Gaston County, North Carolina

Gaston County
Gaston County Courthouse
Flag of Gaston County
Official seal of Gaston County
Official logo of Gaston County
Motto: 
"Local Strengths. Global Success."
Map of North Carolina highlighting Gaston County
Location within the U.S. state of North Carolina
Map of the United States highlighting North Carolina
North Carolina's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 35°17′N 81°11′W / 35.29°N 81.18°W / 35.29; -81.18
Country United States
State North Carolina
Founded1846
Named forWilliam Gaston
SeatGastonia
Largest communityGastonia
Area
 • Total363.68 sq mi (941.9 km2)
 • Land355.75 sq mi (921.4 km2)
 • Water7.93 sq mi (20.5 km2)  2.18%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total227,943
 • Estimate 
(2023)
237,242
 • Density640.74/sq mi (247.39/km2)
Time zoneUTC−5 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional districts10th, 14th
Websitewww.gastongov.com

Gaston County is a county in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 227,943.[1] The county seat is Gastonia.[2] Dallas served as the original county seat from 1846 until 1911.

Gaston County is included in the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had an estimated population of 2,805,115 in 2023.[3] The county is located in the southern Piedmont region.

Of North Carolina's 100 counties, Gaston County ranks 74th in size, consisting of approximately 364 square miles (940 km2), and is tenth in population.[4] The county has fifteen incorporated towns.[5] In addition to fifteen incorporated towns and cities, there are several unincorporated communities such as Hardin, Lucia, Crowders Mountain, Sunnyside, Alexis, Tryon, and North Belmont.[6]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference 2020CensusQuickFacts was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. ^ "Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas Population Totals: 2020-2023". United States Census Bureau, Population Division. March 14, 2024. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
  4. ^ "North Carolina Counties by Population". www.northcarolina-demographics.com. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
  5. ^ "About Gaston County". Archived from the original on September 15, 2019. Retrieved September 5, 2019.
  6. ^ "About Gaston County". www.gastongov.com. Archived from the original on September 15, 2019. Retrieved September 6, 2019.