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Wilmington, North Carolina
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Please improve this article if you can. (December 2007) |
| Wilmington, North Carolina | |
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| Nickname: Port City | |
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| Coordinates: | |
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| Country | United States |
| State | North Carolina |
| County | New Hanover |
| Incorporated | December 31, 1739 |
| Government | |
| - Mayor | Bill Saffo |
| Area | |
| - Total | 41.5 sq mi (107.4 km²) |
| - Land | 41.0 sq mi (106.2 km²) |
| - Water | 0.5 sq mi (1.2 km²) |
| Elevation | 30 ft (9 m) |
| Population (2006) | |
| - Total | 100,000 |
| - Density | 1,966/sq mi (714.2/km²) |
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| - Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| ZIP codes | 28401-28412 |
| Area code(s) | 910 |
| FIPS code | 37-74440GR2 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1023269GR3 |
| Sister cities | Dandong, China Doncaster, United Kingdom Bridgetown, Barbados |
Wilmington is a city in New Hanover County, North Carolina, United States. The population was estimated at 100,000 as of 2006;[1] The Census Bureau 2006 estimates set the population of the Wilmington Metropolitan area at 326,166, making it the sixth largest metropolitan area in the state.[citation needed] It is the county seat of New Hanover County.GR6 It was named in honor of Spencer Compton, the Earl of Wilmington, who was Prime Minister under George II.
Wilmington was settled on the Cape Fear River. Wilmington offers its historic downtown as a main tourist attraction and business center and is minutes away from nearby beaches. City residents have the advantage of living nestled between a river and the ocean.
Wilmington is also known as the childhood home of basketball great Michael Jordan and journalist David Brinkley; famous Wilmington natives include Kevin Beasley, Sonny Jurgenson, Sugar Ray Leonard, Charles Kuralt, Charlie Daniels, Roman Gabriel, Meadowlark Lemon, Trot Nixon, and Alge Crumpler. It is also home to the WWII Battleship USS North Carolina (BB-55). Now a war memorial, the ship is open to public tours and is on display across from the downtown port area. The town is home to the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, the Wilmington Hammerheads USL soccer team, the training camp site for the Charlotte Bobcats and the Cape Fear Museum. The city has become a major center of American film and television production; motion pictures such as Blue Velvet, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (film), Cape Fear (1991 film), Black Knight (film), 28 Days (film), The Crow,and some of Pirates of the Caribbean: At Worlds End as well as television shows such as The WB's Dawson's Creek and One Tree Hill have been produced there.
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Wilmington is located at (34.223232, -77.912122).GR1
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 107.4 km² (41.5 mi²). 106.2 km² (41.0 mi²) of it is land and 1.2 km² (0.5 mi²) of it (1.16%) is water.
Wilmington's climate is best described as humid subtropical.
- Winters are generally cool with temperatures in the 40's and 50's F. Snowfall does occur on occasion.
- Spring is slightly breezy with temperatures in the 60's and 70's. The presence of abundant dense vegetation in the area causes significant pollen dusting in the springtime that tends to turn rooftops and cars yellow.
- Summer brings humidity with temperatures in the 80's and 90's F. Heat Indexes can easily break the 100 °F mark. Due to the proximity of warm Atlantic Ocean waters, the area may be hit by a tropical cyclone during the summer, at an average of once every 7 years.
- Fall is also generally humid at the beginning, with the same tropical threats as the summer. Temperatures hover mostly in the 70's and 80's. Some of the deciduous trees may lose their leaves; however most trees in the area are evergreens and therefore remain green year-round.
| Weather averages for Wilmington, North Carolina | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 82 (28) | 85 (29) | 89 (32) | 95 (35) | 98 (37) | 104 (40) | 102 (39) | 103 (39) | 98 (37) | 95 (35) | 87 (31) | 82 (28) | 104 (40) |
| Average high °F (°C) | 56 (13) | 60 (16) | 66 (19) | 74 (23) | 81 (27) | 86 (30) | 90 (32) | 88 (31) | 84 (29) | 76 (24) | 68 (20) | 60 (16) | 74 (23) |
| Average low °F (°C) | 36 (2) | 38 (3) | 44 (7) | 51 (11) | 60 (16) | 68 (20) | 72 (22) | 71 (22) | 66 (19) | 54 (12) | 45 (7) | 38 (3) | 54 (12) |
| Record low °F (°C) | 5 (-15) | 10 (-12) | 9 (-13) | 30 (-1) | 35 (2) | 48 (9) | 55 (13) | 55 (13) | 44 (7) | 27 (-3) | 16 (-9) | 0 (-18) | 0 (-18) |
| Precipitation inch (cm) | 4.5 (11.5) | 3.7 (9.3) | 4.2 (10.7) | 2.9 (7.5) | 4.4 (11.2) | 5.4 (13.6) | 7.6 (19.4) | 7.3 (18.6) | 6.8 (17.2) | 3.2 (8.2) | 3.3 (8.3) | 3.8 (9.6) | 57.1 (145) |
| Source: weather.com[2] Aug 2007 | |||||||||||||
- Annual Average High Temperatures: 90 °F (summer) 60 °F (winter)
- Annual Average Low Temperatures 72 °F (summer) 38 °F (winter)
- Highest Recorded Temperature: 104 °F (1952)
- Lowest Recorded Temperature: 0 °F (1989)
- Warmest Month: July
- Coolest Month: January
- Highest Precipitation: July
- Annual Precipitation: 57.07 inches
Although there had been attempts to settle the Cape Fear region in the 1600s, the first permanent English settlers established themselves in the area in the 1720s. The town of Wilmington was incorporated in 1739. A number of the first settlers of the region came from South Carolina and Barbados. Slavery came early to the region, as landowners used slave labor to exploit the region's natural resources. The forest provided the region's major industries through the 18th and most of the 19th century: naval stores and lumber fueled the economy both before and after the American Revolution.
Captain William Gordon Rutherfurd, (1765 - 14 January 1818), who commanded HMS Swiftsure in Nelson's victory at Trafalgar, was born in Wilmington.
Thomas Peters, an early founder of Sierra Leone, escaped from slavery in Wilmington during the American Revolution.
During the Civil War the port was a major base for Confederate blockade runners. It was captured by Union forces only in February of 1865, approximately one month after the fall of Fort Fisher had closed the port. Since almost all the action was some distance from the city itself, a number of Antebellum homes and other buildings are still extant.
In November 1898 Wilmington was the scene of a violent attack by a well-organized group of whites who destroyed the printing press of the African American newspaper The Daily Record and set fire to the building in response to an editorial that "insulted white womanhood", which was credited to editor Alex Manly. The mob then went to the north side of town, where an unknown number of African Americans were murdered by lynching and many hundreds more were run out of town. No whites were killed during the incident.
At the same time, the Republican mayor and city council were forced to resign their offices and the leader of the white mob was then installed as mayor, leading many to characterize what happened in Wilmington as a coup d'état. The events in Wilmington—which was the largest city in the state at the time—helped make North Carolina into a Democratic Party-controlled state. They also helped institute Jim Crow and disenfranchisement which lasted until the African-American Civil Rights Movement in the United States in the second half of the 20th century.
In 2006 the 1898 Wilmington Race Riot Commission completed its official report on the event. Comprised of thirteen commissioners appointed by the legislature, the governor, mayor and city council of Wilmington, the commission was assisted by the staff of the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources. They used the experience of the Rosewood Report (completed 1993), and the Tulsa Report (completed 2001) as a model and set out to provide detailed explanations for the causes and effects of the riots and to propose a series of recommendations to address the wrongs perpetrated by earlier generations.
As of the censusGR2 of 2005, there were 96,354 people, 40,649 households, and 19,398 families residing in the city; according to census bureau estimates, the 2004 population is 93,292. The population density was 714.2/km² (1,849.8/mi²). There were 38,678 housing units at an average density of 364.2/km² (943.4/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 70.57% White, 25.82% African American, 0.35% Native American, 0.90% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 1.14% from other races, and 1.13% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.63% of the population.
