Location
Catawba County is located northwest of Charlotte in the State of North Carolina and covers 405 square miles (656.10 Km). The central county of North Carolina’s 8th largest MSA (2023 population estimate – 370,030), Catawba County’s 2023 population of 164,645 includes the inhabitants of its eight municipalities. These municipalities include Brookford, Catawba, Claremont, Conover, Hickory, Long View, Maiden, and Newton, the county seat of Catawba County.
Catawba County's three lakes and its location in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains exert a strong influence on the County's climate and ambiance. The County is sheltered by mountains that moderate winter temperatures and provide refreshing summer breezes. Elevation ranges from 705 to 1780 feet, averaging 995 feet. Its average year round temperature is 58.6 Fahrenheit (14.8 Celsius). Its three large lakes are strikingly backdropped against the wooded shorelines. Lake Hickory covers 4,100 acres (1,659 hectares) and 272.1 miles of shoreline (169 Km), Lake Lookout Shoals covers 1,270 acres (514 hectares) and 39.1 miles of shoreline (63 Km), and Lake Norman covers 32,510 acres (13,157 hectares) and 520 miles of shoreline (837 Km).
| 2023 | ||
| Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton M.S.A. | 370,030 | |
| Catawba County | 164,645 | |
| Town of Brookford | 436 | |
| Town of Catawba | 730 | |
| City of Claremont | 1,764 | |
| City of Conover | 8,719 | |
| City of Hickory* | 45,298 | |
| Town of Long View* | 4,405 | |
| Town of Maiden* | 3,829 | |
| City of Newton | 13,452 | |
| * - also includes population living in City or town limits, but outside of Catawba County | ||
Catawba County’s proximity to interstate access makes it a prime location for business. Interstate-40 runs east to west through Catawba County. Accessible via US Highway 321, Interstate-85 is reachable in approximately 30 minutes. Interstate-77 is also reachable in 30 minutes via Interstate-40.
Catawba County is located within one hour of the City of Charlotte, home of the Charlotte-Douglas International Airport and headquarters of Bank of America. The Appalachian resort areas of Boone and Blowing Rock are within an hour’s drive. The City of Asheville, home of the Biltmore Estate, lies less than an hour and a half to the West. Winston-Salem, with a large Dell manufacturing plant, and Greensboro, home of the Greensboro International Airport and a major distribution hub for FedEx, lie an hour and a half to the East, respectively. BMW’s manufacturing plant in Spartanburg, SC is located approximately an hour and a half to the Southwest.
Climate
| 1991-2020 Monthly Climate Normals | |||||||||
| Month | Mean Max. Temp. (F) |
Mean Max. Temp. (C) |
Mean Min. Temp. (F) |
Mean Min. Temp. (C) |
Mean Avg. Temp. (F) |
Mean Avg. Temp. (C) |
Avg. Total Precip. (in.) |
Avg. Total Precip. (mm.) |
|
| January | 49.1 | 9.5 | 30.2 | -1.0 | 36.7 | 2.6 | 3.81 | 96.8 | |
| February | 53.2 | 11.8 | 32.8 | 0.4 | 43.0 | 6.1 | 3.21 | 81.5 | |
| March | 60.7 | 15.9 | 39.5 | 4.2 | 50.1 | 10.1 | 4.08 | 103.6 | |
| April | 70.0 | 21.1 | 47.7 | 8.7 | 58.8 | 14.9 | 4.08 | 103.6 | |
| May | 77.4 | 25.2 | 56.2 | 13.4 | 66.8 | 19.3 | 3.86 | 98.0 | |
| June | 84.3 | 29.1 | 64.4 | 18.0 | 74.3 | 23.5 | 4.35 | 110.5 | |
| July | 87.4 | 30.8 | 68.1 | 20.1 | 77.7 | 25.4 | 4.29 | 109.0 | |
| August | 85.7 | 29.8 | 67.0 | 19.4 | 76.4 | 24.7 | 4.58 | 116.3 | |
| September | 79.8 | 26.6 | 60.9 | 16.1 | 70.4 | 21.3 | 3.93 | 99.8 | |
| October | 70.2 | 21.2 | 48.9 | 9.4 | 59.6 | 15.3 | 3.49 | 88.6 | |
| November | 59.9 | 15.5 | 38.7 | 3.7 | 49.3 | 9.6 | 3.62 | 91.9 | |
| December | 51.5 | 10.8 | 32.8 | 0.4 | 42.2 | 5.1 | 3.85 | 97.8 | |
| Source: NOAA | |||||||||