Download GIS Data
For your convenience, many of the map files (shapefiles) that we use in our daily work are offered here as a free download. Users are free to utilize this data as they wish with the understanding that Johnston County is not legally responsible for the information represented in these files. The coordinate system of these shapefiles is North Carolina State Plane. The units are feet, and the datum is NAD83.
This data is intended for experienced users who have GIS software. If you simply wish to view/query/print our maps, please use our live internet mapping application, MapClick.
ArcExplorer, a free shapefile viewer, can be downloaded by clicking here.
QGIS, a free shapefile viewer plus create edit and publish, can be downloaded by clicking here.
AUTOCAD USERS: AutoCad will not recognize the GIS shapefiles that are downloadable from this page. However, if you have either Autodesk Land Desktop or AutoCad Map, you can import the files in the following manner:
- From the 'Map' pull down menu select 'Tools'.
- Click on 'Import'.
- In the dialog box, pick 'ESRI Shape' and choose the file you wish to open. Select the defaults for the remaining questions.
Most of the shapefiles are updated daily with the exception of some that are downloaded only when there has been a change. For those that are daily it will be listed beside the download. Download instructions are located at the bottom of this page.
How to Download the Files
1)Simply click on the file to download the zip file or
2)Right-click on the filename and select "Save link as..."
3) Save the file to your desktop. Make sure you know where the file is being saved so you can retrieve it easily.
4) Use WinZip to extract the shapefile. If you do not have WinZip, you can obtain an evaluation copy from here .
Files Updated Daily
| Shapefile | File Size | Description |
| Address Points | 1.49MB | Address Points data including Street Prefix, Name, Type, Suffix community, etc. Metadata  *Updated Daily* |
| Centerlines | 1.49MB | Road lines accompanied by various attribute data including Street Prefix, Name, Type, Suffix, To and From address ranges, etc. Metadata *Updated Daily* |
| City Limits | 140KB | City Limits as defined by municipalities in Johnston County. Metadata *Updated Daily* |
| Fire Districts | 298KB | Polygon shapefile delineating fire districts in Johnston County. Metadata *Updated Daily* |
| Rescue Districts | 368KB | Polygon shapefile delineating rescue districts in Johnston County. Metadata *Updated Daily* |
| Schools and School Districts | 1.38MB | Point file showing school sites in Johnston County. Includes names of schools. Also three other files showing the elementary, middle, and high school districts. Metadata *Updated Daily* |
| Subdivisions | 27KB | This file depicts each subdivision with a single point and the full name of the subdivision. Metadata *Updated Daily* |
| Town Planning Boundaries | 37KB | Polygons showing Extra-Territorial-Jurisdictions (ETJ) for all municipalities in Johnston County. Metadata *Updated Daily* |
| Tax Parcels | 14.1MB | This polygon file includes all current property in Johnston County, along with various attributes such as parcel number, ncpin, mapsheet, owner, mailing address, Deed book and page, acreage, and market value. Metadata *Updated Daily* |
| Voting Districts | 706KB | Voting district boundaries in Johnston County. Metadata *Updated Daily* |
| Zoning - County | 3.3MB | This file shows the zoning districts in Johnston County. ***Please check with Johnston County Planning Department (919-989-5150) to ensure the zoning listed on individual parcels in the county reflects the most recent data!*** To see the zoning in the County in its entirety, please also download Zoning - IHI Districts, and Zoning - Municipal Transition DistrictsThese two files contain overlay zoning, which add additional rules to certain zoned areas.. A list of zoning district definitions can be found here. Metadata *Updated Daily* |
| Town Zoning | 19KB | This layer shows the town zoning in Johnston County. Metadata *Updated Daily* |
| Zoning - IHI Overlay Districts | 19KB | This layer shows the IHI overlay districts in Johnston County. This zoning adds additional rules to the underlying zoning. Metadata *Updated Daily* |
| Zoning - GB_HCO Wilson's Mills General Business Highway Corridor Overlay |
2.05KB | This layer shows the GB-HCO overlay district in Wilson's Mills. This zoning adds additional rules to the underlying zoning. Metadata *Updated Daily* |
Historical Files and Files updated as changes warrant
| Shapefile | File Size | Description |
| Historical Aerial Photos | 0MB | Clicking on this link will take you to a web application where you can download the aerial photos by mapsheet. These aerial photos are in pdf format. You will need Adobe reader. These aerial photos were provided by Johnston County Soil and Water Conservation District. If you are interested in USDA historical aerial photos click the following link to find out more information USDA Historic Aerial Photos Information Metadata |
