Editing Monroe, North Carolina

{{Use American English|date=March 2021}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2023}}
{{Infobox settlement
| official_name            = Monroe, North Carolina
| settlement_type          = City
| nickname                 = 
| motto                    = "Where Heartland Meets High Tech"
| named_for                = [[James Monroe]]

<!-- Images -->
| image_skyline            = Union County Courthouse, Monroe, NC September 2017, side view.jpg
| imagesize                = 
| image_caption            = Union County Courthouse in Monroe
| image_flag               = Monroe, NC City Flag.gif
| image_seal               = Monroe, NC City Seal.jpg
| image_map                = NCMap-doton-Monroe.PNG
| mapsize                  = 250x200px
| map_caption              = Location of Monroe, North Carolina
| image_map1               = 
| mapsize1                 = 
| map_caption1             = <!-- Location -->
| subdivision_type         = Country
| subdivision_name         = United States
| subdivision_type1        = State
| subdivision_name1        = [[North Carolina]]
| subdivision_type2        = [[List of counties in North Carolina|County]]
| subdivision_name2        = [[Union County, North Carolina|Union]]
| government_footnotes     =<ref name="MOWC">{{cite web |title=City Council |url=https://www.monroenc.org/City-Council |website=Official Website for Monroe North Carolina |access-date=October 5, 2019}}</ref>
| government_type          = [[Council–manager]]
| leader_title             = Mayor
| leader_name              = Robert Burns
| leader_title1            = Mayor Pro Tem
| leader_name1             = 
| established_title        = 
| established_date         = <!-- Area -->
| unit_pref                = Imperial
| area_footnotes           =<ref name="TigerWebMapServer">{{cite web|title=ArcGIS REST Services Directory|url=https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer|publisher=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=September 20, 2022}}</ref>
| area_magnitude           = 
| area_total_km2           = 81.68
| area_land_km2            = 80.08
| area_water_km2           = 1.60
| area_total_sq_mi         = 31.54
| area_land_sq_mi          = 30.92
| area_water_sq_mi         = 0.62

<!-- Population -->| population_as_of         = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
| population_footnotes     = 
| population_total         = 34562
| population_density_km2   = 431.61
| population_density_sq_mi = 1117.86

<!-- General information -->| timezone                 = [[North American Eastern Time Zone|Eastern (EST)]]
| utc_offset               = −5
| timezone_DST             = EDT
| utc_offset_DST           = −4
| elevation_footnotes      = <ref name=gnis/>
| elevation_ft             = 591
| coordinates              = {{coord|34|59|20|N|80|32|59|W|region:US-NC_type:city|display=inline,title}}
| postal_code_type         = [[ZIP Code]]s
| postal_code              = 28110-28112
| area_code                = [[Area code 704|704]] [[Area code 980|980]]
| blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
| blank_info               = 37-43920<ref name="GR2">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=2008-01-31|title=U.S. Census website}}</ref>
| blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
| blank1_info              = 2404284<ref name=gnis>{{GNIS|2404284}}</ref>
| website                  = {{URL|www.monroenc.org}}
| footnotes                = 
| pop_est_as_of            = 
| pop_est_footnotes        = 
| population_est           = 
}}
'''Monroe''' is a city in and the county seat of [[Union County, North Carolina]], United States.<ref name="GR6">{{cite web|url=http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx|access-date=2011-06-07|title=Find a County|publisher=National Association of Counties}}</ref> The population increased from 32,797 in [[2010 United States census|2010]] to 34,551 in [[2020 United States census|2020]].<ref name="USCensusEst2020-2021">{{cite web |title=City and Town Population Totals: 2020–2021 |url=https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/popest/2020s-total-cities-and-towns.html |website=Census.gov |publisher=US Census Bureau |access-date=July 10, 2022}}</ref> It is within the rapidly growing [[Charlotte, North Carolina|Charlotte]] [[Charlotte metropolitan area|metropolitan area]]. Monroe has a [[council-manager]] form of government.

