North Carolina is a state on the Atlantic coast in the eastern
United States of America. It borders
South Carolina and
Georgia
to the south, Tennessee to the west, and
Virginia to the north.
Due to its geographical location, the state can be divided into
three climatic zones, the temperate coastal region in the east,
the Piedmont Plateau and the cooler mountainous region of the
Appalachian Mountains. The flora and fauna is diverse, ranging
from the shallow-rooted vegetation of the coast and the American
alligators that live there, to the coniferous forests inhabited
by black bears and white-tailed deer in the west.
Today's
state goes back to a crown colony founded in 1663 and is named
after the English King Charles I. In 1776, North Carolina was
one of the Thirteen Colonies that seceded from the mother
country in the American Declaration of Independence, making it
one of the founding states of the United States. Raleigh has
been the state capital since 1792 and the city was named in
honor of the discoverer of the North Carolina coast, Sir Walter
Raleigh. During the American Civil War from 1861 to 1865, North
Carolina seceded from the United States and joined the
Confederate States of America. It was readmitted to the United
States in 1868 in the post-war Reconstruction process. Then the
transformation from an agricultural state to an industrial
region began, which lasted until the first half of the 20th
century. After the New Deal in the 1930s, North Carolina became
a center of American finance and research and development in
various high-technology industries.
The state is
characterized by steady population growth and is one of the ten
most populous states in the country. As of July 2009, the
state's population was estimated at 9,380,884 people, just over
a fifth of the residents are of African American descent, eight
tribes of indigenous peoples (Native American Indians) live
within the state lines. North Carolina is part of the Bible Belt
(German "Bible Belt"), the population is mostly Protestant.
Originally, North Carolina belonged to the heartland of the
Democrats; in the second half of the 20th century, the general
political orientation shifted in favor of the Republicans. It
was not until the 2008 presidential election that a democratic
candidate was able to win the state back after 30 years.
North Carolina is part of the greater cultural region of the
southern states, both the regional music, the typical cuisine
and the traditional open-air theater are shaped by it, while
different influences can be found in the architecture of the
state. A number of museums and, in particular, areas and
individual buildings that are protected as nature and monuments
are of supra-regional importance. The Great Smoky Mountains
National Park, the most visited national park in the United
States, draws a large portion of North Carolina's visitors.
Another attraction is the annual NASCAR auto races and
intercollegiate collegiate sports competitions.
Mountains
Nestled in the western part of North Carolina, this
region encompasses the Appalachian Mountains, featuring the tallest
peaks east of the Mississippi River, such as Mount Mitchell at 6,684
feet. It includes the renowned Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the
most visited national park in the U.S., offering diverse hiking trails,
wildlife viewing, and stunning vistas; the iconic Blue Ridge Parkway, a
469-mile scenic drive with overlooks, tunnels, and access to outdoor
activities like biking and fishing; and charming, lively towns like
Asheville, celebrated for its vibrant arts scene, historic Biltmore
Estate, and booming craft brewery culture, and Boone, a university town
with Appalachian State University, proximity to the Appalachian Trail,
and winter sports opportunities including skiing at nearby resorts.
Piedmont
Spanning the central portion of the state, the Piedmont
is a hilly plateau characterized by rolling farmlands, red clay soils,
and rapid urban growth, transforming rural areas into bustling suburbs.
Key highlights include Charlotte, the largest city and a major financial
powerhouse often called the "Wall Street of the South," also famed as
the epicenter of NASCAR with the NASCAR Hall of Fame and Charlotte Motor
Speedway hosting races; the innovative Research Triangle area of
Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill, a leading hub for high-tech research,
biotechnology, and education anchored by prestigious institutions like
Duke University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and
North Carolina State University, blending quaint college-town vibes with
dynamic urban energy; and the Piedmont Triad comprising Greensboro,
Winston-Salem, and High Point, evoking classic Southern charm through
historic sites, tobacco heritage, and world-class barbecue traditions,
including events like the Lexington Barbecue Festival.