There were 34,359 households out of which 20.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 33.5% were married couples living together, 14.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 49.5% were non-families. 36.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.10 and the average family size was 2.77.
In the city the population was spread out with 18.4% under the age of 18, 17.2% from 18 to 24, 28.5% from 25 to 44, 20.6% from 45 to 64, and 15.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 87.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $31,099, and the median income for a family was $41,891. Males had a median income of $30,803 versus $23,423 for females. The per capita income for the city was $21,503. About 13.3% of families and 19.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.9% of those under age 18 and 12.0% of those age 65 or over.
- Located near the mouth of Cape Fear River, which flows into the Atlantic Ocean, Wilmington has a sizable seaport. It was also designated as the "Port City" of North Carolina. A major international seaport, the North Carolina International Port is being planned down the river in Southport.
- Interstate Highway: The eastern terminus of I-40 is in Wilmington, sections of I-140 are open, and there are plans to extend I-20 and I-74 to Wilmington.
- Wilmington is not currently served by passenger trains, though a link between the city and Raleigh, the state capital, is in the planning stages through the rail service Amtrak.
- The Wilmington International Airport serves the area.
- Bicycle: The NC-DOT Cape Fear Run bicycle route connects Apex to Wilmington and closely parallels the RUSA 600 km brevet route.
The Star-News is Wilmington's daily newspaper, owned by the NY Times and is read widely throughout the Lower Cape Fear region. Two historic African-American newspapers are distributed and published weekly -- The Wilmington Journal and The Challenger Newspapers. Encore Magazine is a weekly arts and entertainment publication.
The Wilmington television market is ranked 136 in the United States, and is the smallest DMA in North Carolina. The broadcast stations are as follows:
- WWAY, Channel (3), (ABC affiliate)
- WECT, Channel (6), (NBC affiliate)
- WILM-TV, Channel (10), (CBS affiliate)
- WSFX-TV, Channel (26), (Fox affiliate)
- WUNJ-TV, Channel (39), (PBS affiliate, part of the UNC-TV Network)
- WMYW-LP, Channel (47), (MyNetworkTV affiliate)
- W51CW, Channel (51), (TBN affiliate)
The region is also served by a cable-only affiliate of The CW, WBW, Channel 29 on Time Warner Cable and Channel 17 on Charter Cable.
- 88.1 FM WGHW - Christian Programs from Church Planters Of America
- 88.5 FM WZDG - Christian Rock ("88.5, The Edge")
- 88.9 FM WKVC - Contemporary Christian ("K-Love")
- 89.7 FM WDVV - Worship & Praise Music("The Dove, 89.7")
- 90.5 FM WWIL - Christian Music & Teaching Programs("Life 90.5")
- 91.3 FM WHQR - Public Radio
- 92.3 FM WQSL - Urban Contemporary ("92.3, The Touch")
- 92.7 FM WBPL - Catholic Programs("Relevant Radio")
- 93.7 FM WNTB - Talk Radio ("The Big Talker FM")
- 94.5 FM WKXS - Classic Hits("94.5, The Hawk")
- 95.5 FM W238AV - Contemporary Christian ("K-Love")
- 95.9 FM W240AS - Christian Programs from WOTJ-FM, Morehead City
- 97.3 FM WMNX - Hip Hop/R & B("Coast 97.3")
- 98.3 FM WSFM - Alternative ("Surf 98.3")
- 98.7 FM WILT - Variety Hits ("98.7,Will FM")
- 99.9 FM WKXB - Oldies ("Jammin' 99.9")
- 100.5 FM W263BA - Contemporary Christian ("K-Love")
- 101.3 FM WWQQ- Country ("Double Q, 101")
- 102.7 FM WGNI - Hot AC ("102.7 GNI")
- 103.7 FM WBNE - Classic Rock (103.7,"The Bone")
- 104.5 FM WRQR - Classic Rock ("Rock 104.5")
- 105.5 FM WXQR - Rock ("Rock 105")
- 106.3 FM WLTT - Talk Radio ("The Big Talker FM")
- 106.7 FM WUIN - Variety Hits ("The Penguin")
- 107.5 FM WAZO - Top 40 ("Z 107.5")
- 630 AM WMFD - Sports ("ESPN Radio, AM 630")
- 980 AM WAAV - News, Talk, Sports ("News, Talk, & Sports 980 The Wave")
- 1180 AM WMYT - Spanish Christian ("Radio Alegre")
- 1340 AM WLSG - Southern Gospel ("God's Country, 1340")
- 1490 AM WWIL - Urban Gospel ("Gospel Joy, 1490")
Wilmington is also home to one of the largest DIY festivals, the Wilmington Exchange Festival, which happens over a period of 7 days around Memorial Day each year. It is currently in its 11th year.