==History==
===Early history===
[[File:Monroe, North Carolina early 20th century.jpg|thumb|right|Monroe in the early 20th century]]
Monroe was founded as a planned settlement. In 1843, the first Board of County Commissioners, appointed by the General Assembly, selected an area in the center of the county as the county seat, and Monroe was incorporated that year. It was named for [[James Monroe]], the country's fifth president. It became a trading center for the agricultural areas of the [[Piedmont (United States)|Piedmont]] region, which cultivated tobacco.

===Civil rights struggle===
Racial segregation established by a white-dominated state legislature after the end of the [[Reconstruction era]] persisted for nearly a century into the 1960s. Following [[World War II]], many local blacks and veterans, including Marine veteran [[Robert F. Williams]], began to push to regain their constitutional rights after having served the United States military during the war. Williams and the burgeoning NAACP chapter would be met with fierce resistance during their push to integrate local public facilities. During a 1957 effort to integrate a local swimming pool, the city had an estimated population of 12,000; the press reported an estimated 7,500 members of the [[Ku Klux Klan]] gathering in the city, many of whom arrived from across the South Carolina border just 14 miles away.<ref name="pool">[http://www.crmvet.org/info/monroe57.pdf Williams, Robert F. "1957: Swimming Pool Showdown"], ''Southern Exposure'', c. Summer 1980; the article appeared in a special issue devoted to the [[Ku Klux Klan]], accessed November 17, 2013</ref>

Williams was elected as president of the local chapter of the [[NAACP]] in 1951. He began to work to integrate public facilities, starting with the library and the city's swimming pool, which both excluded blacks. He noted that not only did blacks pay taxes as citizens that supported operations of such facilities, but they had been built with federal funds during the [[Great Depression]] of the 1930s.<ref name="pool"/>

In 1958 Williams hired [[Conrad Lynn]], a civil rights attorney from New York City, to aid in defending two African-American boys, aged nine and seven. They had been convicted of "molestation" and sentenced to a reformatory until age 21 for kissing a white girl their age on the cheek. This became known as the [[Kissing Case]]. The former First Lady, [[Eleanor Roosevelt]], talked to the North Carolina governor to urge restraint, and the case became internationally embarrassing for the United States. After three months, the governor pardoned the boys.

During the [[civil rights movement]] years of the 1960s, there was rising in [[Ku Klux Klan]] white violence against the minority black community of Monroe. Williams began to advocate black armed self-defense. Groups known as the [[Deacons for Defense]], were founded by other civil rights leaders in Louisiana and Mississippi.

The NAACP and the black community in Monroe provided a base for some of the [[Freedom Riders]] in 1961, who were trying to integrate interstate bus travel through southern states. They had illegally imposed segregation in such buses in the South, although interstate travel was protected under the federal constitution's provisions regulating interstate commerce. Mobs attacked pickets marching for the Freedom Riders at the county courthouse. That year, Williams was accused of kidnapping an elderly white couple, when he sheltered them in his house during an explosive situation of high racial tensions.{{citation needed|date=May 2017}}

Williams and his wife fled the United States to avoid prosecution for kidnapping. They went into exile for years in [[Cuba]] and in the People's Republic of China. In 1969 they finally returned to the United States, after Congress had passed important civil rights legislation in 1964 and 1965. The trial of Williams was scheduled in 1975, but North Carolina finally reviewed its case and dropped the charges against him.{{citation needed|date=May 2017}}

The Jesse Helms family was prominent among the white community during these years. Jesse Helms Sr. served as Police and Fire Chief of Monroe for many years. [[Jesse Helms]], Jr. was born and grew up in the town, where whites were Democrats in his youth. He became a politician and was elected to five terms (1973–2003) as a [[U.S. Senator]] from North Carolina, switching to the Republican Party as it attracted conservative whites. He mustered support in the South, and played a key role in helping [[Ronald Reagan]] to be elected as President of the United States. Through that period, he was also a prominent (and often controversial) national leader of the [[Christian right|Religious Right]] wing of the Republican Party. The [[Jesse Helms Center]] is in neighboring [[Wingate, North Carolina]].

===Late 20th century to present===
Monroe was home to the Starlite Speedway in the 1960s to 1970s. On May 13, 1966, the 1/2-mile dirt track hosted [[NASCAR]]'s 'Independent 250'. [[Darel Dieringer]] won the race.