Coastal
Plain
Covering the eastern expanse of North Carolina and making up
about 45% of the state's land, this flat, sandy region is renowned for
its extensive coastline and ideal soils for agriculture like tobacco,
cotton, and melons. Visitors can enjoy miles of serene, uncrowded
beaches along the Outer Banks—a chain of barrier islands known as the
"Graveyard of the Atlantic" for its history of shipwrecks and featuring
lighthouses, wild horses, and activities like kiteboarding—and the
Crystal Coast, with family-friendly spots for fishing, boating, and
eco-tours. Aviation enthusiasts flock to Kitty Hawk for its Wright
Brothers National Memorial, marking the site of the first powered flight
in 1903; the historic port city of Wilmington boasts Spanish moss-draped
live oaks, a riverfront boardwalk, antebellum architecture, and a
vibrant film industry nicknamed "Wilmywood" due to productions like
"Dawson's Creek" and "Iron Man 3"; the picturesque New Bern offers
colonial history as one of the state's oldest towns, the Tryon Palace,
and its claim as the birthplace of Pepsi-Cola; while the inner coastal
areas host significant military presence, including Marine Corps Base
Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, one of the largest Marine bases in the
world.
Raleigh - As the vibrant capital of North Carolina, founded in 1792
and nicknamed the "City of Oaks" for its lush tree canopy, Raleigh is
home to a wealth of cultural institutions and attractions. With a
population of approximately 482,295, it's renowned as the "Smithsonian
of the South" thanks to its impressive array of free museums, such as
the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences and the North Carolina
Museum of Art. The city offers diverse experiences including art
exhibits, live music, historical sites, sports events, family-friendly
activities, shopping, and outdoor adventures like exploring its parks
and trails.
Asheville - Nestled in the mountains, this
picturesque and lively city boasts stunning scenery, a thriving arts
scene, numerous cultural venues, a booming microbrewery industry, and a
progressive vibe. It's famous for attractions like the Biltmore Estate,
the largest privately owned home in the U.S., the North Carolina
Arboretum, and the Folk Art Center. Asheville is also a hub for outdoor
enthusiasts with access to the Blue Ridge Mountains, hiking trails, and
wineries in surrounding Buncombe County, which is known as North
Carolina's wine country with over 15 nearby vineyards. The city has a
rich history, including secret tunnels and a role in Prohibition-era
stories.
Chapel Hill - Recognized as one of the top college towns
in the nation, Chapel Hill features exciting college basketball, lively
music scenes, bustling nightlife, acclaimed dining options, and the
stunning, magnolia-adorned campus of the University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill, the oldest public university in the U.S. Key attractions
include the Ackland Art Museum, Carolina Basketball Museum, Coker
Arboretum, and Spring Haven Farm. The area buzzes with visual and
performing arts through Carolina Performing Arts, craft breweries,
shopping districts, and outdoor spots like the Carolina Community Garden
and Kenan Football Stadium, making it a cultural and educational
hotspot.
'
Charlotte - The state's most populous city, Charlotte
stands out for its robust banking and financial industry, professional
sports teams like the Carolina Panthers (NFL) and Charlotte Hornets
(NBA), NASCAR racing heritage, and additional pro sports. As a major
production hub with over 400 film and TV credits, it features top
attractions such as the NASCAR Hall of Fame, Billy Graham Library,
Carowinds amusement park with the world's tallest giga coaster, and the
U.S. National Whitewater Center. Known for its tree-lined streets,
friendly atmosphere, cultural offerings, outdoor recreation, and diverse
food scene, Charlotte blends urban energy with Southern charm.
Durham - Hosting Duke University, frequently hailed as the premier
university in the South, Durham is celebrated for its legendary
basketball program, the beautiful Sarah P. Duke Gardens, a variety of
esteemed eateries and breweries, and a rejuvenated downtown area in the
former tobacco warehouses. Nicknamed the "Bull City" and "City of
Medicine," it has a population of about 226,801 and is ranked as one of
the best places to live in North Carolina. Attractions include the
Museum of Life + Science, American Tobacco Campus, Carolina Theatre, and
the Nasher Museum of Art, with a strong emphasis on innovation, history,
and free sites like Duke Gardens.
Greensboro - This city is
distinguished by its six colleges and universities, charming historic
districts, significant civil rights legacy, and venues for seasonal
sports events. It's known for abundant green spaces, outdoor recreation
like hiking and biking, a thriving arts community, and family-friendly
spots such as the Greensboro Science Center, International Civil Rights
Museum, and Wet 'n Wild Emerald Pointe Water Park. Other highlights
include the Bog Garden, Guilford Courthouse National Military Park,
Greensboro History Museum, and Grasshoppers baseball games, reflecting
its role in American history, including the famous Woolworth's sit-in
that sparked the civil rights movement.
