Thank you for inquiring about the Cape Fear Region! We look forward to assisting you in any way we can. Our area is a pleasant mix of the luxuries and conveniences of an urban city and the relaxed and friendly atmosphere of a small beach town. The many beaches and waterways offer endless recreational possibilities in the spring and summer months, while downtown and the riverfront are rich with history and culture. The Fort Fisher Historic site is a fun place to visit and the Carolina Beach State Park offers a close-by getaway for the nature lover. The area’s diverse locations and temperate climate have caused it to be the center of a growing film industry.
The Beaches
The beaches here are some of the cleanest and widest on the East Coast, making them highly appealing to the tourists, while the year round population enjoys all the amenities of coastal living while still being within driving distance of a city. The closest beach to Wilmington is Wrightsville Beach, a small community of just over 3,000 residents. The town is a 5 mile long island that begins on the east side of a drawbridge that spans Banks Channel. Wrightsville Beach is home to one of the area’s prettiest beaches and many fine restaurants, as well as two piers.
Carolina and Kure Beach share an island with the Fort Fisher Civil War Historic Site. Carolina Beach is a unique little community with a relaxed atmosphere. There are amusement parks, charter boats for fishing, and a wide variety of shops and restaurants. Carolina Beach is also home to a state park that offers many nature trails and camping. Kure Beach is a hospitable small town where most accommodations are within walking distance of the fishing pier in the center of town. Fort Fisher offers a Civil War Museum and the North Carolina Aquarium, as well as four miles of undeveloped beach for four wheel driving.
Bald Head Island is a private community off the tip of Fort Fisher that is open for day trips. It is accessible only by passenger ferry and is home to “Old Baldy” the oldest lighthouse in the state.
Riverfront/Downtown
The riverfront served as the hub of Wilmington’s commerce through the early 20th century. Now it is the home to restaurants, retail shops, and boutiques. Riverfront Park runs from the Hilton down to the foot of Market Street. It offers a wonderful view of the battleship North Carolina and both bridges. With some 200 blocks, Wilmington’s downtown boasts one of the largest historic districts listed in the National Register of Historic Places. The styles of architecture range from Antebellum and Georgian styles to Queen Anne Style and Italianate styles. A number of homes are open for tours including the Latimer House and the Bellamy Mansion.
Golf
A steady influx of visiting golfers are frequenting the southern coast of North Carolina. For those people who have invested in vacation homes or are retiring to the Carolinas, our area offers a broad range of golf real estate opportunities and the proximity of golf courses to area beaches. For vacationing golfers, we have over 20 golf resorts concentrated in the Wilmington area and several golf vacation services that make it easy to plan a golf trip. North Carolina has long been recognized for outstanding courses by top designers. Three of the most dynamic new courses are the Jack Nicklaus and Pete Dye courses at Landfall, a private development near Wrightsville Beach, the Tom Fazio course at Porter’s Neck Plantation, and the Gauntlet at St. James Plantation designed by P.B. Dye. You may tee off at Hampstead’s Olde Point Golf and Country Club, Belvedere Plantation Golf and Yacht Club, or Topsail Greens Golf Club.
Film
Dino De Laurentiis brought the movie “Firestarter” to the Wilmington area in 1983 and began Wilmington’s film industry. E.U.E. Screen Gems Studios is the largest full service studio lot outside of California. The area averages 25-30 film projects per year, infusing the local economy with an estimated annual $78 million in film-related revenues. In a 1995 survey, Wilmington not generated more film revenue than all U.S. cities (outside of L.A. and New York), it also did more business than 45 states. Movie Credits for the region include: “Dawson’s Creek”, Muppets from Space, Elmo in Grouchland, Virus, Black Dog, Bruno, I Know What You Did Last Summer, “Matlock”, The Crow, Sleeping with the Enemy, Betsy’s Wedding, Maximum Overdrive, and countless others.
