Burlington, North Carolina

City of Burlington
A street in downtown Burlington, 2004 A street in downtown Burlington, 2004
Flag of City of Burlington Flag Official seal of City of Burlington Seal
Nickname:  Hosiery Center of the South
Motto:  I'll Tell The World
Location of Burlington within North Carolina
Country	United States
State	North Carolina
County	Alamance County
Founded	1857 (Company Shops)
Founded	1886 (Burlington)
Incorporated	February 14, 1893
Government
• Mayor	Stephen M. Ross
Elevation	633 ft (193 m)
Population  (2000)
• City	44,917
• Urban	94,248
• Metro	138,462
• Metro density	2,370/sq mi (915/km2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP Code	27215, 27216, 27217
Website	www.ci.burlington.nc.us

Burlington is a city in Alamance County in North Carolina, a state of the United States of America. It is the principal city of the Burlington, North Carolina Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Alamance County. The population was 44,917 at the 2000 census. The city hosts the Burlington Royals baseball club of the Appalachian League. Burlington is part of the Piedmont Triad region of the state. Burlington is home to the Burlington Athletic Stadium where scenes from the movie Bull Durham were filmed.

Biscuitville, a regional fast food chain, is based in Burlington.

Geography

Burlington is located at 36°5′23″N 79°26′44″W (36.089636, -79.445578)Template:GR.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 55.3 km² (21.3 mi²). 55.1 km² (21.3 mi²) of it is land and 0.2 km² (0.1 mi²) of it (0.28%) is water.

Early history

The need of the North Carolina Railroad Company in the 1850s to locate land where they could build, repair and do maintenance on its track was the genesis of Burlington, North Carolina. The Company selected a piece of land slightly west of present day Graham, North Carolina.

By the time the shops were completed in 1857, the village had grown to twenty-seven buildings. Thirty-nine white men, twenty Negro slaves and two free Negroes were employed in or around the shops. The employees and their families needed to live within walking distance; hence, a town begin to develop. The town was called “Company Shops”.

Sale of town lots soon started, but not surprisingly, the sale of lots was slow until after the Civil War. By 1864, Company Shops numbered about 300 persons.

In 1886, the North Carolina Railroad Company transferred its operations to Manchester, Virginia. The railroad offices and shops at Company Shops were closed. With the railroad shops no longer operated there, the citizens of Company Shops decided a new name was needed. In February 1887 a committee of the town’s leading citizens selected “Burlington”.

The city of Burlington was incorporated and a charter was issued by the State Legislature on February 14, 1893.

Demographics

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 44,917 people, 18,280 households, and 11,754 families residing in the city. The population density was 815.0/km² (2,111.0/mi²). There were 19,567 housing units at an average density of 355.0/km² (919.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 66.27% White, 25.05% African American, 0.34% Native American, 1.71% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 5.16% from other races, and 1.44% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10.07% of the population.

There were 18,280 households out of which 29.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.1% were married couples living together, 14.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.7% were non-families. 30.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 2.96.

In the city the population was spread out with 23.7% under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 29.0% from 25 to 44, 21.4% from 45 to 64, and 17.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 88.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $35,301, and the median income for a family was $45,441. Males had a median income of $31,697 versus $22,466 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,640. About 9.7% of families and 13.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.1% of those under age 18 and 14.6% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The local school system is known as the Alamance-Burlington School System, which was created by a merger between the Alamance County School System and the Burlington City School System in 1996.

Local public schools in Burlington include:

• Hugh M. Cummings High School
• Walter M. Williams High School
• Sellars-Gunn Education Center
• Broadview Middle School
• Turrentine Middle School
• R. Homer Andrews Elementary
• Eastlawn Elementary
• Grove Park Elementary
• Hillcrest Elementary
• E. M. Holt Elementary
• Pleasant Grove Elementary
• Marvin B. Smith Elementary

Transportation

Amtrak's Carolinian and Piedmont train connects Burlington with the cities of New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, Richmond, Raleigh and Charlotte. The Amtrak station is situated at 101 North Main Street.

Shopping

Most of Burlington's shopping districts are located along the I-40/85 and US 70 corridors. The city's only indoor mall, Burlington Square Mall is located at the intersection of Huffman Mill Road and Church Street (US 70).

See also

• Piedmont Triad
• I-85 Corridor

External links

• Official Burlington, NC website
• Burlington/Alamance County Convention & Visitors Bureau
• Alamance-Burlington School System