Cumberland County, North Carolina

Cumberland County Education, Geography, and History

Cumberland County is a county located in the state of North Carolina. Based on the 2010 census, the population was 319,431, making it the fifth-most populous county in North Carolina. Its county seat is Fayetteville.

Cumberland County is part of the Fayetteville, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Etymology - Origin of Cumberland County Name

It was named in honor of William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, third son of King George II. Cumberland was the commander of the English Army at the Battle of Culloden, in which the Scotch Highlanders were defeated in 1746.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: CensusBureau Quick Facts

Cumberland County History

Cumberland was formed in 1754 from Bladen. It was named in honor of William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, third son of King George II. Cumberland was the commander of the English Army at the Battle of Culloden, in which the Scotch Highlanders were defeated in 1746. Many of them came to America, and their principal settlement was in Cumberland County. Cumberland was changed to Fayette County in early 1784, but the act was repealed at the next General Assembly, which met in November, 1784. It is in the southeastern section of the State and is bounded by Sampson, Bladen, Robeson, Hoke, Harnett and Johnston counties. The present land area is 652.72 square miles and its 2000 population was 302,963. The county seat was first called Cumberland Court House. In 1762 Campbellton was established at Cross Creek with provisions for the public buildings. In 1778 Cross Creek and Campbellton were joined and the courthouse was ordered to be erected in that part of the town known as Cross Creek. In 1783 Campbellton was changed to Fayetteville in honor of Lafayette. Fayetteville is the county seat.

Geography: Land and Water

As reported by the Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 658 square miles (1,700 km²), of which 652 square miles (1,690 km²) is land and 6.1 square miles (16 km²) (0.9%) is water.

Neighboring Counties

Bordering counties are as follows:

• Harnett County - north
• Sampson County - east
• Bladen County - south
• Robeson County - southwest
• Hoke County - west
• Moore County - northwest

Education

Cumberland County is home to Fayetteville State University (an HBCU in the CIAA Conference), Methodist University (a member of the USA South Athletic Conference), and Fayetteville Technical Community College.

The Cumberland County Schools system is the fourth largest Public school system in the state of North Carolina. There are 17 high schools in Cumberland County: Cape Fear, Cross Creek Early College, Cumberland International Early College, Douglas Byrd, E.E. Smith, Fuller Performance Learning Center, Gray's Creek, Howard Health and Life Sciences, Jack Britt, Massey Hill Classical, Pine Forest, Reid Ross Classical, Seventy-First, South View, Terry Sanford, Alger B. Wilkins, Ramsey Street, and Westover.

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