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Raleigh, North Carolina

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Raleigh redirects here. For the bicycle manufacturer, see Raleigh (bicycle). For the English explorer, see Sir Walter Raleigh.
File:RGB-raleigh skyline1.jpg
Downtown Raleigh Skyline

Raleigh is the capital of North Carolina, a state of the United States of America. It is the county seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. As of the 2000 census, it had a population of 276,093, making it the second most populous city in North Carolina, behind Charlotte. As of 2004, the Census Bureau estimates that Raleigh's population has increased to 326,653, making it one of the fastest growing cities in the nation. Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill make up the three cities of The Triangle, so named in 1959 with the creation of the Research Triangle Park, a research park between Durham and Raleigh (mostly located within Durham County). The Triangle's total population as of 2004 was over 1.46 million.

The City of Raleigh estimates its population to be 342,194 as of July 1, 2005.

Template:US City infobox

History

File:Raleigh1909.jpg
Downtown Raleigh panorama, from 1909

Raleigh was established in 1792 as both the new county seat and the new state capital. It was named for Sir Walter Raleigh, sponsor of the Colony of Roanoke, known as the "Lost Colony." The site was chosen as being within ten miles of Isaac Hunter's Tavern, a tavern popular with the legislators of the time. No city or town existed on the site before it was chosen to house the capital.

Law and government

File:Capitol in Raleigh, NC.jpg
The state capitol in Raleigh

Raleigh has operated under a council-manager government since 1947. The city council consists of eight members; all seats, including the mayor's, come up for election every two years. The current and 7 council members (5 district representatives and 2 at large).

City council

See also: List of mayors of Raleigh, North Carolina

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 299.3 km² (115.6 mi²). 296.8 km² (114.6 mi²) of it is land and 2.5 km² (1.0 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 0.84% water.

Demographics

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there are 276,093 people, 112,608 households, and 61,371 families residing in the city. The population density is 930.2/km² (2,409.2/mi²). There are 120,699 housing units at an average density of 406.7/km² (1,053.2/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 63.31% White, 27.80% African American, 0.36% Native American, 3.38% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 3.24% from other races, and 1.88% from two or more races. 6.99% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 112,608 households out of which 26.5% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.5% are married couples living together, 11.4% have a female householder with no husband present, and 45.5% are non-families. 33.1% of all households are made up of individuals and 6.2% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.30 and the average family size is 2.97.

In the city the population is spread out with 20.9% under the age of 18, 15.9% from 18 to 24, 36.6% from 25 to 44, 18.4% from 45 to 64, and 8.3% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 31 years. For every 100 females there are 98.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 96.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city is $46,612, and the median income for a family is $60,003. Males have a median income of $39,248 versus $30,656 for females. The per capita income for the city is $25,113. 11.5% of the population and 7.1% of families are below the poverty line. Approximately one out of four (25.5%) Raleigh citizens are beneath 200% of the poverty line. Out of the total population, 13.8% of those under the age of 18 and 9.3% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

Crime

Raleigh has a very low homicide rate. In 2004 only 8 murders were reported within city limits.

Like many urban areas, Raleigh has prostitution in its working class neighborhoods. There are several red light districts in Southeast Raleigh. It is rare not to find prostitution on the various intersections of Bragg St, for example.

Raleigh has 469.2 motor vehicle thefts per year per 100,000 residents. The average for metro areas in North Carolina is 528.4 motor vehicle thefts per year per 100,000 residents.

Education

Institutes of higher education

Public education

Public education in Raleigh is serviced by the Wake County Public School System. Public education also includes a number of public charter schools.

  • Public Middle Schools
    • Carnage Middle School
    • Carroll Middle School
    • Centennial Campus Middle School
    • Daniels Middle School
    • Dillard Drive Middle School
    • Durant Road Middle School
    • East Millbrook Middle School
    • East Wake Middle School
    • Exploris Middle School is a public charter school operated as part of Exploris museum. The school focuses on global education with an integrated curriculum.
    • Leesville Road Middle School
    • Ligon Middle School is a magnet middle school. It boasts a large number of elective choices, about 100-200 choices, and has an AG program.
    • Martin Middle School
    • West Millbrook Middle School
  • Public Elementary Schools
    • Brooks Elementary
    • A.B. Combs Leadership Magnet Elementary
    • Durant Road Elementary
    • Fuller GT Magnet Elementary
    • Green Year Round Elementary
    • Hunter Elementary
    • Jeffreys Grove Elementary
    • Lacy Elementary
    • Leesville Road Elementary
    • Lynn Road Elementary
    • Mary P. Douglas Elementary
    • Olds Elementary
    • Poe Elementary
    • Reedy Creek Elementary
    • Aldert Root Leadership Magnet Elementary
    • Stough Elementary
    • Underwood Elementary
    • Washington Elementary
    • Wiley Elementary
    • York Elementary

