Macon County, North Carolina

Macon County is a located in the. As of 2000, the population was 29,811. Its is.

History
The county was formed in from the western part of. It was named for, who represented North Carolina in the from 1791 to 1815 (serving as  from 1801 to 1807), and in the  from 1815 to 1828.

In the western part of Macon County became. In parts of Macon County and Haywood County were combined to form.

Law and government
Macon County is a member of the regional council of governments.

Geography
According to the, the county has a total area of 1,345 (519 ). 1,338 km² (516 sq mi) of it is land and 8 km² (3 sq mi) of it (0.58%) is water.

Townships
The county is divided into eleven : Burningtown, Cartoogechaye, Cowee, Ellijay, Flats, Franklin, Highlands, Millshoal, Nantahala, Smithbridge,Otto, and Sugarfork.

Adjacent Counties

 * - north
 * - east
 * - south
 * - southwest
 * - west
 * - northwest

Geographic Features
Macon county lies within the, and the county's largest natural water supply is the.

Demographics
As of the of 2000, there were 29,811 people, 12,828 households, and 8,902 families residing in the county. The was 22/km² (58/sq mi). There were 20,746 housing units at an average density of 16/km² (40/sq mi). The racial makeup of the county was 97.18%, 1.20% or , 0.28% , 0.39% , 0.02% , 0.31% from , and 0.63% from two or more races. 1.52% of the population were or  of any race.

There were 12,828 households out of which 24.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.50% were living together, 8.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.60% were non-families. 27.00% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 2.74.

In the county the population was spread out with 20.30% under the age of 18, 6.10% from 18 to 24, 23.20% from 25 to 44, 27.90% from 45 to 64, and 22.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 92.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.40 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $32,139, and the median income for a family was $37,381. Males had a median income of $28,113 versus $20,081 for females. The for the county was $18,642. About 8.80% of families and 12.60% of the population were below the, including 16.00% of those under age 18 and 11.80% of those age 65 or over.

Communities


Official are listed, each followed by its incorporated towns in bold and other unincorporated communities:
 * Franklin (central)
 * Highlands (southeast)
 * (east-southeast)
 * (north-northwest)
 * (west-southwest)
 * (north-northeast)
 * (east)
 * (northwest)
 * , originally Smith's Bridge (south-southwest)
 * (east-northeast)
 * (south-central)
 * (north-northeast)
 * (east)
 * (northwest)
 * , originally Smith's Bridge (south-southwest)
 * (east-northeast)
 * (south-central)

Communities where correct township is unconfirmed: