When was Yancey County founded?

Yancey County was founded in 1834, formed from Buncombe County and Burke County, and named after Bartlett Yancey.

What is the county seat of Yancey County?

The county seat of Yancey County is Burnsville.

Is there an online parcel map for Yancey County?

Yes. Yancey County publishes a parcel map of 17,230 parcels, rated good enough here. You can click any parcel on it in Parcel Chart's free map, no sign-in needed.

Has Yancey County's boundary or name changed?

Yancey County was created in 1834 from Buncombe County and Burke County. Since then the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries records 7 later changes, chiefly involving Mitchell County, Buncombe County and Madison County.

Is my lot in a flood zone?

We do not have flood maps for Yancey County yet. Look up the address on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, which shows the effective flood map for any lot.

County · code 37199

Yancey CountyNorth Carolina

Yancey County is a county in North Carolina with its seat in Burnsville. It was created in 1834 from Buncombe and Burke Counties and named after Bartlett Yancey.

Founded1834
County seatBurnsville
Named forBartlett Yancey
Land area313 sq mi + 0.6 sq mi water
Population18,470 2020 Census
Parcels mapped17,230 checked 14 October 2026

Open the free map Click any parcel in Yancey County: acreage, parcel id, address and who publishes the map. No sign-in.

Updated 19 October 2026

Census outline · seat marked

History

Formed in 1834 from Buncombe County and Burke County

An old deed may name a county that no longer exists, or a boundary that has since moved.

Yancey County was established on January 13, 1834, from Buncombe and Burke Counties. Over the following decades, the county lost and gained territory through the creation of surrounding counties: Watauga, Madison, and Mitchell were formed from Yancey's land, while some territory was later returned from Mitchell.

Boundary changes from the Newberry Library, Atlas of Historical County Boundaries; the 5 that matter most are shown first.

1834
Yancey County created Yancey created from Buncombe and Burke.
from Buncombe from Burke
13 January 1834 · N.C. Sess. Laws 1833, ch. 83, sec. 1/pp. 145-146, and ch. 84, sec. 10/p. 147
1849
Lost territory Yancey lost to creation of Watauga.
to Watauga
27 January 1849 · N.C. Sess. Laws 1848-1849, ch. 25, sec. 1/pp. 66-67
1849
Lost territory Yancey lost to Buncombe.
to Buncombe
29 January 1849 · N.C. Sess. Laws 1848-1849, ch. 16, sec. 1/pp. 48-49
1851
Lost territory Yancey lost to creation of Madison.
to Madison
27 January 1851 · N.C. Sess. Laws 1850-1851, ch. 36, sec. 1/p. 91
1861
Lost territory Yancey lost to creation of Mitchell.
to Mitchell
16 February 1861 · N.C. Sess. Laws 1860-1861, pub., ch. 8, sec. 1/p. 14

Show all 10 changes (5 more)

1834
Yancey County created Yancey created from Buncombe and Burke.
from Buncombe from Burke
13 January 1834 · N.C. Sess. Laws 1833, ch. 83, sec. 1/pp. 145-146, and ch. 84, sec. 10/p. 147
1849
Lost territory Yancey lost to creation of Watauga.
to Watauga
27 January 1849 · N.C. Sess. Laws 1848-1849, ch. 25, sec. 1/pp. 66-67
1849
Lost territory Yancey lost to Buncombe.
to Buncombe
29 January 1849 · N.C. Sess. Laws 1848-1849, ch. 16, sec. 1/pp. 48-49
1851
Lost territory Yancey lost to creation of Madison.
to Madison
27 January 1851 · N.C. Sess. Laws 1850-1851, ch. 36, sec. 1/p. 91
1861
Lost territory Yancey lost to creation of Mitchell.
to Mitchell
16 February 1861 · N.C. Sess. Laws 1860-1861, pub., ch. 8, sec. 1/p. 14
1861
Gained territory Yancey gained from Mitchell.
from Mitchell
4 September 1861 · N.C. Sess. Laws 1861, 2d ext. sess., priv., ch. 34, secs. 1-2/pp. 90-91
1866
Lost territory Yancey lost to Mitchell.
to Mitchell
24 February 1866 · N.C. Sess. Laws 1866, spec. sess., priv., ch. 70, sec. 1/p. 141
1872
Lost territory Yancey lost to Mitchell.
to Mitchell
9 January 1872 · N.C. Sess. Laws 1871-1872, pub., ch. 36, sec. 1/p. 41
1889
Changed Boundary between Yancey and Mitchell defined (no change).
Mitchell
7 March 1889 · N.C. Sess. Laws 1889, pub., ch. 289, sec. 1/pp. 292-293
1893
Changed Act of 7 March 1889, defining boundary between Yancey and Mitchell, repealed (no change).
Mitchell
21 February 1893 · N.C. Sess. Laws 1893, pub., ch. 139, sec. 1/p. 106