New Bern - With the motto
"North Carolina begins here," this town served as the original state
capital and is the second-oldest in North Carolina, featuring sites like
the North Carolina History Center at Tryon Palace, Firemen's Museum, and
the birthplace of Pepsi-Cola. Regarded as one of the most scenic cities
on the East Coast, it offers attractions such as Bear Town Bears
sculptures, Croatan National Forest, New Bern Battlefield Park, and
guided tours of its historic downtown. The vibrant core includes
exceptional restaurants, boutiques, museums, and outdoor activities,
blending colonial history with natural beauty along the Neuse and Trent
rivers.
Wilmington - A historic colonial port city and the
primary coastal destination in the state, Wilmington is ideal for beach
enthusiasts and houses EUE/Screen Gems Studios, a major film production
site with over 400 credits. Key attractions include the Battleship North
Carolina, Airlie Gardens with its 500-year-old live oak and Butterfly
House, the scenic Riverwalk, Bellamy Mansion, and nearby beaches. It
features a vibrant arts scene, Victorian-era mansions, Civil War forts,
and a mix of history, entertainment, and outdoor pursuits along the Cape
Fear River, making it a hub for both relaxation and adventure.
Winston-Salem - A medium-sized city renowned for its historic Moravian
settlement at Old Salem, the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company legacy, Wake
Forest University, and the origin of Krispy Kreme doughnuts. It offers
attractions like the Reynolda House Museum of American Art, Kaleideum
children's museum, Tanglewood Park for seasonal activities including
golf and festivals, and centuries-old gardens. With a strong historical
foundation, including the largest Moravian God's Acre cemetery in North
Carolina, the city combines arts, education, outdoor recreation like
hiking at Stone Mountain State Park, and a lively downtown scene for
dining and events.
location and extent
North Carolina is located on the southeast
coast of the United States, bordering the states of South Carolina and
Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west, and Virginia to the north.
To the east is the Atlantic. The northern border of the state runs at
latitudes from 36°35′10″ in the west to 36°32′27″ in the east. The
western border runs along the ridge of the Appalachian Mountains. The
southernmost point of the state is at 33°50′57″ north latitude; its
north-south extension measures 300.3 kilometers, the west-east extension
between 75°27′15″ and 84°19′01″ west longitude is 807.4 kilometers. The
state covers an area of 139,389 square kilometers, of which 125,919
square kilometers are land area, slightly larger than Greece.
regions
North Carolina can be divided geographically and geologically
into three main parts from east to west: the coastal plain on the
Atlantic, the Piedmont plateau in the hinterland and the mountainous
region of the Appalachia.
About two-thirds of the state is
occupied by the Atlantic coastal plain. The soils of the very flat plain
are sandy and are covered by dense forests consisting mostly of pine and
other evergreen trees. The soils are particularly suitable for growing
tobacco, soya, melons and cotton. This region, which includes the Inner
Banks, is North Carolina's most rural, with few major cities and towns.
Inland are the Outer Banks, a chain of narrow and variable dune islands
that form a barrier between the Atlantic and the inland waterways. The
Outer Banks enclose the two largest lagoons in the United States,
Albemarle Sound to the north and Pamlico Sound to the south, which are
larger than the state of Connecticut. North Carolina's coast lacks a
suitable natural harbor, which is why a major seaport such as Charleston
in South Carolina or Savannah in Georgia never developed. The state's
only major port, Wilmington, is about 15 miles inland on the Cape Fear
River. The Coastal Plain is the largest and at the same time youngest
geological section of the state. It consists mainly of sedimentary rock,
mostly sand and clay, but limestone is also found in the south of the
coastal plain. The state's most economically important mineral,
fertilizer-grade phosphate, is mined in this region. The coastal plain
is bounded by the three-million-year-old shoreline, also known as the
fall zone, 90 meters above sea level; where the Piedmont Plateau drops
relatively steeply to the coastal region, and the state's Appalachian
rivers feature rapids and waterfalls here.