Since 1984, [[Ludwig-Musser|Ludwig Drums]] and [[timpani]] have been manufactured in Monroe.

As part of the developing [[Charlotte metropolitan area]], in the 21st century, Monroe has attracted new Hispanic residents. North Carolina has encouraged immigration to increase its labor pool.

===National Register of Historic Places===
The [[Malcolm K. Lee House]], [[Monroe City Hall (Monroe, North Carolina)|Monroe City Hall]], [[Monroe Downtown Historic District]], [[Monroe Residential Historic District (Monroe, North Carolina)|Monroe Residential Historic District]], [[Piedmont Buggy Factory]], [[John C. Sikes House]], [[Union County Courthouse (North Carolina)|Union County Courthouse]], [[United States Post Office (Monroe, North Carolina)|United States Post Office]], and [[Waxhaw-Weddington Roads Historic District]] are listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]].<ref name="nris">{{NRISref|version=2010a}}</ref>

==Geography==
According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the city has a total area of {{convert|24.9|sqmi|km2}}, of which {{convert|24.6|sqmi|km2}} is land and {{convert|0.3|sqmi|km2}} (1.13%) is water.

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|1850= 204
|1860= 239
|1870= 1144
|1880= 1564
|1890= 1866
|1900= 2427
|1910= 4082
|1920= 4084
|1930= 6100
|1940= 6475
|1950= 10140
|1960= 10882
|1970= 11282
|1980= 12639
|1990= 16127
|2000= 26228
|2010= 32797
|2020= 34551
|estyear=2021
|estimate=34888
|estref=<ref name="USCensusEst2020-2021"/>
|footnote=<ref>[https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html U.S. Decennial Census]</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.census.gov/prod/www/decennial.html|title=Census of Population and Housing|publisher=Census.gov|accessdate=June 4, 2016}}</ref>
}}

===2020 census===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:right"
|+Monroe racial composition<ref>{{Cite web|title=Explore Census Data|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?g=1600000US3743920&tid=DECENNIALPL2020.P2|access-date=2021-12-21|website=data.census.gov}}</ref>
!scope="col"| Race
!scope="col"| Number
!scope="col"| Percentage
|-
!scope="row"| [[White (U.S. Census)|White]] (non-Hispanic)
| 14,118
| 40.85%
|-
!scope="row"| [[African American (U.S. Census)|Black or African American]] (non-Hispanic)
| 7,787
| 22.53%
|-
!scope="row"| [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]]
| 97
| 0.28%
|-
!scope="row"| [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]]
| 390
| 1.13%
|-
!scope="row"| [[Pacific Islander (U.S. Census)|Pacific Islander]]
| 15
| 0.04%
|-
!scope="row"| [[Race (United States Census)|Other/Mixed]]
| 1,216
| 3.52%
|-
!scope="row"| [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]]
| 10,939
| 31.65%
|}
As of the [[2020 United States census]], there were 34,562 people, 11,482 households, and 8,657 families residing in the city.

===2010 census===
As of the census<ref name="GR2" /> of 2010, there were 32,797 people, 9,029 households, and 6,392 families residing in the city. The population density was {{convert|1067.5|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. There were 9,621 housing units at an average density of {{convert|391.6|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. The racial makeup of the city was 60.12% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 27.78% [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 0.44% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 0.65% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], 0.03% [[Pacific Islander (U.S. Census)|Pacific Islander]], 9.37% from [[Race (United States Census)|other races]], and 1.60% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 21.39% of the population.

There were 9,029 households, out of which 33.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.0% were married couples living together, 15.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.2% were non-families. 23.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.83 and the average family size was 3.27.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 26.9% under the age of 18, 11.6% from 18 to 24, 32.6% from 25 to 44, 18.0% from 45 to 64, and 10.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females, there were 102.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $40,457, and the median income for a family was $44,953. Males had a median income of $30,265 versus $22,889 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,970. About 11.7% of families and 17.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 28.7% of those under age 18 and 12.8% of those age 65 or over.

