| County: | Union County |
| State: | North Carolina |
| Seal: | Union County Seal.png |
| Founded: | 1842 |
| Seat Wl: | Monroe |
| Largest City Wl: | Indian Trail |
| City Type: | community |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 639.65 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 632.74 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 6.91 |
| Area Percentage: | 1.08 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Total: | 238267 |
| Pop Est As Of: | 2023 |
| Population Est: | 256452 |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | 376.56 |
| Coordinates: | 34.99°N -80.53°W |
| Web: | www.unioncountync.gov |
| Ex Image: | Union County Courthouse, Monroe, NC September 2017, side view.jpg |
| Ex Image Cap: | Union County Courthouse in Monroe |
| District2: | 8th |
| Time Zone: | Eastern |
| Flag: | Flag of Union County, North Carolina.png |
| Named For: | Compromise name that both local Democrats and Whigs agreed on[1] |
| Motto: | "Plant your future." |
Union County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 238,267. Its county seat is Monroe.[2] Union County is included in the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC Metropolitan Statistical Area.
The county was formed in 1842 from parts of Anson County and Mecklenburg County. Its name was a compromise between Whigs, who wanted to name the new county for Henry Clay, and Democrats, who wanted to name it for Andrew Jackson. The Helms, Starnes, McRorie, and Belk families were prominent in the town as well as Monroe and Charlotte. Most of these families came from Goose Creek Township.
Monroe, the county seat of Union County, also became a focal point during the Civil Rights Movement. In 1958, local NAACP Chapter President Robert F. Williams defended a 9-year-old African American boy who had been kissed by a white girl in an incident known as the Kissing Case. A second African-American boy, aged 7, was also convicted and sentenced to live in a juvenile reformatory until he was 21 for simply witnessing the act. After three months in a detention center, Governor Luther H. Hodges pardoned the boys.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and (1.08%) is water.[3]
| Number | Percentage | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| White (non-Hispanic) | 161,113 | 67.62% | |
| Black or African American (non-Hispanic) | 26,500 | 11.12% | |
| Native American | 641 | 0.27% | |
| Asian | 9,516 | 3.99% | |
| Pacific Islander | 90 | 0.04% | |
| Other/Mixed | 10,297 | 4.32% | |
| Hispanic or Latino | 30,110 | 12.64% |
At the 2010 census,[9] there were 201,292 people, 67,864 households, and 54,019 families residing in the county. The population density was 194/mi2. There were 45,695 housing units at an average density of 31.4/mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 79.0% White, 11.7% Black or African American, 0.4% Native American, 1.6% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 5.3% from other races, and 1.9% from two or more races. 10.4% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 67,864 households, out of which 42.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.60% were married couples living together, and 10.70% had a female householder with no husband present. 6.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.94 and the average family size was 3.3.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 32.90% under the age of 20, 4.7% from 20 to 24, 27.7% from 25 to 44, 25.2% from 45 to 64, and 9.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36.2 years. The population was 49.4% male. Northern Union County has the southern foothills of the Uwharrie Mountains
Union County is a member of the regional Centralina Council of Governments.[11]
Two major annual events occur in the county: