Guilford County

History

At the time of European encounter, the inhabitants of the area that became Guilford County were a Native American tribe called the Cheraw. Beginning in the 1740s, settlers arrived in the region in search of fertile and affordable land. These first settlers included American Quakers from Pennsylvania, Maryland, and New England at what is now Greensboro, as well as German Reformed and Lutherans in the east, British Quakers in the south and west, and Scotch-Irish Presbyterians in the center of today's Guilford County. As population increased, the North Carolina colonial legislature organized the county in 1771, from parts of Rowan and Orange counties. It was named for Francis North, Earl of Guilford, father of Frederick North, Lord North, British Prime Minister from 1770 to 1782.

Friedens Church, whose name means "peace" in German, is in eastern Guilford County, at 6001 NC Hwy 61 North, northwest of Gibsonville. It is a historic church established by some of the earliest European settlers in this area. According to a church history, Rev. John Ulrich Giesendanner led his Lutheran congregation from Pennsylvania in 1740 into the part of North Carolina around Haw River, Reedy Fork, Eno River, Alamance Creek, Travis Creek, Beaver Creek, and Deep River. Friedens Church built a log structure in 1745, which the congregation used for 25 years. The second building, completed about 1771, was more substantial and was used for a century, being replaced in May 1871. That third building was destroyed by fire on January 8, 1939, with only the front columns surviving destruction. The church was rebuilt and reopened in May 1939.

The Quaker meeting also played a major role in the European settlement of the county. Numerous Quakers still live in the county. New Garden Friends Meeting, established in 1754 and first affiliated with a Pennsylvania meeting, still operates in Greensboro.

Alamance Presbyterian Church, a log structure, was built in 1762. The congregation was not officially organized until 1764 by the Rev. Henry Patillo, pastor of Hawfields Presbyterian Church. It has operated since then on the same site in present-day Greensboro. According to the church history, the congregation has built five churches on that site and now has its eighteenth pastor.

On March 15, 1781, during the American Revolution (1775–1783), for independence from Great Britain, the Battle of Guilford Court House was fought just north of present-day Greensboro between Generals Charles Cornwallis and Nathanael Greene. This battle marked a turning point in the Revolutionary War in the South. Although General Cornwallis, the British commander, held the field at the end of the battle, his losses were so severe that he decided to withdraw to the Carolina coastline, where he could receive reinforcements from the British Royal Navy at the port in Wilmington and his battered army could be protected by the British naval power. His decision ultimately led him to take his army north into Virginia, leading eventually to his defeat and surrender later in October 1781 at Yorktown, Virginia, after a long siege, by a combined force of American and French Royal troops and blockading French Navy warships on the Chesapeake Bay.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 657.63 square miles (1,703.3 km2), of which 645.92 square miles (1,672.9 km2) is land and 11.71 square miles (30.3 km2) (1.8%) is water.

The county is drained, in part, by the Deep and Haw rivers.

National protected area

Guilford Courthouse National Military Park

State and local protected areas/sites

Cascades Preserve (part)

Charlotte Hawkins Brown Museum

Company Mill Preserve

Greensboro Arboretum

Haw River State Park (part)

Piedmont Environmental Center

Rich Fork Preserve (part)

Major water bodies

Back Creek

Beaver Creek

Belews Lake

Big Alamance Creek

Buffalo Creek

Buffalo Lake

Deep River

Haw River

Hickory Creek

Lake Brandt

Lake Higgins

Lake High Point

Lake Mackintosh

Lake Townsend

Little Alamance Creek

Mears Fork

Moores Creek

North Buffalo Creek

Old Hollow Lake

Reddicks Creek

Reedy Fork

Rock Creek

South Buffalo Creek

West Fork Deep River

Adjacent counties

Rockingham County – north

Alamance County – east

Randolph County – south

Davidson County – southwest

Forsyth County – west

Stokes County – northwest

Major highways

I-40

I-85

I-73

I-74

I-85

Future I-685

I-785 / Future I-785

I-840

US 29

US 70

US 158

US 220

US 421

NC 22

NC 61

NC 62

NC 65

NC 68

NC 100

NC 150

Major infrastructure

Amtrak Thruway (High Point Station)

High Point Station

J. Douglas Galyon Depot (Greensboro Station)

Piedmont Triad International Airport

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 541,299 people, 216,022 households, and 132,323 families residing in the county. The median age was 37.6 years, 21.7% of residents were under the age of 18, and 16.1% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 89.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 85.8 males age 18 and over.

