Census › North Carolina › Cherokee County
Cherokee County, NC
| Population | 29,562 | B01003 |
|---|---|---|
| Population, 2020 census | 28,774 | P1 |
| Median age | 53.5 | B01002 |
| Under 18 | 16.0% | B01001 |
| 65 and over | 31.5% | B01001 |
| Households | 13,241 | B11001 |
| Foreign born | 1.9% | B05002 |
| Median household income | $53,628 | B19013 |
|---|---|---|
| Median family income | $70,052 | B19113 |
| Per capita income | $31,569 | B19301 |
| Poverty rate | 12.4% | B17001 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.1% | B23025 |
| Civilian labor force | 12,546 | B23025 |
| Mean commute (minutes) | 25.2 | B08013 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 24.2% | B15003 |
|---|
| Housing units | 18,404 | B25001 |
|---|---|---|
| Owner-occupied | 83.7% | B25003 |
| Renters | 16.3% | B25003 |
| Median home value | $232,300 | B25077 |
| Median gross rent | $813 | B25064 |
| White, not Hispanic | 89.3% | B03002 |
|---|---|---|
| Black | 1.8% | B03002 |
| Hispanic or Latino | 3.7% | B03002 |
| Asian | 0.5% | B03002 |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 1.1% | B03002 |
Figures from the 2020-2024 American Community Survey five-year estimates (table codes link to the same table for this area at data.census.gov) and the 2020 census (P1), via IPUMS NHGIS. Estimates for small areas carry wide margins of error; a tract's figures describe its residents, not any one organization.
Against the state: median household income here is 74% of North Carolina's ($72,388); poverty 12.4% against 13.0%; 0.3% of the state's people live here.
Census tracts
Click an area for its page. Circles are FURP records at their ZIP code's center point, sized by how many. Download this map's areas with their census figures: CSV (center points) · GeoJSON (outlines), ready for Datawrapper, Mapshaper or Google My Maps. Outlines: Census TIGER/Line 2026, simplified.
Places in the county
- Andrews 1,998 · median household income $37,061
- Murphy 1,604 · median household income $37,263
- Marble 472 · median household income $71,836
FURP records in Cherokee County, NC
| Records | How many | Total | Biggest |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nonprofits | 279 | $115,073,828 revenue (latest return) | MURPHY MEDICAL CENTER INC ($83,088,545) |
| Nonprofit contractors | 7 | $5,894,377 paid by nonprofits | Wells & West Inc ($1,891,967) |
| Colleges and schools | 1 | 969 enrollment | Tri-County Community College (969) |
| Form D issuers | 1 | $555,000 amount sold | Eagle Park Homes LLC ($555,000) |
| Political committees | 2 | DR DAN 4 CONGRESS 2012 | |
| Form 5500 plan sponsors | 52 | 57 plans | HYERCARE LLC DBA KING'S PHARMACY (2) |
| Open Payments recipients | 71 | $53,586 industry payments | CHARLES Stephen WATRAS ($6,004) |
| Patent and trademark owners | 35 | 64 patents and marks | Pak N Go Shipping Centers, Inc. (16) |
| Federal award recipients | 1,081 | $207,723,937 federal awards | FOUR SQUARE COMMUNITY ACTION INC ($57,549,724) |
| State business registrations | 209 | CRISP MOUNTAIN VACATIONS LLC |
Cross-reference: 279 nonprofits for 29,562 residents is 94.4 per 10,000 people; their latest-year revenue of $115,073,828 is $3,893 per resident, 16.2% of all household income here (households at the median income).
