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96-556: Scull Shoals was a rapids on the Oconee River. The rapids are no longer visible, having been buried in silt. In the Southeastern Piedmont , the term "shoals" is often used to describe a stretch of a river where rocks impede boat traffic. In 1775, the rapids likely consisted of a rocky place where the river fell at least four feet in a short distance. At that time, the river was stable, but as European settlement began,

192-538: A charter to start a new colony on the North American continent; this would generally establish North Carolina's borders. He named it Carolina in honor of his father, Charles   I . By 1665, a second charter was issued to attempt to resolve territorial questions. This charter rewarded the Lords Proprietors , eight Englishmen to whom King Charles II granted joint ownership of a tract of land in

288-421: A decade of white supremacy , many people forgot North Carolina had ever had thriving middle-class black Americans. Black citizens had no political voice in the state until after the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of 1965 were passed to enforce their constitutional rights. It was not until 1992 that another African American was elected as a U.S. Representative from North Carolina. After

384-551: A fixed period to pay for their passage. In the early years the line between indentured servants and African slaves or laborers was fluid. Some Africans were allowed to earn their freedom before slavery became a lifelong status. Most of the free colored families formed in North Carolina before the Revolution were descended from unions or marriages between free whites and enslaved or free Africans or African-Americans. If

480-650: A major regional and national banking center. Towards Raleigh, North Carolina State , Duke University , and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill , have helped the Research Triangle area attract an educated workforce and develop more jobs. In 1988, North Carolina gained its first professional sports franchise, the Charlotte Hornets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The hornets team name stems from

576-696: A narrow victory for a Republican-dominated government, with 19 African-Americans holding positions in the North Carolina State Legislature . In attempt to put the reforms into effect, the new Republican Governor William W. Holden declared martial law on any county allegedly not complying with law and order using the passage of the Shoffner Act . A Republican Party coalition of black freedmen, northern carpetbaggers and local scalawags controlled state government for three years. The white conservative Democrats regained control of

672-408: A period, largely because of cotton farming in the area. However, floods and silt from the same farms upstream became increasingly problematic. By the mid-1880s, water power had become infeasible, and the community declined thereafter. Bruce K. Ferguson summarized the demise of the community: The failure of Scull Shoals is not a story of the passing of and old antebellum civilization; it is a story of

768-535: A slower pace and remained small. By the late 17th century, Carolina was essentially two colonies, one centered in the Albemarle region in the north and the other located in the south around Charleston. In 1705 South Carolinian John Lawson purchased land on the Pamlico River and laid out Bath, North Carolina's first town. After returning to England, he published the book A New Voyage to Carolina, which became

864-443: A strong Whig presence, especially in the western part of the state. After Nat Turner 's slave uprising in 1831, North Carolina and other southern states reduced the rights of free blacks. In 1835, the legislature withdrew their right to vote. In mid-century, the state's rural and commercial areas were connected by the construction of a 129 mi (208 km) wooden plank road, known as a "farmer's railroad", from Fayetteville in

960-583: A total of four African-American congressmen through these years of the late 19th century. Political tensions ran so high a small group of white Democrats in 1898 planned to take over the Wilmington government if their candidates were not elected. In the Wilmington Insurrection of 1898 , white Democrats led around 2,000 of their supporters that attacked the black newspaper and neighborhood, killed an estimated 60 to 300 people, and ran off

1056-582: A travelogue and a marketing piece to encourage new colonists to Carolina. Lawson encouraged Baron Christoph Von Graffenried, the leader of a group of Swiss and German Protestants, to immigrate to Carolina. Von Graffenried purchased land between the Neuse and the Trent Rivers and established the town of New Bern . After an attack on New Bern in which hundreds were killed or injured, Lawson was caught then executed by Tuscarora Indians . A large revolt happened in

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1152-472: A winter base at Joara, which he renamed Cuenca . His expedition built Fort San Juan and left a contingent of 30 Spaniards there, while Pardo traveled further. His forces built and garrisoned five other forts. He returned by a different route to Santa Elena on Parris Island, South Carolina , then a center of Spanish Florida . In the spring of 1568, natives killed all but one of the Spaniards and burned

1248-714: Is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States . It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia to the southwest, and Tennessee to the west. The state is the 28th-largest and 9th-most populous of the United States . Along with South Carolina, it makes up the Carolinas region of the East Coast . At the 2020 census ,

1344-667: Is its southern boundary.) The fall line, where the land rises abruptly from the coastal plain, marks the limit of navigability on many major rivers, so inland ports sprang up along it. Within the Piedmont region itself, there are several areas of urban concentration, the largest being the Atlanta metropolitan area in Georgia. The Piedmont cuts Maryland in half, covering the Baltimore–Washington metropolitan area . In Virginia ,

1440-648: Is known as "The Race to the Dan" or "The Race for the River". In the Battle of Cowan's Ford , Cornwallis met resistance along the banks of the Catawba River at Cowan's Ford on February 1, 1781, in an attempt to engage General Morgan's forces during a tactical withdrawal. Morgan had moved to the northern part of the state to combine with General Greene's newly recruited forces. Generals Greene and Cornwallis finally met at

1536-682: Is situated between the Atlantic Plain and the Blue Ridge Mountains , stretching from New York in the north to central Alabama in the south. The Piedmont Province is a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Highlands physiographic division and consists of the Piedmont Upland, and the Piedmont Lowlands sections. The Atlantic Seaboard Fall Line marks the Piedmont's eastern boundary with

