Race, Diversity, and Ethnicity in McDowell County, NC

The map below shows majority race by area in McDowell County, as self-identified on the US census. Darker shades indicate a larger racial majority in that neighborhood. This page also contains data and maps on McDowell County racial diversity and diversity scores. Click here to scroll to diversity data.

McDowell County, NC map of race and ethnicity
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White
Hispanic
Black
Asian
Multiple/Other
WhiteHispanicBlackAsianMultiple/Other
Majority race by area

The majority race in McDowell County overall is white, making up 85.5% of residents. The next most-common racial group is hispanic at 7.3%. There are more white people in the northeast areas of the county. People who identify as hispanic are most likely to be living in the central places. The data below shows how many people identify themselves as each of the following races, which most Americans base on their family's national origin:

Race in McDowell County

 
Self-Identified Race
McDowell County, NC Population
White
85.5%
Hispanic
7.3%
Black
3.7%
Asian
1.1%
Native American
0.4%
Other
2.0%
   

Diversity and Diversity Scores for McDowell County, NC

The map below shows diversity in McDowell County. Areas in green are more diverse, while areas in red are much less diverse. Diversity, in this case, means a mixture of people with different race and ethnicity living close to one another. For example, all-black and all-white areas in the county would both be considered lacking diversity.

McDowell County, NC map of race and ethnicity
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McDowell County Diversity Score

26.1

More diverse than 41% of US counties

McDowell County has a diversity score of 26.1: the chance, in percent, that two residents picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups, from ACS race counts. A place where everyone shares one group scores 0, and an even mix of the six groups in the chart above scores the maximum, 83.3. McDowell County is about average for diversity versus other US counties, more diverse than 41% of them. Within McDowell County's proper boundaries, the most diverse area is central McDowell County, and the least diverse areas are in northeast McDowell County.

Source: BestNeighborhood calculations from the U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 2020-2024 5-year estimates (race and Hispanic origin); proprietary data mapping and analysis. Special thanks to the University of Virginia.

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