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Davidson is a town in Iredell and Mecklenburg counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The population was 7,139 at the 2000 census. It is home to Davidson College.

Davidson is unique in that it is very different both geographically and culturally from the rest of Mecklenburg County. Lying along the eastern shore of Lake Norman, the town is centered around the college from which it takes its name.

The town was founded in 1837 with the establishment of the Presbyterian Davidson College, named for Brigadier General William Lee Davidson, a local Revolutionary War hero in Mecklenburg County. The land for Davidson College came from Davidson's estate, a large portion of which was donated by his son.

Geography

Davidson is located at (35.491165, -80.832864).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 5.1 square miles (13.1 km²), of which, 4.9 square miles (12.6 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.5 km²) of it (3.95%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 7,139 people, 2,122 households, and 1,476 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,468.0 people per square mile (567.2/km²). There were 2,452 housing units at an average density of 504.2/sq mi (194.8/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 88.53% White, 8.14% African American, 0.15% Native American, 1.29% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 0.97% from other races, and 0.84% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.28% of the population.

There were 2,122 households out of which 35.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.1% were married couples living together, 7.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.4% were non-families. 24.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.07.

In the town the population was spread out with 21.1% under the age of 18, 24.2% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 18.5% from 45 to 64, and 10.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 95.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.2 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $78,370, and the median income for a family was $100,961. Males had a median income of $69,830 versus $37,632 for females. The per capita income for the town was $31,571. About 3.4% of families and 6.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.4% of those under age 18 and 5.5% of those age 65 or over.

Notable residents

• Lee Spencer, NASCAR journalist
• Reed Sorenson, NASCAR Driver.
• David Stremme, NASCAR Driver.
• Denny Hamlin, NASCAR Driver.
• Alan Gustafson NASCAR Crew Chief

Points of interest

• Davidson College
• Davidson College Arboretum

Private schools

• Davidson Day School, located at 750 Jetton Road in Davidson
• Cannon School, located in nearby Concord, serves Davidson families

References

External links

• Official Davidson, NC website
• Lake Norman Chamber of Commerce
• Visit Lake Norman
• DavidsonNews.net, a privately-run community news website