Bakersville, North Carolina Facts for Kids

Bakersville is a small town located in Mitchell County, North Carolina, in the United States. In 2020, about 450 people lived there. It is the main town and the county seat of Mitchell County, meaning it's where the local government offices are.

History of Bakersville
Geography
Population Information
Education in Bakersville
Notable People
See also

History of Bakersville

Early Days and Mining

Long, long ago, before Europeans arrived, Native Americans lived in the Bakersville area. They dug up a mineral called mica from the ground. Mica is a shiny, flaky mineral that was very useful to them.

The first European settlers came to this area after the American Revolution, which ended in 1783. They built scattered homes. The town of Bakersville started to form in the 1850s.

How Bakersville Got Its Name

The town is named after David Baker. He was a soldier in the Revolutionary War. He was one of the first people to live in the area around 1790. David Baker was a big landowner, ran an inn, and was a merchant. He was also an important political leader until he passed away in 1838. Many of his children stayed in the area and were also very important to the community for many years.

Bakersville was located on the main road that went over Roan Mountain and into Tennessee. Because of this, the town grew slowly. In the early 1850s, a traveler named Frederick Law Olmsted visited Bakersville. He noticed that the "town" was just a few cabins close to each other.

Growth After the Civil War

In 1861, a post office was opened. It was first named Davis, after Jefferson Davis. After the American Civil War, the government decided to move the county seat of the newly created Mitchell County to this town. The state government, which was controlled by the Republican Party at the time, renamed the town Bakersville.

This change meant that a courthouse was built in Bakersville, and more people moved to the town. In the 1870s, mica became very valuable. The area had a lot of mica, which led to a short period of economic growth and prosperity for the town.

Rhododendron Festival

Bakersville is also famous for hosting the North Carolina Rhododendron Festival. This festival attracts visitors from all over the state and even the country. A very notable visitor was Richard Nixon in 1968, who later became president of the United States.

The Mitchell County Courthouse is an important historical building in Bakersville. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. This means it's recognized as a place important to the history of the United States.

Geography

Bakersville covers an area of about 0.8 square miles (1.97 square kilometers). All of this area is land, with no large bodies of water within the town limits.

Population Information

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1900	511	—
1910	416	−18.6%
1920	332	−20.2%
1930	426	28.3%
1940	437	2.6%
1950	428	−2.1%
1960	393	−8.2%
1970	409	4.1%
1980	373	−8.8%
1990	332	−11.0%
2000	357	7.5%
2010	464	30.0%
2020	450	−3.0%
U.S. Decennial Census

According to the 2000 census, there were 357 people living in Bakersville. Most of the people living in Bakersville were White. A very small number were Native American.

There were 168 households in the town. About 20% of these households had children under 18 living with them. Many households were married couples living together. Some households were single women with no husband present. About 39% of all households were made up of people living alone.

The population was spread out in terms of age. About 19% of the people were under 18. About 26% were between 45 and 64 years old, and another 26% were 65 years or older. The average age in the town was 46 years old.

Education in Bakersville

Bakersville has several schools for students of different ages:

Gouge Primary School (for students in Kindergarten through 4th grade)
Bowman Middle School (for students in 5th through 8th grade)
Mitchell High School (for students in 9th through 12th grade)

The Mitchell County Library is also located in Bakersville. It's a branch of the Avery-Mitchell-Yancey Regional Library system. It provides books and resources for everyone in the community.

Notable People

Bakersville has been home to some talented individuals:

Del McCoury – a famous bluegrass musician.
Red Wilson – another talented bluegrass musician.
Waddell Wilson – a former crew chief and engine builder in NASCAR racing.
Ralph Yelton – served in the Tennessee House of Representatives for many years.

Bakersville, North Carolina facts for kids

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