The Piedmont region,
in the center of the state, is North Carolina's most urbanized and
densely populated region. The Piedmont is a hilly landscape, often
broken by smaller foothills and river-carved valleys, formed from the
almost completely eroded remains of higher mountains. The geological
structures are shaped by the Inner Piedmont Belt, ranging in age from
750 to 500 million years, the Kings Mountain Belt, Milton Belt,
Charlotte Belt, Carolina Slate Belt, Raleigh Belt, and the Eastern Slate
Belt, all ranging in age from 650 to 300 have millions of years. Also
part of the Piedmont are the Triassic Basins, which are much younger at
200 to 190 million years. The first gold discovery in the USA was
documented in the Carolina Slate Belt in 1799 and mines were operated to
extract gold at the beginning of the 19th century. Today, in addition to
lithium and clay, granite, gneiss and other materials for the
construction industry are mainly mined in this region. The elevation of
the Piedmont ranges from about 90 meters in the east to 300 meters above
sea level in the west. The soils consist mainly of thin stony layers
with a clay base; only on the eastern edge of the plateau are sandy
hills that mark a former coastline with its dunes and beaches. Peaches
and melons, for which the region is known, are mainly grown on the
well-drained soil. Due to the rapid urbanization of the countryside
since the 1970s, agriculture has been and is being largely displaced and
giving way to a suburban structure.
The Appalachian mountain
range forms the western border of the state. The mountains in North
Carolina can be divided into four mountain ranges. The Blue Ridge
Mountains are the largest mountain range and run in a sinuous line
through the west of the state with occasional high outcroppings over the
surrounding terrain; Mount Mitchell is the highest point in the state at
2037 m and also the highest point in the United States east of the Rocky
Mountains. The Great Smoky Mountains, also known as the Smokies, form
the western border of the state and are the second highest mountain
range in North Carolina. The oldest rock, around one and a half billion
years old, is found in the west of the state. The belt, referred to as
the Blue Ridge Belt, which includes the smaller sections of the Murphy
Belt and Grandfather Mountain Window, consists of igneous, sedimentary
and metamorphic rocks containing feldspar, mica and quartz. The Brushy
Mountains are significantly smaller and lower, their highest peak being
Pores Knob. It is 817 meters above sea level. The Uwharrie Mountains are
the easternmost, oldest and lowest mountain range in North Carolina. The
highest peak of this mountain range is the High Rock Mountain with less
than 350 meters above sea level. Between the mountains lie fertile
valleys, which are criss-crossed with numerous rivers and streams. The
mountains themselves are covered with lush forests, only a few peaks are
bare with prairie-like vegetation. Although agriculture still plays an
important role in this region, tourism is becoming increasingly
important and has become the most important economic sector in the
mountain region.
bodies of water
The river systems of North
Carolina can essentially be divided into two groups. The main eastern
watershed of North America runs along the Appalachian Ridge. Only the
rivers in the extreme west of the state drain via the Mississippi to the
Gulf of Mexico, the rivers that rise on the eastern flank of the
mountains empty into the Atlantic. The latter are further subdivided
according to their mouth, which is either on the state territory of
North or South Carolina. The separation between the river systems that
flow into the Atlantic is caused by an uplift that stretches from the
foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in a southeasterly direction
almost to the port city of Wilmington along the Virginia border.
The Catawba River and Yadkin River flow through about 30 counties in the
state with their tributaries. They fan out across the country, draining
much of the Piedmont before flowing across the border into South
Carolina and hitting the coast there. Chowan, Roanoke, Tar, Neuse, and
Cape Fear Rivers flow into North Carolina and were important trade
routes before the railroads were built. Only one of the rivers flows
directly into the sea, the others fan out in the coastal plain and flow
into the Sounds. These lagoons and the rivers that flow into them create
a network of waterways some 1800 kilometers long, suitable for steam and
sailing navigation.
The banks of the rivers are lined with
poplar, willow and alder forests in the upper reaches and forests with
bald cypresses in the lower reaches. In their course from the high
plateaus to the lowlands, they overcome height differences of several
hundred meters through rapids and waterfalls. In the colonial past,
cotton mills and other businesses such as sawmills often used this
gradient and thus favored the rise of many cities and towns. The sounds
and shallower rivers in the low-lying coastal plain provide rich fish
stocks and waterfowl colonies.
Smaller natural lakes are found
throughout North Carolina; However, the damming of the rivers by energy
supply companies has also resulted in larger reservoirs and reservoirs,
which, in addition to flood control and energy generation, also serve as
tourist destinations, local recreation areas and hunting and fishing
regions. A larger lake area, for example, was created by the backwater
of the Yadkin River at the foothills of the Uwharrie Mountains: the
Uwharrie Lakes. The largest of these lakes is High Rock Lake. The
largest man-made lake in North Carolina is Lake Norman, covering 129
square kilometers, a reservoir on the Catawba River on whose shores Lake
Norman State Park was created.
