Ramseytown, North Carolina | |
---|---|
Coordinates: 36°0′2.40″N 82°21′26.48″W / 36.0006667°N 82.3573556°W | |
Country | United States |
State | North Carolina |
County | Yancey |
Incorporated | February 11, 1874 as Ramsey Town Baptist Church |
Disincorporated | Unknown |
Named for | Ramsey Family of Yancey County, NC |
Area | |
• Total | 0.79 sq mi (2.0 km2) |
• Land | 0.715 sq mi (1.85 km2) |
• Water | 0.075 sq mi (0.19 km2) |
Elevation | 2,303 [1] ft (996 m) |
Highest elevation (Julius Knob
[2]) | 3,822 ft (1,165 m) |
Lowest elevation (Cane River
[3]) | 2,099 ft (640 m) |
Population | |
• Estimate (2020) | ~45 |
Time zone | UTC-5 ( Eastern (EST)) |
• Summer ( DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
ZIP code | 28714 |
Area code | 828 |
GNIS feature ID | 1022144 |
Ramseytown, formerly known as Ramsaytown and Ramsey Town Baptist Church, [4] [5] is an unincorporated community in far northern Yancey County, North Carolina, on the Cane River. Yancey County's Ramseytown Township derives its name from the settlement.
A U.S. Post Office bearing the name of Ramsaytown was established on November 5, 1852, with the first postmaster being Abraham Whitsen. It ceased operations on February 29, 1956. [4] The community was incorporated by the North Carolina General Assembly on February 11, 1874 as Ramsey Town Baptist Church, and the municipal limits were defined as a circle of one mile in radius, centered on the local baptist church. It was disincorporated on an unknown date. Alcoholic beverages consisting of 21% alcohol by volume or greater were illegal in the town, and the municipality's council was composed of five members. [5]
During World War I, five men from Ramseytown were drafted. [6]
The official name of the town, as recognized by the federal government, was changed from Ramsaytown to Ramseytown on January 1, 1931. [7]
On April 21, 1948, local railroad engineer Clarence Davenport (July 24, 1894–April 21, 1948) was killed in a boiler explosion near Ramseytown, described as one of the worst locomotive explosions in United States history at the time. The locomotive's fireman also perished in the blast. [8]
The community was home to the Ramsey Mine. [9]
U.S. Route 19W runs through the community. [10] The community was formerly served by the Clinchfield Railroad. [8]
Ramseytown shares a fire department, the Egypt-Ramseytown Volunteer Fire Department, with the nearby unincorporated community of Egypt, North Carolina. [11] The department receives $21,037.50 in funding from the State of North Carolina as of 2023. [12]
Ramseytown was the site of an EF1 tornado during the Tornado outbreak sequence of August 4–8, 2023. Tornadoes are exceptionally rare in the area. [13]