Land and parcels

What the maps cover in Yancey

Who publishes each layer, how good it is, and when we last checked.

Parcels Good enough

Lot lines and tax-map numbers for 17,230 parcels from Yancey County. Drawn for tax purposes: usually within a few feet of a survey, but not a survey.
edited 10 July 2026 · checked 14 October 2026
Address points Official

One point per address, 15,784 in all from NC Center for Geographic Information and Analysis (CGIA, NC Dept of Information Technology) for NC OneMap, with the North Carolina 911 Board (AddressNC program).
checked 14 October 2026
Buildings Reference

Roof outlines traced from aerial imagery from FEMA Response Geospatial Office with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Good for seeing what is on a lot; not accurate enough to set a fence from.
checked 18 October 2026

Official: from the office that keeps the record
Good enough: a reliable statewide or national copy
Fallback: a guide only; check the official record
Missing: nothing public found yet

People and land

Yancey by the Census

Population

18,470 2020 Census count

Housing units

11,230 2020 Census count

Land area

313 square miles

Water area

0.6 square miles

People per sq mi

59 population ÷ land area

Source: US Census Bureau, 2020 Census; US Census Bureau, 2020 Gazetteer Files. Not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Rules and offices

Who to ask before you build, dig or sell

Official county pages only. We link to them; we do not copy them, because they change.

Inside a city or town, permits usually come from that city rather than the county.

Records

Assessor and property records
Tax Collector
from yanceycountync.gov · checked 13 October 2026
Clerk of court: deeds and plats
Register of Deeds
from yanceycountync.gov · checked 13 October 2026

Zoning and code

Planning and zoningfrom yanceycountync.gov · checked 13 October 2026
Zoning Questions*from townofburnsville.org

GIS and maps

County GIS and maps 828-682-7216from yanceycountync.gov · checked 13 October 2026

County government

County government
The official website of Yancey County.
yanceycountync.gov

See your own lot on these maps

Open Yancey County on Parcel Chart's free map and click your parcel. Save it with a free account; the full record of your place (site map, projects, documents) is Pro, in early access.

Open the free map no sign-in Pro early access

Questions

Common questions about Yancey County

When was Yancey County founded?: Yancey County was founded in 1834, formed from Buncombe County and Burke County, and named after Bartlett Yancey.
What is the county seat of Yancey County?: The county seat of Yancey County is Burnsville.
Is there an online parcel map for Yancey County?: Yes. Yancey County publishes a parcel map of 17,230 parcels, rated good enough here. You can click any parcel on it in Parcel Chart's free map, no sign-in needed.
Has Yancey County's boundary or name changed?: Yancey County was created in 1834 from Buncombe County and Burke County. Since then the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries records 7 later changes, chiefly involving Mitchell County, Buncombe County and Madison County.
Is my lot in a flood zone?: We do not have flood maps for Yancey County yet. Look up the address on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, which shows the effective flood map for any lot.

Nearby