Of the households, 29.3% had children under the age of 18 living in them, 41.0% were married-couple households, 19.1% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 33.5% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 31.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 232,277 housing units, of which 7.0% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 58.0% were owner-occupied and 42.0% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.3% and the rental vacancy rate was 7.5%.

The racial makeup of the county was 48.7% White, 33.6% Black or African American, 0.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 5.3% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 5.3% from some other race, and 6.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 9.6% of the population.

85.8% of residents lived in urban areas, while 14.2% lived in rural areas.

2010 census

At the 2010 census, there were 500,879 people, 192,064 households, 63% of which owned their own housing. The population density was 648 people per square mile (250 people/km2). There were 180,391 housing units at an average density of 278 units per square mile (107 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 64.53% White, 29.27% Black or African American, 0.46% Native American, 2.44% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.81% from other races, and 1.45% from two or more races. 3.80% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 168,667 households, out of which 30.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.00% were married couples living together, 13.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.90% were non-families. 27.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.96.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.70% under the age of 18, 11.00% from 18 to 24, 31.40% from 25 to 44, 22.10% from 45 to 64, and 11.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.60 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $42,618, and the median income for a family was $52,638. Males had a median income of $35,940 versus $27,092 for females. The per capita income for the county was $23,340. About 7.60% of families and 10.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.80% of those under age 18 and 9.90% of those age 65 or over.

Government and politics

The county is governed by a Board of Commissioners, containing a representative for each of nine districts, with each member serving a four-year term.

Guilford County is a member of the regional Piedmont Triad Council of Governments.

Since 1928 Guilford has been somewhat of a bellwether county. It has voted for the winner of every presidential election but four. The exceptions include 1960, when Richard Nixon carried it despite his loss to John F. Kennedy; 2016, where Hillary Clinton carried the county despite her loss to Donald Trump, and 2024 where Democrat Kamala Harris won the county despite her loss to Donald Trump. It also narrowly voted for Democrat John Kerry in 2004 after having voted for Republican George W. Bush in 2000.

Like most other urban counties around the country, it has voted for Democrats by wide margins in every election since 2004.

Guilford County Sheriff's Office

The Guilford County Sheriff's Office is the law enforcement agency for Guilford County, headquartered in downtown Greensboro. It provides primary law enforcement services for the unincorporated areas of Guilford County and to municipalities that have not established their own police departments. Three district offices provide patrol, investigative and administrative services to county residents.

The Sheriff's Office supplements the Greensboro and High Point city police departments, having full jurisdiction and ability to provide law enforcement services within both municipalities. The Sheriff's Office maintains detention centers in both Greensboro and High Point, and provides security to the state courthouses in both cities. The Sheriff's Office has approximately 750 employees and is the second largest full service sheriff's office in North Carolina.

The Guilford County Sheriff is elected every four years by county wide ballot. Funded by the Guilford County Board of Commissioners, county government provides some administrative support.

Health and life expectancy

Of 3,142 counties in the United States in 2014, the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation ranked Guilford County 1,330 in the average life expectancy at birth of male residents and 1,434 in the life expectancy of female residents. Males in Guilford County lived an average of 76.1 years and females lived an average of 80.6 years compared to the national average for life expectancy of 76.7 for males and 81.5 for females. In the 1980-2014 period, the average life expectancy in Guilford County for females increased by 4.0 years, while male life expectancy increased by 6.7 years compared to the national average for the same period of an increased life expectancy of 3.1 years for women and 5.5 years for men.

In 2020, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation ranked Guilford country as 23rd of 100 ranked counties in North Carolina in "health outcomes," as measured by length and quality of life.

Communities

Cities

Archdale (part)

Burlington (part)

Greensboro (county seat and largest community)

High Point (part)

Census-designated places

Forest Oaks

McLeansville

Unincorporated communities

Browns Summit

Climax

Colfax

Ellisboro

Guilford

Julian

Monticello

Education

Guilford County Schools is the sole school district in this county.

Notable people

Joseph Cannon, 35th speaker of the United States House of Representatives (1903–1911)

Mike Causey 11th Commissioner of Insurance of North Carolina (2017–)

Levi Coffin, abolitionist leader who was nicknamed the "President of the Underground Railroad" for helping escaped slaves to freedom in the North before the Civil War

Dolley Madison, wife of President James Madison and the fourth First Lady of the United States

Edward R. Murrow, American broadcast journalist

William Sydney Porter, short-story writer better-known as "O. Henry"; his most famous stories are "The Ransom of Red Chief" and "The Gift of the Magi".

Ryan Wesley Routh, attempted assassin of Donald Trump in September 2024