Most of the state has a warm temperate rainy climate; except for the
higher elevations in the Appalachian Mountains, which are considered
part of the fully humid boreal climate zone. The mountains often serve
as the Piedmont's "shield," keeping low temperatures and storms out of
the Midwest. The average daily temperature in most areas of the state is
around 32°C in July. In January, the average temperature is 10 °C.
The coastal plain is climatically influenced by the Atlantic Ocean,
which produces mild winters and moderately warm summers. The daily high
on the coast is 31°C in summer, while winter temperatures rarely drop
below 4°C. The average daily maximum temperature in the winter months is
around 15 °C in the coastal plain, temperatures below freezing are
extremely rare. About two centimeters of snow falls annually on the
coastal plain, and many winters are completely free of snow and ice. In
the Piedmont, on the other hand, the summers are warmer and the winters
colder than in the coastal region. Daily maximum temperatures average
over 32°C in summer, but rarely rise above 37°C. In winter, the daytime
temperatures average around 10 °C and often fall below freezing at
night. The annual snowfall is between 7 and 20 centimeters. Winter
weather in the Piedmont is known for sleet and freezing rain, which in
some storms can be severe enough to collapse trees and power lines under
the load. The annual rainfall and humidity in the Piedmont are lower
than on the coast or in the mountains, about 1000 liters per square
meter of precipitation are measured annually. The coolest area of North
Carolina is the Appalachian Mountains; there the temperature rarely
rises above 26 °C in summer. The average daily temperatures in winter
are between −1 °C and 5 °C, often dropping below −9 °C. It falls between
36 and 51 centimeters of snow per year, usually more in the higher
regions.
Because of its exposed location on the Atlantic coast in
the extreme southeast, North Carolina is hit by a hurricane on average
once a decade, with further tropical storms hitting the state about
every three to four years. In some years, North Carolina may experience
repeated hurricanes and other tropical storms, or experience the effects
of the coastal plain's foothills of these storms. Only the states of
Florida, Texas and Louisiana are hit by hurricanes more frequently than
North Carolina. Thunderstorms are recorded an average of 50 days per
year, some severe enough to cause hail and hurricane-force gusts.
Although most hurricanes cause damage in the country's coastal regions,
they can reach inland and cause great destruction there. On an annual
average, North Carolina experiences fewer than 20 tornadoes, most of
which are caused by hurricanes or coastal plain tropical storms.
Tornadoes resulting from thunderstorms occur in the eastern parts of the
state, while the western Piedmont is often sheltered from such storms by
the mountains. Another weather phenomenon called Cold Air Damming, the
accumulation of cold air masses, occasionally takes place in the west of
the state. This can weaken the storms, but also leads to heavy freezing
rain in winter.
The fauna and flora of the state offers a very diverse picture,
ranging from the sparse and shallow-rooted vegetation of the coastal
region and the American alligators that live there, to the coniferous
forests inhabited by bears and white-tailed deer in the Appalachian
Mountains. The typical plants and animals of the southeast are
represented in the lowlands, while species more common in the north are
found in the higher elevations. A total of around 300 tree species and
subspecies and around 3000 different flowering plants were counted. Many
of North Carolina's plant and animal species are classified as
endangered, in part because they are found in the state, but North
Carolina is also home to nationally endangered species, such as various
whale species and the Blue Ridge goldenrod.
In the coastal
region, the marsh grass Spartina patens and the grass Distichlis spicata
settle in the salt marshes and the tall grass Uniola paniculata (sea
oats) grows on coastal dunes. Trees are primarily Virginian cedar and
pine, but bald cypress, swamp magnolia and tupelo trees also find good
growing conditions in the region's blackwater swamps. The Venus flytrap
is found worldwide only in the Pocosin bogs around Wilmington. In
addition to a variety of saltwater and freshwater fish, oysters, sea
turtles, and the protected American alligators live in the state's
rivers, lakes, and shoreline. A special feature of the Outer Banks are
the bank ponies, which live semi-wild on the island chain.
In the
Piedmont, the trees can have deeper roots, the forests are dominated by
various oak and hickory species, formerly also by American chestnut.
Various types of poplar, birch, linden, horse chestnut and maple grow
there, as well as Carolina hemlock and various types of orchids. In
addition to raccoons and squirrels, common animal species include
opossums, some endangered species of bats and beavers. The rivers and
lakes are populated by perch, catfish and other fish, and there are also
a large number of different water birds, especially ducks and geese.