Facts and Statistics
Miscellaneous Facts and Statistics for New Hanover County
Age Breakdown
Average Age = 36.1
0-9 years - 12.4%
10-17 years - 10.3%
18-29 years - 20.8%
30-39 years - 16.8%
40-49 years - 13.6%
50-64 years - 13.6%
65+ years - 12.5%
Household Characteristics
Married with Children - 22.1%
Married w/o Children - 30.0%
Single with children - 8.6%
Single w/o children - 39.4%
Population
State Population Density Rating - 98th Percentile
National Density Rating - 96th Percentile
Persons per square mile - 742
State Population Growth Ranking - 91st Percentile
National Growth Ranking - 92nd Percentile
Population Growth Rate - 3.0% Annualized over last 5 years
Climate
|
Month |
low |
avg |
high |
|
January |
34 |
44 |
55 |
|
February |
36 |
47 |
58 |
|
March |
43 |
54 |
65 |
|
April |
50 |
62 |
74 |
|
May |
59 |
70 |
80 |
|
June |
67 |
76 |
85 |
|
July |
71 |
80 |
88 |
|
August |
71 |
79 |
87 |
|
September |
65 |
75 |
85 |
|
October |
53 |
65 |
76 |
|
November |
44 |
57 |
69 |
|
December |
37 |
48 |
59 |
Precipitation Averages:
Average Precipitation in Inches
for New Hanover County
January - 3.9
February - 3.7
March - 3.9
April - 2.9
May - 4.4
June - 6.0
July - 8.1
August - 6.9
September - 5.0
October - 2.7
November - 3.1
December - 3.6
Area Schools
Local School Information
Enrollment Requirements:
· A child entering kindergarten must be 5 years old on or before October 16
· A valid birth certificate must be presented at time of registration.
· Each child entering kindergarten must have a physical examination, conducted by a certified health-care professional, including hearing and vision screening, and a complete medical history.
· The following immunizations are required by N.C. law before a child can enter school:
- 5 DPT shots (If the fourth dose is on or after the fourth birthday, a fifth dose is not required
- 4 polio immunizations
- 1 measles immunization
- 1 rubella immunization
- 1 mumps immunization
- 1HiB immunization
New Hanover County: 763-5431
New Hanover County emphasizes quality throughout the school system. They are the only school system to ever receive the coveted North Carolina Quality Leadership Foundation’s Malcolm Baldridge Award. Every high school offers advanced-placement and honors classes in core subjects. Clubs for sports, band and academics are offered in many schools throughout the county. New Hanover County has approximately 21,800 students and 1,500 teachers in the 23 elementary, 6 middle, and 4 high schools. There are three elementary magnet schools that focus on mathematics and technology. Year-round education is offered in five elementary schools and one middle school.
Brunswick County: 253-2900
Brunswick County Schools have approximately 10,000 students in the three high schools, three middle schools and seven elementary schools. In addition to the basic K-12 instructional program, Brunswick County schools have a comprehensive program of instructional services for the exceptional child, vocational education, remediation, and courses for the North Carolina Scholar.
Pender County: 259-2187
Pender County Schools have a population of over 6,300 students in the 12 schools. The system consists of five elementary, three middle, and two high schools as well as an alternative school for grades 7-10 and a year-round school for grades K-8. As with New Hanover County schools, the Pender system’s participation in the A+ Arts Program provides for the integration of the arts into the academic experience.
SAT Score Comparison
|
|
Verbal |
Math |
Total |
|
New Hanover |
506 |
498 |
1004 |
|
Brunswick |
468 |
459 |
927 |
|
Pender |
463 |
464 |
927 |
|
North Carolina |
490 |
488 |
978 |
|
National |
505 |
511 |
1016 |
Private Schools
Amy Bradley (K-12) 763-4485
Cape Fear Academy (K-12) 791-0287
Friends School of Wilmington (6-8) 792-1811
HA Higgins Montessori School (pre-K-6) 392-7007
King’s Memorial Christian Academy (K-3) 799-8157
Myrtle Grove Christian School (K-8) 392-2067
New Horizons Elementary (K-5) 392-5209
Saint Mary’s School (1-8) 762-6517
Wilmington Academy Arts & Sciences (6-8) 392-6666
Wilmington Christian Academy (K-12) 791-4248
Colleges:
North Carolina boasts one of the nation’s finest university systems and Wilmington is home to some top-quality educational institutions.
Highly ranked University of North Carolina at Wilmington has more than 9600 students in 36 undergraduate degree and 20 postgraduate degree programs. The school sits on a beautiful wooded 650 acre campus on College Road. They boast a 16-1 student/teacher ratio. Consistently ranked as one of the top universities in the south, UNCW is a leader in marine science education and attracts students from all over the world. Only 56 % of the applicants are accepted. The school’s commitment to public education and involvement has led to development of a year-round public learning program called Pathways. Pathways includes travel and study abroad programs for both youths and adults as well as classroom sessions ranging from drawing and architectural history to astrology and conversational Japanese.