Highest-paid people on nonprofit returns here
| # | Name | Title | Organization | Pay | Year | Times the median household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | KEVIN SPIEGEL | BOARD MEMBER, CEO OF ERLANGER | MURPHY MEDICAL CENTER INC | $2,268,527 | 2019 | 42.3x |
| 2 | LYNN DEJACO | BOARD MEMBER, CFO OF ERLANGER | MURPHY MEDICAL CENTER INC | $1,177,309 | 2024 | 22.0x |
| 3 | WILLIAM JACKSON MD | BOARD MEMBER, CEO OF ERLANGER | MURPHY MEDICAL CENTER INC | $1,107,592 | 2021 | 20.7x |
| 4 | BRENT DAVIS MD | ORTHOPEDIC SURGEON | MURPHY MEDICAL CENTER INC | $1,011,194 | 2020 | 18.9x |
| 5 | ROB MALONEY | BOARD MEMBER, COO OF ERLANGER | MURPHY MEDICAL CENTER INC | $851,467 | 2023 | 15.9x |
| 6 | ROBERT BROOKS | BOARD MEMBER, COO OF ERLANGER | MURPHY MEDICAL CENTER INC | $843,394 | 2019 | 15.7x |
| 7 | JEFFREY MARTIN MD | UROLOGIST | MURPHY MEDICAL CENTER INC | $731,293 | 2024 | 13.6x |
| 8 | BRITT TABOR | BOARD MEMBER, EVP & CFO OF ERLANGER | MURPHY MEDICAL CENTER INC | $648,249 | 2020 | 12.1x |
| 9 | ERIC CLARKE MD | ORTHOPEDIC SURGEON | MURPHY MEDICAL CENTER INC | $641,732 | 2024 | 12.0x |
| 10 | MICHAEL NERNEY MD | GENERAL SURGEON | MURPHY MEDICAL CENTER INC | $636,647 | 2024 | 11.9x |
Each person's latest year on a 990 at a nonprofit placed here (reported pay including related organizations and other compensation); people paid under $50,000 are left out. The median household income here is $53,628.
Nonprofits: biggest by revenue (latest return)
- MURPHY MEDICAL CENTER INC Murphy, NC · $83,088,545
- FOUR-SQUARE COMMUNITY ACTION INC Andrews, NC · $7,642,251
- SNOWBIRD OUTFITTERS INC Andrews, NC · $6,252,621
- INDUSTRIAL OPPORTUNITIES Andrews, NC · $2,300,349
- THE LEARNING CENTER OGDEN Murphy, NC · $1,998,878
- TRI-COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE FOUNDATION INC Murphy, NC · $1,626,396
- VALLEY RIVER HUMANE SOCIETY INC Murphy, NC · $1,514,684
- REACH OF CHEROKEE COUNTY INC Murphy, NC · $960,365
- LOGANS RUN RESCUE Murphy, NC · $890,946
- ASSOCIATION FOR RETARDED CITIZENS CHEROKEE-CLAY INC Murphy, NC · $824,000
Nonprofit contractors: biggest by paid by nonprofits
- Wells & West Inc Murphy, NC · $1,891,967
- MCCLURES COMMUNICATIONS Marble, NC · $1,505,713
- CIRCULAR REPACKAGING LLC Murphy, NC · $1,002,455
- MCCLURES COMMUNICATION Marble, NC · $793,086
- TINY TOTS DAY CARE CENTER Andrews, NC · $280,274
- KID'S CORNER Murphy, NC · $264,362
- Stanstone Inc Andrews, NC · $156,520
Colleges and schools: biggest by enrollment
- Tri-County Community College Murphy, NC · 969
Form D issuers: biggest by amount sold
- Eagle Park Homes LLC Murphy, NC · $555,000
Political committees
- CITIZENS AGAINST COMMUNISM Murphy, NC
- DR DAN 4 CONGRESS 2012 Murphy, NC
Form 5500 plan sponsors: biggest by plans
- DR. ZIYAD MUGHARBIL Murphy, NC · 2
- ERLANGER WESTERN CAROLINA HOSPITAL Murphy, NC · 2
- FOUR SQUARE COMMUNITY ACTION, INC. Andrews, NC · 2
- HYERCARE LLC DBA KING'S PHARMACY Murphy, NC · 2
- MICHAEL W. DAVIS, DMD, PA Andrews, NC · 2
- AMOS REFRIGERATION. INC Marble, NC · 1
- ANDREWS ELECTRICAL CONTRACTING, INC Andrews, NC · 1
- ANDREWS INTERNAL MEDICINE PA Andrews, NC · 1
- BARRY L. WATSON, D.D.S. Murphy, NC · 1
- BROWN'S MINI STORAGE, INCORPORATED Andrews, NC · 1
Open Payments recipients: biggest by industry payments
