Formed December 1, 1833 (66th county)
Yancey County (18,470), Burnsville (1,605)
The Modern Colonial Revival 1965 red brick courthouse is located on Town Square at Main Street. United States Highway 19 East travels two blocks east of the site. Six Associates are the architects. The facility has a small tower and veteran memorials on the grounds. It sits across the street from the city square. There was a 1908 courthouse earlier in Burnsville, the only county seat. The county was established on December 1, 1833 from parts of Burke and Buncombe counties as the 66th county. It is named for United States Congressman Bartlett Yancey. Burnsville is named for settler Otway Burns.
Yancey County government consists of a manager, a register, a sheriff, an attorney, and a clerk (executive). It has 5 Commissioners (legislative.) Twenty-seven Superior Court Judges serve Yancey, Avery, Buncombe, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, Cherokee, Clay, Cleveland, Gaston, Graham, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Lincoln, Macon, Madison, McDowell, Mecklenburg, Mitchell, Polk, Rutherford, Swain, Transylvania, and Watauga counties, One District Court Judge serves Yancey, Avery, Madison, Mitchell, and Watauga counties and a court clerk serves Yancy County (judicial.) Yancey County is located on the western border with Tennessee. Asheville, North Carolina is south and Knoxville, Tennessee is west of the county. The center of the county is in Burnsville .3 miles Southeast of the city center. The county is surrounded clockwise by Mitchell, McDowell, Buncombe, and Madison counties and Tennessee.
The area of the county is 313 square miles. It is 84 out of 100 in the state. It ranks 83 out of 100 in population in the state. It has a density of 59.0 persons per square mile making it 73 out of 100 in the state. Yancey County has 8.7% of its population in its incorporated areas. United States Highway 19 originates with the joining of United States Highways 19 East and 19 West and travels west into Madison County. United States Highway 19 East comes from the east, Mitchell County, and terminates. United States Highway 19 West enters the county from the north, Tennessee, and terminates in the county. The highest point in North Carolina, Mount Mitchell, is in this county. Yancey County looks like the State of Indiana pushed toward the southeast. Burnsville is located near the center of the county. Burnsville is the county seat and the largest city since it is the only incorporated city. It is 8.7% of the county population.
Burnsville
