Rowan County
Also known as Rowan County, North Carolina, Rowan County, NC
county in North Carolina, United States
Key facts
- Country
- United States
- State
- North Carolina
- Established
- March 27, 1753 , (273 years ago) ( 1753-03-27 )
- Named after
- Matthew Rowan
- Seat
- Salisbury
- Largest community
- Salisbury
- Total
- 523.95 sq mi (1,357.0 km )
- Land
- 511.61 sq mi (1,325.1 km )
- Water
- 12.34 sq mi (32.0 km ) 2.36%
- Estimate 2025
- 155,096
- Density
- 287.08/sq mi (110.84/km )
- Time zone
- UTC−5 ( Eastern )
- Summer dst
Article
Rowan County (/roʊˈæn/ roh-AN) is a county in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, its population was 146,875. Its county seat, Salisbury, is the oldest continuously populated European-American town in the western half of North Carolina. Rowan County is located northeast of Charlotte, and is considered part of the Charlotte metropolitan area.
Established in 1753 from the upper part of Anson County, it was named after acting North Carolina governor Matthew Rowan. Originally a vast territory with unlimited western boundaries, Rowan County was reduced in size to 524 square miles (1,360 km) after several counties were formed from it in the 18th and 19th centuries.