Rowan County, North Carolina

Rowan County
County
Rowan County Courthouse
Flag Seal Logo
Motto:  "Be an original."
Location within the U.S. state of North Carolina
North Carolina's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 35°38′N 80°31′W / 35.64°N 80.52°W / 35.64; -80.52
Country	United States
State	North Carolina
Founded	April 12, 1753
Named for	Matthew Rowan
Seat	Salisbury
Largest community	Salisbury
Area
• Total	523.95 sq mi (1,357.0 km2)
• Land	511.61 sq mi (1,325.1 km2)
• Water	12.34 sq mi (32.0 km2)  2.36%
Population  (2020)
• Total	146,875
• Estimate  (2023)	151,661
• Density	287.08/sq mi (110.84/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district	8th
Website	www.rowancountync.gov

Rowan County (/roʊˈæn/ roh-AN)^[1][2] is a county in the U.S. state of North Carolina that was formed in 1753, as part of the British Province of North Carolina. It was originally a vast territory with unlimited western boundaries, but its size was reduced to 524 square miles (1,360 km²) after several counties were formed from Rowan County in the 18th and 19th centuries. As of the 2020 census, its population was 146,875.^[3] Its county seat, Salisbury, is the oldest continuously populated European-American town in the western half of North Carolina.^[4] Rowan County is located northeast of Charlotte, and is considered part of the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC Metropolitan Statistical Area.