the Senate by Republicans Richard Burr and Thom Tillis.
Education[]
Colleges[]
- North Carolina Wesleyan College Goldsboro campus
- Wayne Community College
High schools[]
- Eastern Wayne High School
- Goldsboro High School
- Rosewood High School
- Wayne Early/Middle College High School
- Wayne School of Engineering
- Charles B. Aycock High School
- Spring Creek High School
- Southern Wayne High School
Middle schools[]
- Dillard Middle School
- Eastern Wayne Middle School
- Greenwood Middle School
- Rosewood Middle School
Elementary schools[]
- Carver Heights Elementary School
- Dillard Academy Charter School
- Eastern Wayne Elementary School
- Grantham Elementary School
- Meadow Lane Elementary School
- North Drive Elementary School
- Rosewood Elementary School
- School Street Early Learning Center
- Spring Creek Elementary School
- Tommy's Road Elementary School
Private schools[]
- Faith Christian Academy
- Pathway Christian Academy
- St. Mary Catholic School
- Wayne Christian School
- Wayne Country Day School
- Wayne Preparatory Academy
Media[]
Newspaper[]
The Goldsboro News-Argus is a paid subscription Goldsboro's daily newspaper with a circulation of approximately 16,500.[27]
Goldsboro Daily News is a free online daily newspaper.
Television[]
Goldsboro supports one television station. WHFL TV 43 is a low power broadcast station on UHF channel 43 and is also found on two local cable networks. The station is a FamilyNet affiliate and carries religious, local, and family programming. The area is also served by television stations from the Raleigh-Durham and Greenville areas. CBS affiliate WNCN-TV, Channel 17, is licensed to Goldsboro but has its studios in Raleigh. Up until August 2010, a Public, educational, and government access (PEG) cable TV station called PACC-10 TV was available to Time Warner Cable customers. The station aired its own programming as well as City Council and County Commissioner meetings. Time Warner Cable transferred the channel to Wayne County who currently provides local announcements and community interest programming.
Radio stations based in Goldsboro[]
- WZKT 97.7 FM Country
- WFMC 730 AM Black Gospel
- WGBR 1150 AM News/Talk
- WSSG 1300 AM/92.7 FM JAMZ Urban
Infrastructure[]
Transportation[]
The closest civilian airport is Wayne Executive Jetport, but is only used for general aviation. The nearest public commercial airport is Pitt-Greenville Airport (IATA: PGV) in Greenville about 36 miles north east of Goldsboro, although most residents use Raleigh-Durham International Airport for domestic and international travel.
Major highways that run through the city are US 70 (the main thoroughfare through Goldsboro), US 13, US 117, NC 111, and NC 581. I-795 now connects Goldsboro to I-95 in Wilson.
The Goldsboro Bypass was fully opened in May 2016.[28] Previously NC 44 while partially open and under construction, it became US 70 Bypass upon completion and has been designated as Future Interstate 42.[29][30]
The city has a bus system known as Gateway which runs four routes.
Until the 1960s, the Southern Railway and the Seaboard Coast Line ran passenger trains in and out of Goldsboro Union Station to points west, north and south.[31][32]
Hospitals[]
- Wayne Memorial Hospital (North Carolina), a medical facility located in Goldsboro, is the county's second largest employer.
- Cherry Hospital is a psychiatric hospital which first started in 1880 as a facility to treat mentally ill African Americans. A museum depicting its history is also part of the hospital campus.
- O'Berry Neuro-Medical Center is a North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services hospital providing rehabilitative services to people with intellectual disabilities/ developmental disabilities.
Notable people[]
![]() | This section does not cite any sources. (May 2015) |
- George Altman, baseball player for Chicago Cubs
- Christopher R. Barron, member of board of directors and co-founder of GOProud
- Curtis Hooks Brogden, 19th-Century politician
- Jimmy Graham, tight end for New Orleans Saints and Seattle Seahawks
- Johnny Grant, radio personality, television producer and honorary mayor of Hollywood
- Andy Griffith, actor, lived in Goldsboro, teaching English, drama, and music at Goldsboro High School
- John W. Gulick, U.S. Army major general[33]
- Doris Jackson, née Doris Coley, founding member of the Shirelles
- John H. Kerr, III, state senator
- Clyde King, baseball pitcher and manager of Atlanta Braves and New York Yankees
- Jerry Narron, baseball player and manager of Texas Rangers and Cincinnati Reds
- Mark O'Meara, golfer who won 1998 Masters and British Open
- Jarran Reed, NFL defensive tackle
- Kenneth Claiborne Royall, Army general and last Secretary of War
- Dave Simmons, football player for four NFL teams
- Scott Stapp, musician in Grammy Award-winning band Creed
- David Thornton, football player for Tennessee Titans and Indianapolis Colts
- Big Daddy V, former WWE wrestler. His real name was Nelson Frazier Jr
- Joby Warrick, winner of two Pulitzer Prizes
- Greg Warren, long snapper for Pittsburgh Steelers
- Thomas Washington, admiral during World War I
- William Henry Washington, 19th-Century politician
- Coby White, NBA basketball player for Chicago Bulls
References[]
- ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". United States Census Bureau. May 24, 2020. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
- ^ "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
- ^ "Goldsboro, North Carolina (NC) Detailed Profile - relocation, real estate, travel, jobs, hospitals, schools, crime, news, sex offenders". City-data.com. Retrieved 2013-08-16.
- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on 2011-05-31. Retrieved 2011-06-07.
- ^ https://www.google.com/maps Google Maps
- ^ "Whitfield Cemetery". Wayne.lostsoulsgenealogy.com. Archived from the original on 2015-08-14. Retrieved 2017-07-17.
- ^ "William Whitfield". Walkofhonor.com. Retrieved 2017-07-17.
- ^ "State Hospital (Goldsboro, N.C.). Report of the State Hospital, at Goldsboro, N. C., from November 30, 1902, to November 30, 1904". Docsouth.unc.edu. Retrieved 2017-07-17.
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
- ^ "Nuclear Mishap in Goldsboro". Broken Arrow: Goldsboro, NC (2000). Retrieved June 14, 2005.
- ^ "January 1961 - Bombs Over Goldsboro". This Month in North Carolina History, University of North Carolina Libraries. Archived from the original on December 28, 2011. Retrieved April 6, 2012.
- ^ "USAF Atomic Bomb in North Carolina 1961", The Guardian, September 20, 2013.
- ^ US 70 Goldsboro Bypass, SR 1237 to SR 1731, Wayne County: Environmental Impact Statement, 1998, p. 3
- ^ NC Ecosystem Enhancement Program (July 2004), Stoney Creek Watershed (PDF), retrieved 2018-06-22
- ^ Jump up to: a b Harned, Douglas A. (1982), "Water Quality of the Neuse River, North Carolina - Variability, pollution loads, and long-term trends", U.S. Geological Survey Water-supply Paper, U.S. Government Printing Office, p. 6, retrieved 2018-06-22
- ^ "Lakes Near Goldsboro, North Carolina", GeoStat.org
- ^ "Reservoirs Near Goldsboro, North Carolina", geostat.org
- ^ Northeast Goldsboro Quadrangle : North Carolina-Wayne Co. (PDF), USGS: United States Geological Survey, 2013, retrieved 2018-06-22
- ^ "Average Weather for Goldsboro, NC - Temperature and Precipitation". Weather.com. 2007-01-17. Retrieved 2012-01-24.
- ^ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
- ^ "U.S. Census Bureau Quick Facts: Goldsboro city, North Carolina". U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved December 6, 2020.
- ^ Gordon, Mark W., Rediscovering Jewish Infrastructure: Update on United States Nineteenth Century Synagogues. American Jewish History, 84.1, 1996, pp. 11–27. 2019 article update.
- ^ City Manager
- ^ "Goldsboro mayor resigns immediately". WITN. 2021-06-15. Retrieved 2021-08-10.
- ^ https://echo-media.com/medias/details/4247
- ^ "Beach-bound Triangle residents now have Goldsboro Bypass". Wral.com. 2016-05-28. Retrieved 2017-07-17.
- ^ "North Carolina Gains Names for Two New Interstate Designations" (Press release). Raleigh, NC: North Carolina Department of Transportation. May 25, 2016. Archived from the original on June 16, 2016. Retrieved May 25, 2016.
- ^ Special Committee on U.S. Route Numbering (May 24, 2016). "Special Committee on U.S. Route Numbering" (PDF) (Report). Washington, DC: American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. p. 7. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 16, 2017. Retrieved May 26, 2016.
- ^ Official Guide of the Railways, June 1963, Southern Railway section
- ^ Official Guide of the Railways, October 1967, Seaboard Coast Line Railroad section
- ^ Giffin, Stewart S. (May 1930). "Major General John W. Gulick, Chief of Coast Artillery" (PDF). The Coast Artillery Journal. Washington, DC: U.S. Army Coast Artillery Corps. pp. 382–384. Retrieved June 18, 2018.
External links[]
- Government
- General information
Geographic data related to Goldsboro, North Carolina at OpenStreetMap
- Goldsboro, North Carolina