Oxford, North Carolina

Oxford, North Carolina
City

St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Oxford

Location of Oxford, North Carolina
Coordinates: 36°18′43″N 78°35′27″W / 36.31194°N 78.59083°W / 36.31194; -78.59083Coordinates: 36°18′43″N 78°35′27″W / 36.31194°N 78.59083°W / 36.31194; -78.59083
Country United States
State North Carolina
County Granville
Area
 • Total 4.5 sq mi (11.6 km2)
 • Land 4.5 sq mi (11.6 km2)
 • Water 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation 479 ft (146 m)
Population (2010)
 • Total 8,461
 • Density 1,880.2/sq mi (729.4/km2)
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
 • Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code 27565
Area code(s) 919
FIPS code 37-49800[1]
GNIS feature ID 1021773[2]
Website Official Website of Oxford, NC

Oxford is a city in Granville County, North Carolina, United States with a population 8,461 as of 2010 census[3] It is the county seat of Granville County.[4]

History

The town's history dates to 1761, when local legislator Samuel Benton built a plantation home and called it Oxford. The legislature ordered the area around his plantation to be the seat of Granville County. The city was not incorporated until 1816.

The first Masonic orphanage for children in the United States was built in Oxford. It was originally established as St. John's College in 1858. The college floundered however. In 1872 the community suggested that the property be used to educate the less fortunate. In December 1873 the first residents were admitted to the Oxford Orphans Asylum, which is today known as the Masonic Home for Children.

In 1851 James H. Horner established Horner Military Academy, which served many young men from New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, South Carolina and other states. Many of the students went on to become leaders in the United States government, such as James Crawford Biggs, Solicitor General under President Franklin D. Roosevelt at the inception of the New Deal.

The Oxford Female College was established in 1851 by the North Carolina Baptists. After suffering financial difficulties, the college was sold and it became a private educational institution renamed Oxford Female Seminary. In 1880 F. P. Hobgood took over leadership of the school, and it flourished until his death in 1924. The school closed the following year.

In 1883 the state legislature established the Colored Orphan Asylum in Oxford. Henry Plummer Cheatham, a former US Congressman (1889-1893), was appointed as superintendent in the early 1900s and led the institution for 28 years.

In 1970, Henry Marrow was killed in Oxford. The killing resulted in a racial protest. The events were chronicled by Timothy Tyson in the book Blood Done Sign My Name and a movie with the same name.

A Confederate statue was erected in 1909 by the Granville Gray's United Daughters of the Confederacy at a cost of $3000.00 and valued in 2009, at $1,327,791.62. The monument was erected in the courthouse square facing away from the courthouse. The base, constructed of granite from Warren County, is twenty-seven feet tall and the bronze statue is seven feet tall. The monument, a memorial to the Confederate Veterans of Granville County that served in the Civil War in the Granville Gray's Company D, 12 Regiment, was dedicated October 30, 1909. The statue had not arrived in time but the ceremony continued and the statue was placed at a later date.[5]

Following the Oxford race riots, in which the movie correctly depicts protesters trying to topple the monument using ropes, the monument was moved in 1971, from the courthouse square to a location in front of the Richard H. Thornton Library. Since 2009, there has been a movement to have the monument moved to a graveyard located down the street.[6]

The Central Orphanage, Granville County Courthouse, Joseph B. Littlejohn House, Locust Lawn, Oxford Historic District, Paschall-Daniel House, Archibald Taylor Plantation House, and Thorndale are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[7]

Geography

Oxford is located at 36°18′43″N 78°35′27″W / 36.31194°N 78.59083°W / 36.31194; -78.59083 (36.311903, -78.590762).[8]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.5 square miles (12 km2), all of it land.

Oxford contains three voting precincts in Granville County: Credle, East Oxford, and South Oxford.

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop. %±
1850669—
186087831.2%
18709164.3%
18801,34947.3%
18902,907115.5%
19002,059−29.2%
19103,01846.6%
19203,60619.5%
19304,10113.7%
19403,991−2.7%
19506,68567.5%
19606,9784.4%
19707,1782.9%
19807,7097.4%
19907,9132.6%
20008,3385.4%
20108,4611.5%
Est. 20158,742[9]3.3%
U.S. Decennial Census[10]

As of the census of 2010, there were 8,461 people in 3,410 households in the city. The population density was 1,880.2 people per square mile (729.4/km²). There were 3,771 housing units at an average density of 838.0 per square mile (325.1/km²). The racial composition of the city was: 55.6% Black or African American, 38.6% White, 1.1% Asian American, 0.4% Native American, 2.5% Other, and 1.8% two or more races. 4.8% of the population identified as Hispanic or Latino American

There were 3,410 households out of which 26.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them. The average household size was 2.48. In the city, the age distribution of the population was spread out with 23.4% under the age of 18, 8.8% from 18 to 24, 10.6% from 25 to 34, 18.1% from 35 to 49, 19.7% from 50 to 64, and 19.4% who were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 79.4 males.

The median income[11] for a household in the city was $32,050 and the mean income was $48,293. The median and mean income for a family was $49,787 and $62,355, respectively. The per capita income for the city was $20,729. About 16.9% of families were at or below the poverty line, including 38.6% of those under age 18 and 19.3% of those age 65 or over. Of the total city population, 20.6% were at or below the poverty line.

Government

The Mayor of Oxford is Jackie Sergent. The Oxford City Commissioners are Danny Currin, Calvin Harris Jr., Howard G. Herring Sr., Betty Moseley, Ron Bullock, Robert T. Williford Sr., and Frank Strickland.

Economy

Oxford is home to Revlon's largest manufacturing facility, as well as its IT/IS department. CertainTeed has a roofing supplies plant in the city, and Biofuels Center of North Carolina is located in Oxford.

Notable people

Schools

References

  1. ↑ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  2. ↑ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  3. ↑ United States Census 2010, US Census Bureau. Retrieved 2011-11-15
  4. ↑ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved 2011-06-07.
  5. ↑ Conn, Edward L (1909). "Confederate statue". Orphanage Press, Oxford, NC. p. 5. Retrieved August 17, 2014.
  6. ↑ West, William F. (July 9, 2009). "Oxford NC Confederate Monument Under Attack". Southern Heritage 411. Retrieved August 17, 2014.
  7. ↑ National Park Service (2010-07-09). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  8. ↑ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
  9. ↑ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2015". Retrieved July 2, 2016.
  10. ↑ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  11. ↑ US Census FactFinder Retrieved 2011-11-15
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