| Official Name: | Swan Quarter, North Carolina |
| Settlement Type: | Census-designated place |
| Pushpin Map: | North Carolina#USA |
| Pushpin Label: | Swan Quarter |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | North Carolina |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Hyde |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Km2: | 10.24 |
| Area Land Km2: | 10.23 |
| Area Water Km2: | 0.01 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Total: | 275 |
| Population Density Km2: | 26.88 |
| Timezone: | Eastern (EST) |
| Utc Offset: | -5 |
| Timezone Dst: | EDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | -4 |
| Elevation Ft: | 3 |
| Postal Code Type: | ZIP code |
| Postal Code: | 27885 |
| Area Code: | 252 |
| Blank Name: | GNIS feature ID |
| Blank Info: | 1022864 |
| Blank1 Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank1 Info: | 37-66340 |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 3.95 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 3.95 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 0.00 |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | 69.62 |
Swan Quarter (also spelled Swanquarter) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Hyde County, North Carolina, United States.[2] It is the county seat of Hyde County. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 324.[3]
Swan Quarter is in western Hyde County at latitude 35.405 N and longitude 76.331 W. The elevation is above sea level. It is located on Swanquarter Bay, an inlet of Pamlico Sound.
U.S. Route 264 runs along the northern edge of the community, leading east to Manteo and west to Washington.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Swan Quarter CDP has a total area of 10.2sqkm, of which 0.01sqkm, or 0.10%, are water.[3]
| Number | Percentage | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| White (non-Hispanic) | 197 | 71.64% | |
| Black or African American (non-Hispanic) | 55 | 20.0% | |
| Other/Mixed | 6 | 2.18% | |
| Hispanic or Latino | 17 | 6.18% |
The population, at the time of the 2010 census, was 324.
In the 18th century, Samuel Swann settled along Pamlico Sound near the head of Swan Bay. Swann's Quarter was the first name given to this settlement. Eventually shortened to Swan Quarter, it became the county seat in 1836.
The Hyde County Courthouse and Lake Mattamuskeet Pump Station, also known as Mattamuskeet Lodge, are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
A 50-car ferry connects Swan Quarter in Hyde County on the mainland with Ocracoke Island, crossing Pamlico Sound in two and a half hours.
Mattamuskeet National Wildlife Refuge is located 9miles east of Swan Quarter by U.S. Route 264 and North Carolina Highway 94 in Hyde County. It provides habitat for migratory waterfowl and other birds, for endangered species such as bald eagles, peregrine falcons, and American alligators. It also provides wildlife-related recreation and environmental education for the public on its 50180acres of land.
The local school is Mattamuskeet School of Hyde County Schools.[4]
In the de jure segregation era, the grade school for black students was, by the 1960s, O. A. Peay School, a consolidation of earlier such schools, near Swan Quarter. The high school for black students was Hyde County Training School in Sladesville. The high school for white students was West Hyde School.[5]
Peay's and Hyde County Training School's students held school reunions, though these diminished by 2017.[6]