Cape Fear Community College, part of the NC community college system, is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. They have 50 degree programs and current full time enrollment is approximately 4,500 students. About 23,000 people throughout the area are served in continuing education classes and other educational opportunities. Cape Fear has 207 full time employees and hundreds of part-time employees. The school offers college-transfer degrees as well as technical and skills-enhancing programs. The small business center provides free and small-fee assistance and seminars, and develops job-specific training for many local manufacturers.
Adult Education Level (for New Hanover County)
Non High School Grad 21.9%
High School Grad, no college 29%
Some College 28.0%
College Grad 15.3%
Post Grad Degree 5.9%
Employment Statistics
Largest Area Employers:
Applied Analytical Industries (500)
Bedford Fair Industries (483)
Carolina Power & Light (1200)
Corning Inc. (1700)
DuPont DeNemours & Co (1800)
General Electric Co. (2300)
International Paper (1320)
New Hanover Regional Medical Center (2850)
Pharmaceutical Product Development (350)
UNC-Wilmington (1044)
Employment Industries
Percentage of County’s Population
Admistrative Support - 13.3%
Farming/Fishing/Forestry - 1.3%
Laborer/Operator - 14.0%
Managerial - 11.9%
Professional - 14.2%
Sales - 15.1%
Service - 14.0%
Technician/Precision Craft - 16.1%
Income
State Income Ranking - 83rd Percentile
National Income Ranking - 80th Percentile
Median Income - $36,443
Average Income homes w/children - $50,845
Local Special Events
Just a Few of the Special Events in the Area Include:
NC Jazz Festival - Held in late January at the Wilmington Hilton. This yearly event features world class jazz performers in an intimate cabaret setting.
NC Azalea Festival- Held in April, this is easily the largest event in town. The Azalea festival marks the beginning of the tourist season and features a downtown street fair, parade, and several musical performances from internationally known artists.
Piney Woods Cultural Heritage Festival- Labor Day weekend, at Hugh MacRae Park. This little festival is sponsored by the Arts Council of the Lower Cape Fear and is dedicated to the spirit of arts in Wilmington. It features live music, homemade crafts and food.
Riverfest-This large street fair is held each year in October. It features several live music stages as well as sailing regattas, food booths, homemade crafts and special events.
Festival of Trees- Held in late November at the Wilmington Hilton, this event benefits the Cape Fear Hospice. It features beautifully decorated Christmas trees for viewing as well as some events for the children.
Annual Holiday Flotilla- Held each December at Wrightsville Beach, the flotilla features a highly illuminated boat parade through the Intracoastal Waterway to celebrate the holiday season.
Newcomer's Phone Directory
The following numbers can help you get set up in your new town.
Emergency Numbers
Ambulance 341-4400 or 911
American Red Cross 762-2683
Cape Fear Memorial Hospital 452-8112
Coast Guard 256-3469
Emergency Management Service 341-4373
Fire Department 341-7846
Highway Patrol 395-3917
New Hanover Regional Med. Center 343-7000
Sheriff’s Department 341-4200
Wilmington Police 343-3600
Government:
New Hanover County 341.7184
Pender County 259-1200
Brunswick County 457-6614
City of Wilmington 341-7810
Carolina Beach Town Hall 458-2994
Wrightsville Bch Town Hall 256-7900
Surf City Town Hall 328-4131
Getting Hooked Up:
Animal Licensing (Hanover) 341-4197
Animal Licensing (Pender) 259-1349
Electricity 256-6161
Telephone 780-2355
Natural Gas 763-3306
Water and Sewer (Wilmington) 341-7806
Time Warner Cable 763-4638
Trash Collection (Wilmington) 341-7875
Waste Industries Hampstead 270-2200
Waste Management 799-5256
Schools:
Superintendent 343-1583
Brunswick County 457-5241
New Hanover County 763-5431
Pender County 259-2187
Brunswick Community College 754-6900
Cape Fear Community College 251-5100
UNC-Wilmington 962-3000
Transportation:
Airport 341-4333
Bus Station 762-6625
DMV 763-6752
Department of Transportation 251-5724
Ferry 458-3329
Transit Authority 343-0106
Miscellaneous Numbers (area code 910)
Coastwalk Real Estate 910-458-9119
Wilmington Chamber of Commerce 762-2611
Hampstead Chamber of Commerce 328-4722
Wrightsville Beach Chamber 395-2965
Pleasure Island Chamber 458-8434
New Hanover Board of Elections 341-4060
Pender Board of Elections 259-1220
Brunswick Board of Elections 253-2020
New Hanover Parks and Rec 341-7855
Pender Parks and Rec. 259-1200
Brunswick Parks and Rec. 457-6614
United Way 251-5020
Summary provided by Justin Donaton