Private education

  • Private High Schools
    • Ravenscroft High School
    • Cardinal Gibbons High School
    • Hale High School
    • Saint Mary's High School
    • Raleigh Christian Academy
    • Wake Christian Academy
    • Friendship Christian School
    • North Raleigh Christian Academy

Attractions

Sports

The NHL Carolina Hurricanes moved to Raleigh in 1999 with the completion of the RBC Center. However, in Raleigh, college sports reign supreme, with NCAA Division I-A rivals the North Carolina State University Wolfpack, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Tar Heels, and Duke University Blue Devils being the most prominent teams in the area, sometimes referred to as Tobacco Road by sportscasters. The three universities have combined for eight NCAA Men's Basketball National Championships since 1974. North Carolina Central University, which is located in Durham, won the 1989 NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Championship.

The NC_DOT Mountains-to-Sea bike route goes through Raleigh, as does the US Maine-to-Florida bicycle route #1. The NC-DOT Cape Fear Run bicycle route connects Apex to Wilmington and closely parallels the RUSA 600km brevet route.

The area also features a variety of amateur participatory sports as well, with soccer, softball, flag football, basketball, and even dodgeball leagues operated privately or by the municipality.

Transportation

  • Air: Raleigh-Durham International Airport is just northwest of Raleigh on I-40 between Raleigh and Durham, North Carolina.
  • Interstate highway: I-40, I-440 Beltline, I-540
    • Note that the Beltline makes a loop around the city. Visitors and even long-time residents are frequently confused by the terms "Inner Beltline", "Outer Beltline", and "Outer Loop". The Inner and Outer Beltline are the same road. Inner and Outer refer to the positions of the lanes of traffic. The Inner Beltline runs clockwise; the Outer is counter-clockwise. The Outer Loop refers to I-540, which does not completely encircle Raleigh.
    • United States Highways:
US-1 (known in parts of Raleigh as Capital Boulevard)
US-64
US-70 (known in parts of Raleigh as Glenwood Avenue)
US-264
US-401 (known in parts of Raleigh as Capital Boulevard)
  • Passenger Rail: Amtrak Carolinian, Piedmont and Silver Star offer daily service to Charlotte, Richmond, Washington DC and Miami
  • Local Bus: Within Raleigh, the CAT system. The Triangle Transit Authority operates buses that serve the region and connect to municipal bus systems in Durham and Chapel Hill; this authority is planning a regional rail system to run through Durham, the RTP, Cary and Raleigh.
  • Bicycle: Most public buses are equipped with bicycle racks. A small minority of roads are equipped with bicycle lanes.

Capital Boulevard is a significant road in Raleigh. Its southern terminus is near the capitol building in downtown Raleigh, where it splits into McDowell Street (one-way heading north) and Dawson Street (one-way heading south). The northern terminus of Capital Boulevard is at the Raleigh city limits (where the street changes its name). Because this road was the major route of traffic to and from the government buildings of the state capital, a great deal of light industry, commercial work, and service industry grew up along it. In recent years, this development has expanded northward. The portion of Capital Boulevard between downtown Raleigh and the I-440 beltline is a limited access highway. Major highways US-1 and US-401 follow Capital Boulevard until 401 splits off north of the I-440 beltline and becomes Louisburg Road.

Media

National

Raleigh and the Triangle are home to North Carolina Public Radio, a public radio station/NPR provider that brings in listeners around the country, and UNC-TV, also based out of UNC in Chapel Hill.

WCPE-FM is a classical music station out of Wake Forest that transmits throughout the world via the Internet. It can also be heard via C-band and Ku-band satellite. WCPE Web site

WKNC owned by North Carolina State University can be heard throughout the Triangle and has gained national recognition due to its coverage at 25,000 watts and its diverse air talent and music formats.

Local media

Raleigh is part of the Raleigh-Durham-Fayetteville Designated Market Area, and includes the following television stations:

Popular radio stations include WPTF-AM [1], owned by Raleigh-based Curtis Media Group, and WDCG-FM, owned by Clear Channel.

Sister cities

See also:

Template:Mapit-US-cityscale

  • Raleighing, the latest changes, developments, information, and events in Raleigh
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