- CHARLES Stephen WATRAS Murphy, NC · $6,004
- DAVID JOHN MOCK Murphy, NC · $4,862
- DEEANNA ELISABETH WILSON Murphy, NC · $3,129
- ASHLEY NICHOLE CROWDER Murphy, NC · $2,652
- RUSLAN GARCIA Murphy, NC · $2,469
- REBECCA S GRAY Murphy, NC · $2,414
- JEFFREY Michael ATHERTON JR Murphy, NC · $1,866
- BENJAMIN TAYLOR SEYMOUR Murphy, NC · $1,843
- PATRICK MARTIN Murphy, NC · $1,687
- ANISAA WIDYAWATI ROMANO PERRY Andrews, NC · $1,672
Patent and trademark owners: biggest by patents and marks
- Pak N Go Shipping Centers, Inc. Murphy, NC · 16
- MICRO AUDIOMETRICS CORP. Murphy, NC · 6
- Jailhouse Winery LLC Andrews, NC · 3
- Kressmann-Backmeyer Publishing, LLC Andrews, NC · 3
- Snap-on Power Tools Inc. Murphy, NC · 3
- Aegis Power Systems, Inc. Murphy, NC · 2
- Cold Nose College, LLC Murphy, NC · 2
- Valley River Arts Guild, Inc. Murphy, NC · 2
- Bill and Ogre's Games LLC Murphy, NC · 1
- BioLinks Systems, Inc. Marble, NC · 1
Federal award recipients: biggest by federal awards
- FOUR SQUARE COMMUNITY ACTION INC Andrews, NC · $57,549,724
- TRI-COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE Murphy, NC · $49,604,397
- AEGIS POWER SYSTEMS INC Murphy, NC · $22,968,100
- INDUSTRIAL OPPORTUNITIES INC Andrews, NC · $15,788,576
- MOOG INC. Murphy, NC · $11,971,401
- HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF MURPHY Murphy, NC · $7,787,052
- CHEROKEE COUNTY Murphy, NC · $7,105,087
- CHEROKEE COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION Murphy, NC · $4,782,032
- ANDREWS HOUSING AUTHORITY Andrews, NC · $4,092,596
- TOWN OF MURPHY Murphy, NC · $3,511,143
All 12 tracts
Every tract with its figures is in the CSV and GeoJSON downloads.
| Tract | Population | Median household income | Poverty rate | Median age |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Census Tract 9304.01 | 4,131 | $50,625 | 17.9% | 51.1 |
| Census Tract 9305.02 | 3,844 | $68,875 | 10.6% | 57.1 |
| Census Tract 9306.06 | 2,895 | $47,841 | 7.5% | 51.6 |
| Census Tract 9303 | 2,492 | $65,543 | 6.2% | 56.7 |
| Census Tract 9301.01 | 2,329 | $41,285 | 19.7% | 47.1 |
| Census Tract 9302 | 2,326 | $61,346 | 6.9% | 49.4 |
| Census Tract 9306.05 | 2,075 | $70,283 | 6.7% | 53.3 |
| Census Tract 9301.02 | 2,010 | $45,500 | 16.6% | 50.6 |
| Census Tract 9305.01 | 1,975 | $76,625 | 2.4% | 55.9 |
| Census Tract 9306.04 | 1,899 | $41,964 | 25.1% | 60.0 |
| Census Tract 9306.03 | 1,839 | $43,571 | 17.3% | 62.7 |
| Census Tract 9304.02 | 1,747 | $71,083 | 12.1% | 51.2 |
Census figures are from IPUMS NHGIS: the American Community Survey 2020-2024 five-year estimates (ACS table codes shown with each figure) and the 2020 decennial census (Demographic and Housing Characteristics), by state, county, place and census tract. FURP records are placed by ZIP code (the Census Bureau's 2020 ZCTA-to-county and ZCTA-to-tract relationship files: the county or tract holding most of the ZIP's land) and by city name (Census place names, normalized), so a record's tract is its ZIP's main tract, not its street's. Cite: Jonathan Schroeder, David Van Riper, Steven Manson, Grace Cooper, Zachary Krause, Tracy Kugler, Tsu Zhu, and Steven Ruggles. IPUMS National Historical Geographic Information System: Version 21.0 [dataset]. Minneapolis, MN: IPUMS. 2026. http://doi.org/10.18128/D050.V21.0