Towards the mountains, the vegetation changes into coniferous
forests, and here the habitats of the animals sometimes overlap with the
Piedmont. Gray wolves and mountain lions are already extinct, but
bobcats are found in the forests of North Carolina. Black bears also
live in the Great Smoky Mountains area and are now a tourist attraction.
Introduced in the 19th century, wild boar are common, as are
white-tailed deer. Trout and perch live in the clear rivers of the
mountains.
Native American settlement in North Carolina dates back to the
Paleo-Native American era in the 10th millennium BC. back.
Hunter-gatherers probably first lived in the Piedmont. From the Archaic
period, which is about 7500 to 1000 BC. There are projectile tips
typical of the area, which are referred to as Hardaway after a locality
in the Uwharrie Mountains. It is the most important find site on the
east coast because it was inhabited for several thousand years and was
undisturbed until it was excavated. The post-glacial tundra landscape
gave way to dense forests, the way of life changed insofar as the
inhabitants no longer followed the caribou herds, but increasingly
preferred large tail areas. Nuts and other vegetables and fish made up
an increasing proportion of the diet, and the population grew. Stone
vessels and wooden tools were traded items, vast quantities of rhyolite
were quarried from Morrow Mountain and traded within 75,000 km²;
eventually a kind of horticulture developed in which the pumpkin played
a central role. Added acorns and hickory nuts. Between 6000 and 3000 BC
An extremely warm climate prevailed, which enabled a strong population
growth, the territories of the individual tribes shrank dramatically,
more and more villages arose on the rivers, where before 3000 BC.
horticulture was increasingly practiced. Hunting was only practiced
seasonally, long-distance trade brought shells from the Gulf of Mexico
and copper from the Great Lakes to the area, and an extensive network of
trails developed.
This culture changed around 1000 BC. through
the Woodland and Mississippi cultures, with great continuity up to about
1000 AD. Of particular importance was the incipient use of pottery,
known as Swannanoa ware, although it is unclear whether groups migrated
or whether local groups adopted this technique. In any case, the
historical tribes that the first Europeans encountered can be traced
back to the groups now settled. From about 300 B.C. the Pigeon is dated
to AD 200, this phase was followed by the Connestee until about AD 600.
Strong influences came from the Mississippi. These vast areas were
named the Hopewell Interaction Sphere after the Hopewell culture. North
Carolina was culturally divided as a result. While the culture known as
the Late Woodland prevailed in the coastal area and in the northern
Piedmont from around 1000 AD, which was linked to that of its
predecessors and apparently had an egalitarian political and social
structure, the mountain zones and the southern Piedmont were
characterized by a pronounced stratification of society. A probably
hereditary ruling class used the long-distance trade networks to procure
luxury goods such as shells or rare stones. Mica was added as a new
commodity. The Mounds Nununyi and Town Creek trace back to these
influences and show a changed relationship to death. The flat-topped
Town Creek Indian Mound is the most visited archaeological site in North
Carolina. It contains a mound and sacred as well as stately buildings.
It is a remnant of a culture that flourished around 950-1400 AD and is
referred to as the Pee Dee (not after the tribe of the same name, but
after the river there). It finally disappeared before 1600. Intensive
cultivation of maize began as early as 900, after 1200 the small
settlements became large villages of perhaps 150 inhabitants in 15 to 20
houses, which were built around a central square and whose number and
size increased considerably from around 1400.
On the coast, on
the other hand, a cultural divide between north and south can be seen
along the Neuse River. South of the river ruled from 2000 BC. BC clay
vessels, probably taken over from Georgia, which were reinforced with
plant fibers (stallings ware), but north of them real pottery. Most
mounds are found south of the Neuse River. The inhabitants of North
Carolina are likely to have become largely sedentary and they cultivated
an increasingly rural lifestyle (Eastern Agricultural Complex), but
without a radical change occurring. After all, they integrated the
cultivation of beans, corn and squash, while the dominance of nuts
declined. The third cultural region is the mountain region, which was
later inhabited by the Cherokee (Pisgah, around 1000 to 1450, then
Qualla). There, too, the larger villages built mounds. Around 800
Iroquoian groups immigrated to the north (Cashie, until 1750).