==Sports==
Two [[minor league baseball]] teams in the [[Western Carolinas League]] were based in Monroe. The [[Monroe Indians]] played in the city in 1969,<ref>{{cite web | title = Western Carolinas League (A) Encyclopedia and History | website = Baseball Reference | url = https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/league.cgi?code=WCRS&class=A | access-date = August 30, 2016}}</ref> while the [[Monroe Pirates]] played there in 1971.<ref>{{cite web | title = 1971 Monroe Pirates | website = Baseball Reference | url = https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/team.cgi?id=05cac79a | access-date = August 30, 2016}}</ref>

==Media==
The local newspaper is ''The Enquirer-Journal,'' which is published three days a week (Wednesday, Friday and Sunday).<ref>{{cite web|title=About Us|url=http://www.enquirerjournal.com/pages/contact_us_about_us|publisher=The Enquirer Journal|access-date=July 6, 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20110814123654/http://www.enquirerjournal.com/pages/contact_us_about_us|archive-date=August 14, 2011}}</ref>

The local radio stations are [[WIXE]] 1190 AM radio and [[WDZD-LP|WDZD]] 99.1 FM.<ref name="WIXE The Mighty One">{{cite web|last1=WIXE Radio|title=WIXE The Mighty One|url=http://www.wixe.com/|publisher=WIXE Radio|access-date=March 11, 2016}}</ref><ref name="Monroe's Only Oldies Station">{{cite web|last1=WDZD 99.1 FM|title=Monroe's Only Oldies Station|url=http://www.wdzdfm.org/|publisher=WDZD|access-date=March 11, 2016}}</ref>

==Transportation==
[[U.S. Route 74]] runs east-west through Monroe; [[U.S. Route 601]] runs north-south through the city. The [[Monroe Expressway]] bypasses the city.

[[Charlotte–Monroe Executive Airport]] (EQY) is located {{convert|5|mi|km|abbr=on}} northwest of Monroe. [[Charlotte Douglas International Airport]], the nearest airport with commercial flights is {{convert|37|mi|km|abbr=on}} northwest of Monroe.

The [[Seaboard Air Line Railroad]] ran multiple passenger trains a day on the [[Raleigh, North Carolina|Raleigh]]-[[Athens, Georgia|Athens]]-[[Atlanta]] route through Monroe, including the ''[[Silver Comet (train)|Silver Comet]]'' (New York-Birmingham). The SAL also operated [[Charlotte, North Carolina|Charlotte]] ([[Charlotte station (Seaboard Air Line Railroad)|SAL station]])-[[Hamlet, North Carolina|Hamlet]]-[[Wilmington, North Carolina|Wilmington]] passenger trains, also making stops in Monroe.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Seaboard Air Line Railroad, Tables 27, 38|journal=Official Guide of the Railways |publisher=National Railway Publication Company |volume=82 |issue=3 |date=August 1949}}</ref> This Charlotte-Wilmington service ended in 1958.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Seaboard Air Line Railroad, Table 38|journal=Official Guide of the Railways |publisher=National Railway Publication Company |volume=82 |issue=3 |date=April 1959}}</ref><ref name="aboard">{{cite news |last=Gubbins |first=Pat Borden |date=August 7, 1988 |title=ALL ABOARD! TENANT SOUGHT TO RENOVATE SEABOARD DEPOT|work=Charlotte Observer}}</ref> The last train was the ''Silver Comet,'' ending service in October 1969. Trains used to stop at the [[Monroe station (North Carolina)|Seaboard Air Line Railroad depot]].

