Hickory, North Carolina
City
Union Square in Downtown Hickory
Flag Seal
Motto:  "Life Well Crafted."
Location in North Carolina
Coordinates: 35°44′26″N 81°19′20″W / 35.74056°N 81.32222°W / 35.74056; -81.32222
Country	United States
State	North Carolina
Counties	Catawba, Burke, Caldwell
Incorporated	1870
Government
• Type	Council–manager
• Mayor	Hank Guess
• City manager	Warren Wood
Area [1]
• City	31.14 sq mi (80.66 km2)
• Land	31.04 sq mi (80.40 km2)
• Water	0.10 sq mi (0.26 km2)
Elevation [3]	1,158 ft (362 m)
Population  (2022)
• City	44,084
• Density	1,401.05/sq mi (540.95/km2)
• Urban	201,511 (US: 191st)[2]
• Urban density	1,731.6/sq mi (668.6/km2)
• Metro	368,347 (US: 151st)
Time zone	UTC−5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
ZIP codes	28601-28603
Area code	828
FIPS code	37-31060[4]
GNIS feature ID	2404693[3]
Website	www.hickorync.gov

Hickory is a city in North Carolina primarily located in Catawba County and is the 25th most populous city in North Carolina. It is located approximately 60 miles (97 km) northwest of Charlotte. Hickory's population in the 2022 United States Census Bureau estimate was 44,084. Hickory is the main city of the Hickory–Lenoir–Morganton Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had a population of 368,347 in the 2022 census.

In 2014, Reader's Digest named the Hickory metro area as the 10th best place to live and raise a family in the United States. Forbes named the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton MSA the third best MSA in the country for business cost in the same year.^[5] The Hickory MSA was also identified by Smart Growth America in 2014 as being the country's most sprawling metro area.^[6]

History

Hickory owes its name to the Hickory Tavern, a log structure built in the 1850s underneath a hickory tree.

Henry Link bought the first lot in the area for $45 in 1858. The house he built became The 1859 Cafe, a restaurant which closed in 2011.^[7]

The first train operated near Hickory Tavern in 1859. In 1868, Dr. Jeremiah Ingold, pastor of Corinth Reformed Church (then German Reformed Grace Church), established the Free Academy, the first school in the area.^[8] Hickory Tavern was incorporated as a town in 1870. Three years later, its name was officially changed to Hickory. In 1889, it became the City of Hickory.^[9]

Hickory experienced rapid growth in the 1880s. Electric lights were installed in 1888. A year later, the Elliott Opera House opened. Decorated in French renaissance style with mythological motifs, the opera house auditorium sat 750 and the parquet balcony fit another 350. The opera house hosted touring out of town shows, the Hickory Amateurs (the city's first acting troupe) and The Hickory Symphony Band. A fire destroyed the entire building in 1902, and it was never rebuilt. A municipal auditorium was constructed across the street in 1921, now housing the Hickory Community Theatre.

In 1891, four Lutheran pastors founded Highland Academy, now Lenoir–Rhyne University, with 12 students.^[10]

Hickory built a sewage system in 1904, and adopted the council-manager form of government in 1913.^[11]

Hickory is home to one of the oldest furniture manufacturers in the United States that is still located and operated on the original site. Hickory White, formerly known as Hickory Manufacturing Company, was built in 1902 and has been in continuous operation ever since. During World War II, the factory made ammunition boxes for the U.S. military instead of furniture.

Hickory was known in the years after World War II for the "Miracle of Hickory". In 1944 the area around Hickory (the Catawba Valley) became the center of one of the worst outbreaks of polio ever recorded. Residents who were then children recall summers of not being allowed to play outside or visit friends for fear of contracting the disease. Since local facilities were inadequate to treat the victims, the citizens of Hickory and the March of Dimes decided to build a hospital to care for the children of the region. From the time the decision was made until equipment, doctors, and patients were in a new facility, took less than 54 hours. Several more buildings were quickly added. A Red Cross official on the scene praised the project "as the most outstanding example of cooperative effort he has ever seen."^[12]

The city also came to national attention when the remains of Zahra Baker were found leading to a police investigation where Zahra's stepmother, Elise Baker, was found guilty of second-degree murder. The Zahra Baker All Children's playground, located in Kiwanis Park, is named in her honor.

National Register of Historic Places

The Claremont High School Historic District, Elliott–Carnegie Library, First Presbyterian Church, Dr. Glenn R. Frye House, Clement Geitner House, Lee & Helen George House, Harris Arcade, Hickory Municipal Building, Hickory Southwest Downtown Historic District, Highland School, Hollar Hosiery Mills-Knit Sox Knitting Mills, Houck's Chapel, Kenworth Historic District, John A. Lentz House, Lyerly Full Fashioned Mill, John Alfred Moretz House, Oakwood Historic District, Piedmont Wagon Company, Propst House, Ridgeview Public Library, Shuford House, and Whisnant Hosiery Mills are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.^{[13][14][15][16][17]}

Geography

Hickory is located in western Catawba County and extends westward into Burke County and Caldwell County. Interstate 40 passes through the southern part of the city, leading east 68 miles (109 km) to Winston-Salem and west 75 miles (121 km) to Asheville. U.S. Route 70 (Conover Boulevard) is an older east–west route through the city. U.S. Route 321 passes through the western part of the city, leading northwest 43 miles (69 km) to Boone and south 36 miles (58 km) to Gastonia.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 29.8 square miles (77.2 km²), of which 29.7 square miles (76.9 km²) is land and 0.08 square miles (0.2 km²), or 0.31%, is water.

Lake Hickory

Lake Hickory was created on the Catawba River in 1927 with the completion of the Oxford Dam 11 miles (18 km) northeast of Hickory. The dam parallels the NC Highway 16 bridge over the Catawba River between Interstate 40 and Taylorsville. It is 122 feet (37 m) high, with an overall length of 1,200 feet (370 m). The spillway section of the dam is 550 feet (170 m) long.

Lake Hickory was named after the City of Hickory and runs along its northern edge. The lake covers almost 4,223 acres (17.09 km²) with 105 miles (169 km) of shoreline. Full pond elevation is 935 feet (285 m). Lake Hickory is a reliable source of water for the Cities of Hickory and Conover and the Town of Long View, while also functioning as a recreation hub for boating, fishing, and other water based activities.

Duke Energy provides five public access areas on the lake in cooperation with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission.

Metropolitan area

Hickory is the largest city within the Hickory–Lenoir–Morganton metropolitan area. The Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) includes Catawba County, Burke County, Caldwell County, and Alexander County, with a combined population – as of the 2020 Census – of 365,276.^[18]

In addition to Hickory, the MSA includes the cities of Lenoir, Morganton, Conover, and Newton, along with a number of smaller incorporated towns and cities.

Several unincorporated rural and suburban communities located nearby include Bethlehem, Mountain View, and St. Stephens.

Climate

According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Hickory has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps. The hottest temperature recorded in Hickory was 105 °F (40.6 °C) on July 28–29, 1952, while the coldest temperature recorded was −8 °F (−22.2 °C) on January 21, 1985.^[19]