Elon, North Carolina

Elon, North Carolina
Town
Motto: "Heritage. Character. Progress."

Location of Elon, North Carolina
Country United States
State North Carolina
County Alamance
Area
 • Total 3.9 sq mi (10.2 km2)
 • Land 3.9 sq mi (10.1 km2)
 • Water 0.04 sq mi (0.1 km2)
Population (2010)
 • Total 9,419
 • Density 2,422/sq mi (935.1/km2)
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
 • Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code 27244
Website www.elonnc.com

Elon (formerly known as Elon College) is a town in Alamance County, North Carolina, United States. It is part of the Burlington, North Carolina Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population as of the 2010 census was 9,419.[1] The town of Elon is home to Elon University.

Elon began in 1881 as a North Carolina Railroad depot in between the stations of Goldsboro and Charlotte, called "Mill Point” because it was envisioned to be a shipping point for area cotton mills. Locals called it “Boon’s Crossing.” Because of a growing population, a post office was built, which established a more permanent residency in 1888.[2]

In 1889, the local Christian Assembly created an institution for higher learning called the “Graham Normal College”. The founders of Elon College named the school “Elon,” because they understood that to be the Hebrew word for oak, and the area contained many oak trees.[2] The town was called "Elon College" until the college known as Elon College became Elon University. The town then changed its name officially to Elon.

The economy of the town of Elon is largely dominated by the adjacent Elon University. Elon University has been ranked as one of the most beautiful college campuses in the country by "Best College Review"[3] and Best Run College by the Princeton Review.[4] Downtown Elon is home to the three-story, 24,000-square-foot, Elon Town Center, managed by Elon University. The Town Center was renovated in 2012 to now include The Barnes and Noble Elon University Official Store, Pandora’s Pies, Acorn Coffee Shop, All That Jas, and other local businesses.[5] Elon University named one of its on-campus housing complexes "The Station at Mill Point" after the old name of the town.[6]

Geography

Elon is located at 36°05′50″N 79°30′44″W / 36.097135°N 79.512102°W / 36.097135; -79.512102Coordinates: 36°05′50″N 79°30′44″W / 36.097135°N 79.512102°W / 36.097135; -79.512102.[7]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 3.9 square miles (10.2 km2), of which 3.9 square miles (10.1 km2) is land and 0.039 square miles (0.1 km2), or 1.23%, is water.[1]

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop. %±
1900638—
1910200−68.7%
1920425112.5%
1930373−12.2%
194049432.4%
19501,109124.5%
19601,28415.8%
19702,15067.4%
19802,87333.6%
19904,39452.9%
20006,73853.3%
20109,41939.8%
Est. 201510,024[8]6.4%
U.S. Decennial Census[9]

As of the census[10] of 2010, there were 9,419 people, 2,794 households, and 1,357 families residing in the town. The population density was 2,415.1 people per square mile (923.4/km²). There were 3,063 housing units at an average density of 785.4 per square mile (300.3/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 86.7% White, 8.5% African American, 0.1% Native American, 2% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.1% from other races, and 1.6% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.6% of the population.

There were 2,794 households out of which 18.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.2% were married couples living together, 5.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 51.4% were non-families. 28.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 19.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.84.

In the town the population was spread out with 30.1% under the age of 20, 30.7% from 20 to 24, 9.5% from 25 to 44, 13.2% from 45 to 64, and 16.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 21.8 years.

The median income for a household in the town was $49,542, and the median income for a family was $86,985. The per capita income for the town was $23,313. About 0% of families and 18.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.2% of those under age 18 and 3.7% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Public schools in Elon are part of 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 Elon include:

Elon University is also located in Elon, North Carolina, as well as the newly merged Burlington Day School, with the independent Elon (high) School, now The Burlington School.

Transportation

Elon University provides a bus system known as the Biobus for use by both students of the university as well as the general public. Certain routes travel from the campus to destinations within the town of Elon as well as the surrounding area.[11]

References

  1. 1 2 "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Elon town, North Carolina, revision 08-09-2012". U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder. Retrieved July 1, 2013.
  2. 1 2 http://www.elonnc.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5&Itemid=9
  3. ↑ http://www.bestcollegereviews.org/features/most-beautiful-college-campuses/ "Best College Review"
  4. ↑ http://www.thetimesnews.com/news/top-news/no-1-best-run-elon-gets-high-marks-in-annual-princeton-review-1.354528
  5. ↑ http://www.elon.edu/e-web/administration/president/strategicplan2020/default.xhtml
  6. ↑ http://www.elonnc.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5&Itemid=9)
  7. ↑ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
  8. ↑ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2015". Retrieved July 2, 2016.
  9. ↑ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  10. ↑ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  11. ↑ /http://org.elon.edu/transit/biobus/

External links

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