Johnston County, North Carolina facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Johnston County
U.S. county
Johnston County Courthouse
Flag Seal Logo
Location within the U.S. state of North Carolina
North Carolina's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	North Carolina
Established	June 28, 1746 (278 years ago) (1746-06-28)
Named for	Gabriel Johnston
Seat	Smithfield
Largest community	Clayton
Area
• Total	795.65 sq mi (2,060.7 km2)
• Land	792.02 sq mi (2,051.3 km2)
• Water	3.63 sq mi (9.4 km2)  0.46%
Population  (2020)
• Total	215,999
• Estimate  (2023)	241,955
• Density	272.72/sq mi (105.30/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
ZIP Codes	27501, 27504, 27520, 27524, 27527, 27529, 27542, 27555, 27557, 27568, 27569, 27576, 27577, 27591, 27592, 27597, 27603, 28334, 28366
Area code	919, 984
Congressional district	13th

Johnston County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 215,999. Its county seat is Smithfield.

Johnston County is included in the Raleigh-Cary, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Raleigh-Durham-Cary, NC Combined Statistical Area, which had an estimated population of 2,368,947 in 2023.

History

Johnston County and St. Patrick's Parish were established on June 28, 1746, from the upper part of Craven County. On March 1, 1752, part of Granville, Johnston, and Bladen counties were combined to form Orange County and St. Matthew's Parish. On November 23, 1758, Johnston County was divided between the Parish of St. Patrick and the Parish of St. Stephen, St. Patrick's Parish becoming Dobbs County. On December 5, 1770, parts of Johnston, Cumberland, and Orange counties were combined to form Wake County and St. Margaret's Parish. Finally, on February 13, 1855, parts of Edgecombe, Nash, Johnston, and Wayne counties were combined to form Wilson County.

Most early growers in Johnston County were subsistence farmers. A few grew tobacco as a cash crop or reared pigs and cattle, which were sold in Virginia. Smithfield was the westernmost freight port on the Neuse River, and in 1770 the colonial government erected a tobacco warehouse there to store the crop before it was shipped out. Eli Whitney's cotton gin was introduced in the county in about 1804, leading cotton to become the area's leading cash crop. Production for sale at markets remained low before the 1850s due to poor transportation links with other parts of the state. In 1856 the North Carolina Railroad was completed, connecting Johnston County with major urban areas. As result, farming for sale increased, lumber and turpentine industries developed, and the towns of Princeton, Pine Level, Selma, and Clayton were eventually created. About 1,500 Johnstonian men fought in the American Civil War, of whom about a third died. Lingering political tensions and the emancipation of slaves created social and economic turmoil. The new state constitution of 1868 created the county's first townships, which were altered up until 1913. In 1886 the "Short-Cut" line of the Wilmington and Weldon Railroad was laid through Johnston, eventually giving rise to the towns of Kenly, Micro, Four Oaks, and Benson.

The Panic of 1893 caused cotton prices to sharply decline, leading area farmers to switch to bright leaf tobacco as their primary cash crop. A new tobacco market was established in Smithfield in 1898, and the county's first bank was created. Within several years, cotton mills were erected in Smithfield, Clayton, and Selma. During World War I, a brief surge in tobacco and cotton prices brought a boom to the local economy. As a result, the county embarked on a school-construction campaign and consolidated all public schools under a single county system. In the 1920s the state built the county's first two paved highways, and shortly thereafter many towns began paving their main streets. While local commerce enjoyed significant success during the decade, area farmers struggled due to drops in tobacco and cotton prices. The Wall Street Crash of 1929 and ensuing Great Depression caused all banks in the county close. Following the passage of a state bond issue in 1949, most roads in the county and town streets were paved.

Etymology

Johnston County was named after Governor Gabriel Johnston by an act of the General Assembly during the creation of the county in 1746.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 795.65 square miles (2,060.7 km²), of which 792.02 square miles (2,051.3 km²) is land and 3.63 square miles (9.4 km²) (0.46%) is water.

State and local protected areas

• Bentonville Battlefield State Historic Site
• Clemmons Educational State Forest (part)
• Flower Hill Nature Preserve (part)
• Howell Woods Environmental Learning Center
• Wild Bills Western Town - Shadowhawk

Major water bodies

• Black Creek
• Buckhorn Reservoir
• Buffalo Creek
• Hannahs Creek
• Holts Lake
• Little Creek
• Little River
• Middle Creek
• Mingo Swamp
• Mill Creek
• Moccasin Creek
• Neuse River
• Sassarixa Swamp
• Snipers Creek
• Swift Creek

Adjacent counties

• Wake County – northwest
• Franklin County – north
• Nash County – northeast
• Wilson County – east
• Wayne County – southeast
• Sampson County – south
• Harnett County – southwest

Major highways

Major infrastructure

• Johnston Regional Airport
• Selma Union Depot

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 215,999 people, 73,567 households, and 53,743 families residing in the county.

Education

Higher education

Johnston County is home to Johnston Community College (JCC), a public, two-year, post-secondary college located in Smithfield. The college has off-campus centers throughout Johnston County.

Primary and secondary education

Public K-12 education in all of Johnston County is managed by the Johnston County School District, which has 46 schools and has more than 35,400 students. In addition, three charter schools and five private schools are located in the county.

Libraries

The Johnston County Public Affiliated Library system operates six branches throughout the county. The library system keeps books, periodicals and audio books and has recently expanded the selection to include downloadable e-books. The Hocutt-Ellington Memorial Library in Clayton left the Johnston County affiliated library system in 2015.

Culture

The Bentonville Battlefield State Historic Site is the largest Civil War battlefield in North Carolina. The Battle of Bentonville was fought in 1865, and was the only Confederate offensive targeted to stop General Sherman's march through the South.

The Tobacco Farm Life Museum in Kenly has been collecting artifacts and showcasing the heritage of the Eastern North Carolina farmer for over 35 years. The site includes a museum and restored farmstead, blacksmith shop, and one-room school house.

The Ava Gardner Museum, located in Smithfield, contains a collection of artifacts such as scripts, movie posters, costumes and personal belongings of actress Ava Gardner, who was born and raised in Johnston County. The museum holds an annual festival.

The Johnston County Heritage Centers in Smithfield contains county artifacts and genealogical records.

The Johnston County Arts Council promotes arts in the county and its schools. Smithfield is the location of an annual Ava Gardner Festival, which celebrates the life of the actress.

The Meadow community is the location of Meadow Lights, an annual display of Christmas lights.

Media

Radio and Television

Johnston County is located in the Raleigh-Durham radio market, ranked by Nielsen as the 37th largest in the United States. Johnston County's first radio station, WMPM, 1270 AM, in Smithfield, signed on in 1950. The county is also home to WPYB, 1130 AM in Benson, WHPY, 1590 AM in Clayton, WTSB, 1090 AM in Selma, and WKJO, 102.3 FM in Smithfield.

The county is also part of the larger, 23-county Raleigh-Durham-Fayetteville Designated Market Area—the nation's 24th-largest. WNGT-CD, (virtual channel 34.1) a Class A low-powered TV station licensed to both Smithfield and Selma. The station began frequency sharing with Raleigh's WRAL-TV in November 2020, greatly expanding its coverage. Goldsboro-licensed CBS affiliate WNCN, virtual channel 17/RF channel 8, originally known as WYED-TV, signed on from studios and a transmitter in Clayton in 1988 before moving to Raleigh studios in 1995.

Newspapers

Communities

Map of Johnston County with municipal and township labels

Towns

Townships

Unincorporated communities

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Johnston (Carolina del Norte) para niños