| Aerial Photography 2021 Orthophotos | 275MB | All Orthos were flown early (January - April) in their respective year. Clicking on this link will take you to a map of Johnston County where you can download the 2021 orthos by mapsheet. Click HERE if you wish to download a 2021 mosaic of the entire county please. However, please be aware that this mosaic file is quite large so the download time will be quite lengthy. Metadata |
| 2001 Color Aerial Photos | 275MB | This color aerial of Johnston County was flown in February, 2001. It is in Mr. Sid format. It has a scale of 1:400 and a 4 foot pixel size. This is a very large file. Attempt to download only if you have a high speed internet connection. Metadata |
| Airport Footprint | 1.06MB | This line file shows Johnston County Airport footprint. Metadata |
| Building Footprints | 1.06MB | This polygon shapefile shows Johnston County 2018 Building footprints. These footprints were extracted from Microsoft's most recent data of this region. |
| Cell Towers | 3.62KB | This is a point file of telecommunication towers in Johnston County. Metadata |
| 2020 Census Blocks and Tracts | 1.06MB | This polygon shapefile contains census blocks and tracts information for Johnston County (Population, ethnicity, etc). Metadata |
| Contours - 10ft | 33.9MB | 10 foot elevation contours - the original source for this data was the USGS. Metadata |
| Contours - 2ft | 35.8MB | 2 foot elevation contours - the original source for this data was the NCDOT. Metadata |
| County boundary | 140KB | County Boundary as defined by municipalities in Johnston County. Metadata |
| 2018 Flood Zones | 6.42MB | The new flood data was adopted by Johnston County June 20,2018. This file shows the Floodway, the 100 Year Flood and 500 Year Flood polygons. Metadata |
| Highway 70 Bypass | 23KB | This line file was digitized from NCDOT information. Please be aware that lines may change depending on issues encountered during planning and construction. Construction is slated to begin in the summer of 2005 and is expected to last three years. Please contact NCDOT (919-733-2520) for additional information. Metadata |
| Hydrology | 2.61MB | Line file depicting water features in Johnston County. Metadata |
| Land Cover | 13.5MB | Polygon file defining the landcover in Johnston County. Shows forested, cleared, marsh, and water areas. This data was digitized from 2001 aerial photography. Metadata |
| Major Roads | 75.4KB | Line file showing major roads in Johnston County including SR1001, SR1002, SR1003, SR1006, SR1007, SR1008, SR1009, SR1010, SR1934, NC210, NC222, NC231, NC242, NC264, NC27,US301, NC39, I40, NC42, NC50, NC55, US70, US701, I95, and NC96. Metadata |
| Mobile Home Parks | 5.71KB | Point file showing mobile home parks. Attribute information includes NCPIN, Mobile Home Park name, number of lots, Owner, and Lat/Long. Metadata |
| Railroads | 4.23KB | Line file showing railways in Johnston County. Metadata |
| Soils | 39.5MB | Polygon file showing a soil survey in Johnston County. This file includes soil name abbreviations. Metadata |
| Tax Map Index | 46KB | Johnston County, for mapping purposes, is divided into 264 sections. Each of these sections is 10,000x10,000 feet. This file shows an index and corresponding map number of these mapsheets. Metadata |
| 2018 Tax Parcels | 14.6MB | This polygon file includes all 2018 property (before tax revaluation) in Johnston County, along with various attributes such as parcel number, ncpin, mapsheet, owner, mailing address, Deed book and page, acreage, and market value. Metadata |
| 2010 Tax Parcels | 14.6MB | This polygon file includes all 2010 property (before tax revaluation) in Johnston County, along with various attributes such as parcel number, ncpin, mapsheet, owner, mailing address, Deed book and page, acreage, and market value. Metadata |
| 2002 Tax Parcels | 18.5MB | This polygon file includes all 2002 property (before tax revaluation) in Johnston County, along with various attributes such as parcel number, ncpin, mapsheet, owner, mailing address, Deed book and page, acreage, and market value. Metadata |
| Tax Assessment Attributes | 3.72MB | This is a download for JUST the tax assessment attributes. If you wish both the map and the attributes together, please download the Tax Parcels layer above. If the parcel contains a site address it will appear at the end of each row in the spreadsheet. Metadata *Updated Monthly* |
| Townships | 592KB | Polygons and accompanying names of all townships in Johnston County. Metadata |
| Water Districts | 706KB | Water Districts in Johnston County. Metadata |
| Voluntary Agriculture Districts | 706KB | Voluntary Agriculture Districts in Johnston County. Metadata |
| Weather Data | 706KB | Weather Data in Johnston County. Click here for additional information,updates to the weather information or additional shapefiles and metadata. |
| Zip Codes | 600KB | This file shows the zip code boundaries in Johnston County. Metadata |
| Municipal Transition Districts |
124KB | This layer shows the Municipal Transition Districts in Johnston County. These districts add additional rules to the underlying zoning. Metadata |
Page last updated: June 12, 2024