When in 1524 the first European, Giovanni da Verrazzano, entered the
region in search of a passage to the Pacific, tribes of the Cherokee,
Tuscarora, Muskogee, Cheraw, Tutelo, Catawba and some smaller tribes
related to the Iroquois and the Algonquin settled the country.
In
1584, Queen Elizabeth I granted Walter Raleigh a charter establishing an
English colony. However, the first settlement attempt failed. The second
attempt began in the spring of 1587. A group of 110 people settled the
island of Roanoke. There, on August 18, 1587, Virginia Dare was born,
the first child born in the New World to English-speaking settlers. When
the leader of the settlers returned to the island after a trip after
1590, he found only the remains of the settlement there. It could never
be clarified what had happened in the settlement. This second failed
settlement attempt has gone down in history as the "Lost Colony". The
disappearance of its residents without a trace has given rise to
speculation to this day.
Separation into North and South Carolina
After the restoration of the House of Stuart in 1663, King Charles II
gave charters to eight followers establishing a new colony, which they
were to administer as proprietors. It was named Carolina in honor of his
father Charles I (lat. Carolus). In the area around Albemarle Sound in
present-day North Carolina, settlers advancing from Virginia had already
settled around 1650, but further settlement progressed slowly. By 1700,
white settlers had settled south along the coast to the Pamlico River,
and by 1722 to Bogue Sound near modern-day Jacksonville. However, these
settlers remained isolated for a long time from the other settlement
focus of the colony around the port city of Charleston, so that two
fundamentally different government and administrative systems developed
in North and South Carolina from the beginning of settlement, which were
also managed by two governors from 1664 to 1691 . A legislature for
Albemarle also first met in 1664. It was not until 1701 that the owners,
the Lord Proprietors, of the colony recognized their de facto separation
into North and South Carolina; However, it was not until 1712 that the
person responsible for the northern settlements held the title "Governor
of North Carolina". In 1729, the two Carolinas were converted into crown
colonies, cementing the separation.
Socially and politically,
North Carolina in colonial times resembled its northern neighbor
Virginia more than South Carolina. While in South Carolina in the 18th
century a politically and economically leading class of rice planters
based primarily on slavery developed, the majority of the population in
the north lived on small farms that, apart from tobacco, mainly grew
grain and ran livestock. While blacks made up around 38% of the
population in the South in 1710, in North Carolina it was only 6%. In
contrast to the south, a uniform local administrative structure
developed in the north with the founding of counties and some towns. In
1705, Bath was incorporated as the first city in what is now North
Carolina.
North Carolina during the American Revolution
In the
late 1760s, tensions arose between the lower-class farmers of the
Piedmont and the wealthy planters of the coastal region. The apparent
squandering of public funds by Governor William Tryon to build a new
seat of government, Tryon Palace in New Bern, was the last straw and the
farmers rose up in the regulators' revolt. Tryon was victorious at the
Battle of Alamance on May 17, 1771, ending the seven-year conflict. Some
historians see this uprising as one of the contributors to the outbreak
- or even one of the first military acts - of the American Revolutionary
War.
It is in Charlotte that the people of Mecklenburg County are
said to have made the first declaration of independence during the
American Revolution on May 20, 1775, although there is no evidence for
such a declaration. However, the date of the Mecklenburg Declaration of
Independence is still used in the seal and flag of today's state of
North Carolina. On April 12, 1776, the Provincial Congress, the congress
of the province of North Carolina, decided to declare independence from
the British crown. North Carolina was the first colony to authorize its
delegates to the Second Continental Congress to secede from England
through the so-called Halifax Resolves. This event is also commemorated
by the date in the North Carolina seal and flag.
North Carolina
was largely spared hostilities in the early years of the Revolutionary
War, but became a major theater of war in 1780 and 1781. The American
patriots won a major victory over the English loyalists on October 7,
1780 at the Battle of Kings Mountain. After defeating the British at the
Battle of Cowpens on January 17, 1781, Nathanael Greene lured British
troops into the heartland. He thus cut them off from the English supply
stores in Charleston. This maneuver became known as "The Race to the
Dan".
The troops of Generals Greene and Cornwallis met at the
Battle of Guilford Court House on March 15, 1781. Although the British
troops were victorious, they were severely weakened by the losses they
suffered. This ultimately led to their final defeat in 1781 at the
Battle of Yorktown. The victory of the American-French army ensured
America's independence from the British Crown. The warring parties
signed the Peace of Paris in September 1783 and England recognized
America as a sovereign state.
