States of the US
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"North Carolina." Geography, States of the US, Q-files Encyclopedia, 1 Apr. 2026.
https://www.q-files.com/geography/states-of-the-us/north-carolina.
Accessed 6 Aug. 2026.
North Carolina 2026. Geography, States of the US. Retrieved 6 August 2026, from
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Geography, States of the US, s.v. "North Carolina," accessed August 6, 2026.
https://www.q-files.com/geography/states-of-the-us/north-carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is located in the southeastern United States. Fringing its coast is a long chain of barrier islands, the Outer Banks, made up sand dunes. Between the islands and the shore are lagoons and a flat, often swampy, shore. The land rises gradually westwards to the Piedmont region, a gently rolling landscape. To the west lie the Great Smoky Mountains, Blue Ridge Mountains and Black Mountains, all part of the Appalachians.
Name
In 1629, King Charles I of England granted a charter to Sir Robert Heath to set up a new colony "under the name, in honour of that king, of Carolana" (Carolus is Latin for “Charles”). The colony included the region that is now made up by North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Tennessee. Since no settlements were set up, however, Heath's charter was later forfeited.
In 1663 King Charles II granted a new charter to this same land to eight of his prominent supporters, called the Lords Proprietors, in gratitude for their assistance in restoring him to the English throne in 1660. The area now became officially known as the Province of Carolina. North Carolina split from South Carolina in 1729.
Climate
Lowland North Carolina has a humid subtropical climate. The climate is influenced by the Atlantic Ocean, especially on the coastal plain, where summers are cooler and winters are milder than in the Piedmont region further inland. The mountainous portion of the state in the far west has even cooler average temperatures.
Summer brings the threat of hurricanes, tropical storms, heavy rain and flooding to eastern parts of the state.
Economy
North Carolina grows 40% of the entire US tobacco crop. Poultry, pigs, greenhouse products, sweet potatoes, maize, soya beans, peanuts and eggs are other important crops. North Carolina is also rich in minerals: it leads the nation in the production of feldspar, mica and lithium.
North Carolina has traditionally been a major producer of furniture (based on the supply of timber from its forests) and textiles, producing cotton, synthetic and silk goods. Other important manufactures include electrical machinery, computers and chemicals, with hi-tech manufacturing becoming increasingly important. Charlotte is now a major banking centre. The state's sunny climate and its miles of beaches attract many tourists.
Facts about North Carolina
Area 53,819 sq miles (139,390 sq km)
Highest point Mount Mitchell 6684 ft (2037 m)
Population 10,835,491
Capital Raleigh
Largest cities Charlotte, 911,311; Raleigh, 482,295; Greensboro, 302,296; Durham, 296,186; Winston-Salem, 252,975; Fayetteville, 209,749; Cary, 180,010; Wilmington, 122,698; High Point, 116,926
Nickname Tar Heel State, Old North State
State bird Cardinal
State flower Dogwood
State tree Pine
Consultant: Nicholas Harris
History of North Carolina
before 16th century
Algonquian-speaking Native Americans, including the Chowanoke, Roanoke, Pamlico, Machapunga, Coree, Cape Fear Indians and others, live in the area at the time European explorers arrive
1524
North Carolina's coast is explored by Giovanni da Verrazzano, the Italian explorer in the service of the King of France
1566–68
Led by Juan Pardo, the Spanish explore what is today the Carolinas
1567
The Spanish build Fort San Juan near the present-day city of Morganton; natives massacre the men stationed at the fort
1580s
English adventurer Sir Walter Raleigh establishes two colonies on the coast, including one on Roanoke Island, but both are abandoned
1587
Virginia Dare, the first English child to be born in North America, is born on Roanoke Island
1629
King Charles I of England grants the territory south of Virginia (between the 36th and 31st parallels) to Sir Robert Heath
1653
The first permanent settlements are established by English colonists from Virginia near the Roanoke and Chowan rivers
1663
Heath’s grant is declared void and King Charles II reassigns the territory, which he names Carolina in honour of his father, Charles I, to eight court favourites; they become the "true and absolute Lords Proprietors" of Carolina
1664
Sir William Berkeley, governor of Virginia and one of the proprietors, appoints a governor for the province of Albemarle, later known as North Carolina
early 1700s
Settlers, mostly of English stock, raise tobacco, maize and livestock using African and Native American slaves on small farms along Albemarle Sound
1711–13
Tuscarora Indian War: afterwards, the defeated Tuscarora tribe are forced out of the region by European immigrants
1712
North Carolina becomes a separate colony
1729
Province of Carolina separates into northern and southern parts; the British government makes North Carolina a royal colony
mid-18th century
The Native Americans are pushed beyond the Appalachians as the Piedmont's population grows with the arrival of immigrants from Germany, Scotland and Ireland
1776
North Carolina supports independence from Britain in the Revolutionary War
1784
North Carolina cedes its western lands to the US. It later repeals the act ceding the land, but re-enacts it in 1789. That territory later becomes the state of Tennessee.
1789
North Carolina becomes the 12th state to ratify (sign up to) the US Constitution
1792
Raleigh is established as state capital; the city is named after the English adventurer Sir Walter Raleigh, who founded the short-lived colonies on Roanoke Island more than 200 years earlier
early 1800s
Cotton and tobacco become important crops; the eastern half of the state develops a plantation system based on slave labour
1831
Slave rebellion led by Nat Turner
1861
North Carolina secedes (breaks away) from the Union and joins the Confederacy
1880s
Tobacco industry booms
1898
Wilmington Insurrection: more than 1500 white men attack a black neighbourhood, killing numerous men, and removing the white Republican mayor
1903
The first successful controlled, powered and sustained heavier-than-air flight is accomplished by the Wright brothers near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina
early 20th century
Great Migration: many African Americans leave the state to go North to work
1959
Research Triangle Park, the largest research park in the United States, is established in Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill, North Carolina. It is a major area of universities and scientific and technical research
1960
Greensboro sit-ins: a series of nonviolent protests carried out by Joseph McNeil, Franklin McCain, Ezell Blair Jr., and David Richmond, all young black students at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (who will become known as the "Greensboro Four"), chiefly in the Woolworth department store in Greensboro, North Carolina. They cause the F. W. Woolworth Company to remove its policy of racial segregation in the Southern United States, a key success for the civil rights movement
late 20th century
Technology, pharmaceuticals, banking, food processing and vehicle parts largely take over from the North Carolina's former main industries of tobacco, textiles and furniture
pics
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