Reviewed and updated October 9, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. The arrest counts are the ones each agency reported to the FBI, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026. The jail figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data. Every office link was opened and checked against the office's own site between September 23, 2026 and October 2, 2026.
Caldwell County, North Carolina, has about 81,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Caldwell County is held at the county jail, run by the Caldwell County Sheriff's Office, and the jail's record of each person held is a public record. This guide says where to look for someone in custody, what the jail holds and who books people into it.
This guide covers the search, the jail, who books people, state prison and common questions.
Related guides: Caldwell County public records, Caldwell County arrest records, Caldwell County warrants, Caldwell County criminal records, Caldwell County court records, North Carolina arrest records and North Carolina inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Caldwell County
The county jail, run by the Caldwell County Sheriff's Office, holds everyone kept in custody after an arrest in Caldwell County, from every agency.
SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Caldwell County Sheriff's Office at caldwellcountync.org/280/Detention (page title: Detention | Caldwell County, NC), phone 828-759-3502, 224 S Dawson Street Raleigh, NC 27601, Monday through Friday from 8 am until 7 pm, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on October 2, 2026.
That page is the office's jail information page rather than a roster, so a search for a particular person goes through the office at 828-759-3502.
The Caldwell County Jail by the Numbers
On an average day in 2024 the jail held about 170 people, down from about 200 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2019, the last year with a capacity figure, was 185 beds, and it ran at 111 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Caldwell County has about 81,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 21 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Caldwell County Jail
The Caldwell County Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for Lenoir, Granite Falls and Hudson make the arrests that end in a booking in Caldwell County.
The Rhodhiss Police Department, the Blowing Rock Police Department and the Hickory Police Department are each listed by the FBI across several counties including Caldwell County, so their arrests are not broken out for Caldwell County here.
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were the Caldwell County Sheriff's Office's 953 for 2025, Lenoir's 642 for 2025 and Granite Falls's 263 for 2025.
Together, the four agencies in Caldwell County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 2,014 arrests to the FBI that year. Those kept in custody were booked into the county jail; a person cited and released at the scene was not.
The counts, agency by agency and year by year, are in Caldwell County arrest records.
From the Jail to State Prison
A sentence of more than a year is served in state prison, not the jail; the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction lists its inmates at dac.nc.gov/dac-services/criminal-offender-searches.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Caldwell County?
Ask the Caldwell County Sheriff's Office at 828-759-3502; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at caldwellcountync.org/280/Detention.
How many people are in the Caldwell County jail?
About 170 on an average day in 2024, the latest year in the Vera Institute's jail data, against a rated capacity of 185 beds.
What is the phone number for the Caldwell County jail?
828-759-3502, the number on the page of the Caldwell County Sheriff's Office SearchSystems verified.
Where do people sentenced to prison in Caldwell County go?
To a facility of the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction; its inmate locator is at dac.nc.gov.
Is this the official Caldwell County website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.