Between the wars (1783–1861)
The
1787 draft United States Constitution received mixed reviews in North
Carolina. It was not until a year later that delegates in Fayetteville
agreed to approve it, and North Carolina became the twelfth and
penultimate of the former 13 colonies to ratify the constitution. In
1790, North Carolina brought the western lands under government; these
areas were referred to as Tennessee Territory between 1790 and 1796. In
1796, this finally became Tennessee, the 16th state of the Union.
The prosperity and economic growth of the heavily rural state were
based on slave labor, in the early years mainly in the field of tobacco
cultivation. After the revolution, Quakers and Mennonites tried to
persuade slave owners to free their slaves. However, the number of free
blacks in North Carolina increased steadily during the first decades
after the Revolutionary War. Although slavery was less common than in
the Deep South, as of the 1860 census, more than 330,000 people, 33% of
the population, were black slaves.
In 1840 the surviving
government building in Raleigh was completed. Unlike many other southern
states, North Carolina did not develop a dominant "cotton aristocracy",
but the state and its government were predominantly controlled by
independent middle-class farmers. In the mid-1800s, rural North Carolina
was connected by the 135-mile Farmer's Railroad. It ran east from
Fayetteville to Bethania, northwest of Winston-Salem, and was made of
wooden rails.
In 1860 North Carolina had a long tradition of slave ownership.
Despite this, initially it did not vote in favor of joining the
Confederacy; only President Abraham Lincoln's call to invade the sister
state of South Carolina caused North Carolina to join the Confederates.
Even after secession, some North Carolinians refused to support the
Confederates, mostly non-slave farmers. Nonetheless, men from all parts
of North Carolina took part in the major battles of the Civil War as
part of the Army of Northern Virginia, one of the Confederate Army's
most important major units.
The largest battle in North Carolina
was the Battle of Bentonville in the spring of 1865. It was an
unsuccessful attempt by Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston to halt
the advance of Union troops under Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman through
the Carolinas. This capitulated the last major combat unit of the
Confederates, which ended the military conflict. Wilmington, the
Confederacy's last port, also fell in the early summer of 1865.
North Carolina was reinstated into the United States on July 4, 1868,
after the passage of a new constitution promoting education, prohibiting
slavery, universal suffrage, and providing social services. The 14th
Amendment to the United States Constitution, which regulated equal
treatment of citizens after the Civil War, was also ratified. During
this difficult period of Reconstruction, Andrew Johnson, a native of
North Carolina, served as President of the United States from 1865 to
1869.
In the late 19th century, the cotton and textile industries developed
in the Piedmont; the development of these industries helped the state
develop an alternative to the hitherto predominant agriculture. On
December 17, 1903, the Wright brothers launched mankind's first
successful manned powered flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.
In response to racial segregation, disenfranchisement, and agricultural
difficulties, tens of thousands of African Americans left North Carolina
in the first wave of African American migration between 1910 and 1930.
In the hope of better living conditions and work, they moved primarily
to the large cities in the north of the country.
In the early
20th century, North Carolina embarked on a large-scale education
initiative and road construction to boost the state's economy. The state
highway project began in the 1920s after the automobile had become a
popular mode of transportation. During the first decades of the 20th
century, several important US military installations, such as Fort
Bragg, were located in North Carolina.
After Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal, a program to revitalize the
domestic economy, North Carolina developed particularly strongly in the
areas of education and manufacturing. During World War II, North
Carolina supplied the country's armed forces with a number of locally
produced goods. North Carolina also placed an emphasis on research and
university development.
In 1931, the Negro Voters League was
formed in Raleigh to promote voter registration for African-American
citizens. Work to desegregate and restore civil rights to the African
American population continued across the state. African-American
students at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University
began the Greensboro sit-ins, a form of resistance that spread
throughout the South. After the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the state's African American
population began to participate fully in political life. In 1973,
Clarence Lightner made American history when he successfully ran for
mayor of Raleigh, becoming the first African American to be elected
mayor of the southern United States and the first black mayor in a
predominantly white community.
In 1971, North Carolina's third
constitution was ratified, with a 1997 amendment giving the governor the
power of veto over most legislative decisions. While Democrat Jim Hunt
was reelected governor for the fourth time in 1996, setting a record in
North Carolina, which traditionally votes Republican, Elaine Marshall
was the first woman to be elected Secretary of State and thus a
state-level office.