==Notable people==
{{div col}}
* [[Adrian Autry]], retired professional basketball player who is currently the associate head coach for the [[Syracuse Orange men's basketball|Syracuse Orange]]
* [[Terry Baucom]], banjoist
* [[Thomas Walter Bickett]], 54th Governor of North Carolina (1917–1921)
* [[Skipper Bowles]], politician
* [[Walter P. Carter]], civil rights activist
* [[Gil Coan]], [[Major League Baseball]] player
* [[Grover Covington]], Canadian Football Hall of Famer
* [[Jamison Crowder]], [[National Football League|NFL]] wide receiver for [[Washington Commanders]]
* [[Carlo Curley]], classical organist
* [[Christine Darden]], aeronautical engineer at [[NASA]]; first African-American woman at agency promoted to [[Senior Executive Service (United States)|Senior Executive Service]], top rank of federal civil service
* [[Theodore L. Futch]], [[Brigadier general (United States)|Brigadier general]] in the [[United States Army]] during [[World War II]]
* [[K-Ci & JoJo|JoJo Hailey]], R&B and soul singer-songwriter
* [[K-Ci & JoJo|K-ci Hailey]], R&B and soul singer-songwriter
* [[Jesse Helms]], U.S. Senator
* [[Martha Blakeney Hodges]], First Lady of North Carolina
* [[Richard Huntley]], former NFL running back
* [[Michael Macchiavello]], American [[Freestyle wrestling|freestyle]] and [[Collegiate wrestling|folkstyle]] [[Wrestling|wrestler]], won [[NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships|NCAA Wrestling]] national championship at [[NC State Wolfpack|NC State]]<ref>[https://nwhof.org/national-wrestling-hall-of-fame/champions-database?wrestler=13150 Michael Macchiavello – All-Americans]. ''nwhof.com''. Retrieved June 18, 2023.</ref>
* [[Carroll McCray]], [[National Collegiate Athletic Association|NCAA]] head football coach of [[Gardner–Webb Runnin' Bulldogs football|Gardner-Webb University]]<ref>{{cite web | title = Carroll McCray | publisher = Furman University Athletics | url = http://www.furmanpaladins.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/mccray_carroll00.html?view=bio | access-date = December 7, 2016}}</ref>
* [[Jeff McNeely]], Major League Baseball player
* [[James W. Nance]], U.S. Navy officer, 10th [[Deputy National Security Advisor]] (1981–1982)<ref>Molotsky, Irvin. (May 24, 199). [https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-1999-05-24-9905230559-story.html James Nance, Ex-Admiral, 77]. ''Sun-Sentinel''. Retrieved April 19, 2021.</ref>
* [[John J. Parker]], U.S. judge who served on tribunal of [[Nuremberg Trials]]
* [[Samuel I. Parker]], recipient of the [[Medal of Honor]] for his actions during [[World War I]]<ref>[http://www.ncmarkers.com/Markers.aspx?MarkerId=L-100 Samuel I. Parker – NC Highway Historical Marker Program]. Retrieved October 19, 2020.</ref>
* [[Aaron W. Plyler]], politician and businessman
* [[Mike Pope]], former NFL tight end coach
* [[Calvin Richardson]], R&B and soul singer-songwriter
* [[Speedy Thompson]], former [[NASCAR]] driver
* [[Andy Tomberlin]], Major League Baseball player
* [[John Tsitouris]], Major League Baseball pitcher<ref>[https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/t/tsitojo01.shtml John Tsitouris Stats]. ''Baseball-Reference''. Retrieved October 19, 2020.</ref>
* [[Paul Waggoner]], guitarist for [[Between the Buried and Me]]
* [[Robert F. Williams]], civil rights activist
* [[Scott Williams (serial killer)|Scott Williams]], serial killer<ref>{{cite news | date= March 9, 2006 | title = NC, SC Officials Say Serial Killer is Under Arrest | url = http://www.wistv.com/story/4611044/nc-sc-officials-say-serial-killer-is-under-arrest/ | work = WIS TV}}</ref>
* [[Terry Witherspoon]], former NFL fullback<ref>[https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/W/WithTe00.htm Terry Witherspoon Stats]. ''Pro-Football-Reference''. Retrieved October 19, 2020.</ref>
{{div col end}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Portal|United States}}
{{Americana Poster|year=1920|Monroe (North Carolina)|Monroe, N. C.}}
* {{wikivoyage inline|Monroe (North Carolina)|Monroe, North Carolina}}
* {{official website|http://www.monroenc.org}}
* [http://www.developmonroe.com/ Official website of Monroe Economic Development]

{{Charlotte/Metrolina}}
{{Union County, North Carolina}}
{{North Carolina}}
{{North Carolina county seats}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Cities in North Carolina]]
[[Category:Cities in Union County, North Carolina]]
[[Category:County seats in North Carolina]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1843]]
[[Category:1843 establishments in North Carolina]]