Anson County is a county in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 22,055. Its county seat is Wadesboro.
The area eventually comprising Anson County was originally occupied by Native Americans of the Catawba and Waxhaw tribes.
The county was formed in 1750 from Bladen County. It was named for George Anson, Baron Anson, a British admiral who circumnavigated the world. Anson purchased land in the state. The county seat was designated at New Town in 1783. Four years later it was renamed Wadesboro.
Reductions to its extent began in 1753, when the northern part of it became Rowan County. In 1762 the western part of Anson County became Mecklenburg County. In 1779 the northern part of what remained of Anson County became Montgomery County, and the part east of the Pee Dee River became Richmond County. In 1842, western Anson County merged with southeastern Mecklenburg County to become Union County.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of , of which is land and (1.05%) is water. It is bordered by the North Carolina counties of Stanly, Montgomery, Richmond, and Union, and the South Carolina county of Chesterfield.
As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 22,055 and 5,809 families; the median age was 44.5 years, with 19.1% of residents under the age of 18 and 20.3% aged 65 or older. For every 100 females there were 93.2 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 90.2 males.
There were 8,554 households in the county, of which 26.8% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 38.5% were married-couple households, 20.9% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 35.1% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 31.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 9,834 housing units, of which 13.0% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 68.8% were owner-occupied and 31.2% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 8.0%.
22.2% of residents lived in urban areas, while 77.8% lived in rural areas.
The racial makeup of the county was 48.5% White, 44.8% Black or African American, 0.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0% Asian, less than 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 2.0% from some other race, and 3.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 3.0% of the population.
Anson is a majority minority county. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses, Anson's population declined by 18.2 percent.
At the 2010 census, there were 26,948 people. The racial makeup of the county was 48.58% African American, 47.15% White American, 1.07% Asian, 0.61% Native American, 1.25% multiracial and 1.32% of other race. People of Hispanic and Latino origin account for 3.02% of the population.
At the 2000 census, there were 25,275 people, 9,204 households, and 6,663 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 10,221 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 51.64% Black or African American, 48.53% White, 0.45% Native American, 0.57% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.32% from other races, and 0.46% from two or more races. 0.83% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 9,204 households, out of which 31.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.80% were married couples living together, 19.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.60% were non-families. 25.10% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.09.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.20% under the age of 18, 8.60% from 18 to 24, 29.00% from 25 to 44, 22.80% from 45 to 64, and 14.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 96.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.80 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $29,849, and the median income for a family was $35,870. Males had a median income of $27,297 versus $20,537 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,853. About 15.50% of families and 17.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.90% of those under age 18 and 16.70% of those age 65 or over.
Anson County is governed by a board of commissioners, which has seven members elected by district. The board of commissioners appoints a county manager, who oversees county administration and implements the board's policies.
Anson County is a member of the regional Centralina Council of Governments.
Like several neighboring rural counties, Anson County has historically favored Democratic nominees in most presidential elections. Since 2012, Republicans have had more success in the region, though Anson County voted more Democratic than its neighbors. The county has been depopulating, and the African American share of its population has been decreasing.
In 2016, the Democratic nominee, Hillary Clinton, won the county by 13 percentage points. In 2020 the Democratic nominee, Joe Biden, won by four. The county favored a Republican candidate for a federal office in 2022 and Donald Trump won the county in 2024, the first Republican presidential nominee to do so since Richard Nixon in 1972.
Anson's economy was historically rooted in agriculture. It remains weaker than those of other counties in the region.
There are 11 schools in the Anson County Schools system that serve the students of the county.
The county is served by South Piedmont Community College, which has a campus near Polkton.
<imagemap> File:Comté d'Anson.png|right|thumb|450px|Clickable map of Anson County
rect 449 247 552 282 Pee Dee National Wildlife Refuge poly 415 181 440 172 452 204 424 213 Ansonville poly 603 423 629 421 628 447 602 451 Lilesville poly 616 696 641 698 639 722 613 720 McFarlan poly 581 610 607 607 607 634 578 636 Morven poly 192 379 218 379 218 406 192 405 Peachland poly 282 344 282 383 315 385 318 420 334 415 337 389 320 375 317 344 Polkton poly 394 408 455 410 500 410 511 431 536 436 535 475 510 492 456 471 455 428 391 419 Wadesboro
desc bottom-left </imagemap>
The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2020 census of Anson County.
â = county seat