Jackson County, North Carolina

Jackson County is a located in the southwest of the  of. As of 2000, the is 33,121. Since its  has been, replacing.

History
The county was formed in from parts of  and. It was named for, from 1829 to 1837.

In parts of Jackson County and  were combined to form. In parts of Jackson County and Macon County were combined to form.

Law & Government
Jackson County is a member of the regional council of governments.

Jackson County contains a portion of the, a for the , which is subject mostly to tribal/federal laws rather than county or state laws.

Geography
According to the, the county has a total area of 1,281 (494 ). 1,271 km² (491 sq mi) of it is land and 10 km² (4 sq mi) of it (0.77%) is water.

Townships
The county is divided into fifteen : Barker's Creek, Canada, Caney Fork, Cashiers, Cullowhee, Dillsboro, Greens Creek, Hamburg, Mountain, Qualla, River, Savannah, Scotts Creek, Sylva, and Webster. (map)

Adjacent Counties

 * - northeast
 * - east
 * - south
 * - west
 * - northwest

Demographics
As of the of 2000, there were 33,121 people, 13,191 households, and 8,587 families residing in the county. The was 26/km² (68/sq mi). There were 19,291 housing units at an average density of 15/km² (39/sq mi). The racial makeup of the county was 85.68%, 1.67% or , 10.20% , 0.51% , 0.02% , 0.55% from , and 1.38% from two or more races. 1.74% of the population were or  of any race. 18.5% were of, 13.7% , 11.3% , 10.5% and 9.2%  ancestry according to. 95.3% spoke, 2.1% and 1.5%  as their first language.

There were 13,191 households out of which 25.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.40% were living together, 10.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.90% were non-families. 27.00% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.79.

In the county the population was spread out with 19.00% under the age of 18, 17.90% from 18 to 24, 24.40% from 25 to 44, 25.00% from 45 to 64, and 13.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 95.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.10 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $32,552, and the median income for a family was $40,876. Males had a median income of $27,738 versus $22,029 for females. The for the county was $17,582. About 9.50% of families and 15.10% of the population were below the, including 15.70% of those under age 18 and 15.20% of those age 65 or over.

Cities and towns

 * (unincorporated, Scott Creek township)
 * (unincorporated, Cashiers township)
 * (unincorporated, Cullowhee township)
 * (incorporated town, Dillsboro township)
 * (unincorporated, Hamburg township)
 * (10% of incorporated town, Cashiers township)
 * (unincorporated)
 * (incorporated town, Sylva township)
 * (unincorporated, Webster township)
 * (unincorporated, Webster township)

Transportation
Roads & Highways

Jackson County is serviced by three main roads: The runs East-West across the northern half of the county and connects the county seat of  to  and  in the east and,  and  in the west. connects Sylva and to  in the south. traverses East-West across the southern part of the county connecting Cashiers to in the east and  in the west.

Railroads

operates a portion the through Jackson COunty, providing a rail connection with the rest of the country. In, connects with the. Interchange between the two lines is handled near. opterates the rest of the from  to.

Airports

The county contains one airport, the located one mile east of Cullowhee.

Churches
Buff Creek Baptist Church is located just outside of Sylva. It is a small, conservative church with a family atmosphere. Church Website

Scotts Creek Baptist Church is located at 97 Steeple Road in Sylva, North Carolina. church website This family oriented church offers high quality programs for all ages each Sunday morning, Sunday night, Wednesday night, as well as special events. Pastor Rich Peoples, who was called to the church in 1999, has led the church to involvement in missions and disaster relief locally, across the nation and around the world. The resulting growth created the need for a youth minister, Mark Rogers. He was called in January 2006.

Dick's Creek is a road and community just west of Dillsboro, North Carolina, off of highway 74 in Jackson County. Just over 1.5 miles up the road on the right is historic Dick's Creek Baptist Church built in 1903. Until 1946 this church was used as both a church and school. As of 2005, services are still held.

Popular Culture
Several movies have been filmed in the county including the 1993 blockbuster action-adventure starring  and, the 1972 drama  and the 1996 comedy  starring  and.


 * The infamous train wreck scene in The Fugitive was filmed in along the . The wreckage set can still be viewed on outbound train excursions from Dillsboro. The later scene in a small hospital was filmed at Harris Regional Hospital in.


 * The was also used in the filming of My Fellow Americans when they stumble on to a charter train full of UNC-Chapel Hill fans headed for the NCAA Final Four.


 * Mill Street on the back side of downtown Sylva was used for a short driving scene in the filming of Deliverance.