The Wilmington Sea Dawgs are a Premier Basketball League (PBL) team in Wilmington that began its inaugural season with the American Basketball Association (ABA) in November 2006.
The Wilmington Hammerheads are a professional soccer team based in Wilmington, North Carolina. They were founded in 1996 and currently play in the United Soccer Leagues Second Division. Their stadium is the Legion Sports Complex.
- Independence Mall
- Lumina Station
- Mayfaire Town Center http://www.mayfairetown.com/
- The Cotton Exchange
- Motion picture studio EUE/Screen Gems is located in Wilmington
- Over 300 movies, TV shows, commercials and music videos have been filmed in Wilmington[3]
- The 1986 film Maximum Overdrive was filmed in and around Wilmington.
- Wilmington was used as the scenery for the major filming of The WB's Dawson's Creek between 1998 and 2003.
- The CW TV series One Tree Hill is filmed in Wilmington.
- The television series Surface was filmed in Wilmington during the 2005-2006 season before its cancellation.
- Actor Brandon Lee died in Wilmington.
- Country musician Charlie Daniels was born here in 1936.
- The movie A Walk to Remember was filmed in and around Wilmington.
- The movie The List was filmed in and around Wilmington.
- The movie Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood was filmed in and around Wilmington.
- The movie Super Mario Bros. was filmed in Wilmington.
- The movie Blue Velvet was filmed in Wilmington.
- The 1986 heavy metal horror film Trick or Treat was filmed in Wilmington.
Wilmington is a sister city with the following cities:
- Airlie Gardens
- Cape Fear Museum
- Cape Fear Serpentarium
- EUE Screen Gems
- North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher
- Greenfield Lake
- New Hanover County Extension Service Arboretum
- University of North Carolina at Wilmington Arboretum
- USS North Carolina Memorial
- Corporate Canvas Art Gallery - Wilmington's largest art gallery
- Sunset Park Historic District
- The Bellamy Mansion
- Eugene Ashley High School
- John T. Hoggard High School
- Isaac Bear Early College High School
- Emsley A. Laney High School
- New Hanover High School
- Lakeside High School
- Charles P. Murray Middle School
- DC Virgo Middle School
- Emma B. Trask Middle School
- M C S Noble Middle School
- Myrtle Grove Middle School
- Roland-Grise Middle School
- Williston Middle School
- ^ Star News Online (September 26, 2006). "[1]". Wilmington at 100,000: A 'big town growing into a city'?
- ^ Weather.com: Weather Channel Historical Weather for Wilmington, North Carolina, United States of America. Retrieved on Aug 7, 2007.
- ^ IMdb.com "[2]". Titles with a location of Wilmington, North Carolina
- Official website of Wilmington, NC
- Wilmington travel guide from Wikitravel
- The Insiders' Guide to Wilmington, NC
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New Hanover County, North Carolina |
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|---|---|---|
| County seat: Wilmington | ||
| City |
Wilmington |
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| Towns | ||
| CDPs |
Bayshore | Castle Hayne | Hightsville | Kings Grant | Kirkland | Masonboro | Murraysville | Myrtle Grove | Ogden | Sea Breeze | Seagate | Silver Lake | Skippers Corner | Wrightsboro |
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Categories: Cleanup from December 2007 | All pages needing cleanup | All articles with unsourced statements | Articles with unsourced statements since September 2007 | Cities in North Carolina | New Hanover County, North Carolina | Port cities in the United States | Wilmington, North Carolina | County seats in North Carolina | Settlements established in 1739