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Welcome to Rutherford County ...

Time Zone: Rutherford County lies in the Eastern Time Zone (EST/EDT) and observes daylight saving time.

The community of Rutherfordton is the Seat for Rutherford County.

Rutherford County was founded in 1779 and was created by taking area from Tryon County.

From the Census Estimates for 2019, <1> Rutherford had a population of 67,029 people. This is a decrease of 1.05% since the last Census (which gave a population of 67,740 people in 2010).

At the time of the 2010 Census, Rutherford represented 0.71% of the total population of North Carolina.

Below are some of the communities located in Rutherford County:

  • Bostic
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Bostic is located in Rutherford County (NC)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bostic
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 379 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bostic <2>
  • Chimney Rock
    (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
  • Ellenboro
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
  • Forest City
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Lake Lure
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Lake Lure is located in Rutherford County (NC)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Lure
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,153 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lake Lure <2>
  • Ruth
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Ruth is located in Rutherford County (NC)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruth
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 400 people
  • Rutherfordton
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Spindale
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Spindale is located in Rutherford County (NC)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spindale
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,175 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Spindale <2>

Websites of Interest ...

Footnotes ...

<1>On a yearly basis, the US Census Bureau creates an estimate of the county's population. Keep in mind that this is an estimate and not an actual count. The last physical count was the 2010 Census and the next count will be for the 2020 Census.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.