[4] Over the following decades the county developed as a society mostly made up of smallholding white farmers, though Yadkin was also home to several large landowners and slaveholders (and their slaves), some working professionals, and a few free blacks and Native Americans.

[6] At the time of its creation, the county had 9,808 residents, of whom 8,664 were white, 86 were free persons of color, and 1,508 were enslaved blacks.

By the end of the decade, though it was still mostly rural and dominated by farming, the county hosted several grist mills, stores, distilleries, and a tobacco factory.

[9] Politically, the county was home to many Whigs and its resident favored John Bell of the Constitutional Union Party during the 1860 United States presidential election.

Yadkin voters overwhelmingly rejected a vote to hold a state convention to consider secession.

[13] Men from Yadkin County served during the ensuing American Civil War in the Confederate States Army.

[17][18] After the war, Yadkin became politically dominated by the Republican Party, with many locals being attracted to it for its opposition to slavery, support for central national government, and push for disbursing money to fund infrastructure improvements.

As the company expanded over the following decades, it became the leading industrial employer the county and provided additional economic support through tax revenue and philanthropy to the area.

National declines in the textiles industry in the late 1990s and early 2000s led the company to shrink its local presence.

[3] Yadkin County is located in the Piedmont region of North Carolina and in the northwestern portion of state, close to the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Yadkin County is governed by a five-member board of commissioners who are elected at-large to serve staggered two- and four-year terms.

[36] Yadkin County is a member of the Northwest Piedmont Council of Governments, a regional planning association.

[40] Yadkin County began supporting the Republican Party in the aftermath of the American Civil War.

[42] Like some its neighboring counties, Yadkin's support for Republicans continued while the state was politically dominated by Democrats from the 1870s into the latter part of the 20th century.

[44] Unifi Manufacturing, a textile company, is the largest private employer in Yadkin County and operates a large recycled plastics polymer plant in Yadkinville.

North Carolina Highway 67 is another popular artery that links the northern part of the county with Jonesville-Elkin and Winston-Salem.

Two private airports are located in the county, Swan Creek near Jonesville and Lone Hickory near Yadkinville.

Yadkin Valley Economic Development District Inc. (YVEDDI), a community action agency based in Boonville, operates a multi-county rural public transportation system.

The eight elementary schools are Boonville, Courtney, East Bend, Fall Creek, Forbush, Jonesville, West Yadkin and Yadkinville.

Yadkin County is also home to the second North Carolina AVA, the Swan Creek Wine Region.