MADISON COUNTY

Madison was formed in 1851 from Buncombe and Yancey. It was named in honor of James Madison, the fourth President of the United States. It is in the western section of the State, and is bounded by Yancey, Buncombe and Haywood counties and the state of Tennessee. The present land area is 449.42 square miles. The population from the 2010 Census was 20,764. Of that population, 20,035 were white, 240 were black or African American, 48 were American Indian, 70 were Asian, 8 were Pacific Islander and 94 were of a different race. Another 269 were reported to be of two or more races and 423 were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

The first court was ordered to be held at the tavern house of Adolphus Baird at which time the majority of the justices could adjourn to any other place they determined until a courthouse could be erected. Seven commissioners were named to select a site for the county seat. When the place was finally decided on, the commissioners were to acquire a tract of land, lay out a town by the name of Marshall, and erect a courthouse. Marshall, named in honor of John Marshall, is the county seat.

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Madison County is in the French Broad River Basin and is a part of the mountain region of the state.

References:

"American Factfinder." 2011. U. S. Census Bureau. Online at http://factfinder2.census.gov/. Accessed 3/3/2011.

Corbitt, David L. 2000. The Formation of the North Carolina Counties, 1663-1943. Sixth printing. Raleigh: State Department of Archives and History.

Powell, William Stevens, and Michael R. Hill. 2010. The North Carolina gazetteer: a dictionary of Tar Heel places and their history. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press.

Additional resources:

North Carolina Digital Collections (Government & Heritage Library and NC State Archives)

King, Martha and Rob Roberts. 2005. Madison County project: Documenting the sound. http://www.folkstreams.net/pub/FilmPage.php?title=120

NC LIVE resources

NC Natural Heritage Program database

WorldCat (Searches numerous library catalogs)