1632-689: Is the highest point in North America east of the Mississippi River . Most of the state falls in the humid subtropical climate zone; however, the western, mountainous part of the state has a subtropical highland climate . North Carolina was inhabited for at least 10,000 years by succeeding prehistoric Indigenous cultures. The Hardaway Site saw major periods of occupation dating to 10,000 years BCE. Before 200 AD, people were building earthwork platform mounds for ceremonial and religious purposes. Succeeding peoples, including those of

1728-569: Is the second-most populous combined metropolitan area in the state, 31st-most populous in the United States, and is home to the largest research park in the United States, Research Triangle Park . The earliest evidence of human occupation in North Carolina dates back 10,000 years, found at the Hardaway Site . North Carolina was inhabited by Carolina Algonquian , Iroquoian , and Siouan speaking tribes of Native Americans prior to

1824-789: Is today Northern Ireland, were the largest non-English immigrant group before the Revolution; English indentured servants were overwhelmingly the largest immigrant group before the Revolution. During the American Revolutionary War , the English and Gaelic speaking Highland Scots of eastern North Carolina tended to remain loyal to the British Crown, because of longstanding business and personal connections with Great Britain. The English, Welsh, Scots-Irish, and German settlers of western North Carolina tended to favor American independence from Britain. British loyalists dubbed

1920-845: The Battle of Guilford Courthouse in present-day Greensboro on March 15, 1781. Although the British troops held the field at the end of the battle, their casualties at the hands of the numerically superior Continental Army were crippling. Following this " Pyrrhic victory ", Cornwallis chose to move to the Virginia coastline to get reinforcements, and to allow the Royal Navy to protect his battered army. This decision would result in Cornwallis' eventual defeat at Yorktown, Virginia , later in 1781. The Patriots' victory there guaranteed American independence. On November 21, 1789, North Carolina became

2016-633: The Carolina Algonquian -speaking tribes of the coastal areas, such as the Chowanoc , Roanoke , Pamlico , Machapunga , and Coree , who were the first encountered by the English; the Iroquoian -speaking Meherrin , Cherokee , and Tuscarora of the interior; and Southeastern Siouan -speaking tribes, such as the Cheraw , Waxhaw , Saponi , Waccamaw , Cape Fear Indians , and Catawba of

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2112-1009: The Greater Richmond metropolitan area is the largest urban concentration. In North Carolina, the Piedmont Crescent includes several metropolitan clusters such as Charlotte metropolitan area , the Piedmont Triad , and the Research Triangle . Other notable areas include the Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson, SC Combined Statistical Area in South Carolina, and the Philadelphia metropolitan area in Pennsylvania. North Carolina North Carolina ( / ˌ k ær ə ˈ l aɪ n ə / KARR -ə- LY -nə )

2208-469: The Lords Proprietors , the group of noblemen who had helped restore him to the throne in 1660. These grants were predicated on an agreement that the Lords would use their influence to bring in colonists and establish ports of trade. This new Province of Carolina was named in honor and memory of his father, Charles   I (Latin: Carolus ). Lacking a viable coastal port city due to geography, towns grew at

2304-736: The Mecklenburg County area to be 'a hornet's nest' of radicals, birthing the name of the future Charlotte NBA team. On April 12, 1776, the colony became the first to instruct its delegates to the Continental Congress to vote for independence from the British Crown, through the Halifax Resolves passed by the North Carolina Provincial Congress . The date of this event is memorialized on the state flag and state seal . Throughout

2400-633: The South Appalachian Mississippian culture , established by 1000 AD in the Piedmont and mountain region, continued to build this style of mounds. In contrast to some of the larger centers of the classic Mississippian culture in the area that became known as the western Carolinas, northeastern Georgia, and southeastern Tennessee, most of the larger towns had only one central platform mound. Smaller settlements had none, but were close to more prominent towns. This area became known as

2496-618: The Spanish Armada . The fate of the " Lost Colony " of Roanoke Island remains one of the most widely debated mysteries of American history. Two native Chieftains, Manteo and Wanchese , of which the former helped the colonists and the latter was distrustful, had involvement in the colony and even accompanied Raleigh to England on a previous voyage in 1585. Manteo was also the first Indigenous North American to be baptized by English settlers. Upon White's return in 1590, neither native nor Englishman were to be found. Popular theory holds that

2592-787: The Thirteen Colonies . The Halifax Resolves resolution adopted by North Carolina on April 12, 1776, was the first formal call for independence from Great Britain among the American Colonies during the American Revolution . On November 21, 1789, North Carolina became the 12th state to ratify the United States Constitution . In the run-up to the American Civil War , North Carolina reluctantly declared its secession from

2688-669: The U.S. military and was relieved of its constitutional government and representation within the United States Congress in what is now referred to as the Reconstruction era . To earn back its rights, the state had to make concessions to Washington, one of which was ratifying the Thirteenth Amendment . Congressional Republicans during Reconstruction, commonly referred to as " radical Republicans ", constantly pushed for new constitutions for each of

2784-569: The Union cause during the conflict. Approximately 15,000 North Carolinians (both black and white) from across the state enlisted in the Union Army . Numerous slaves also escaped to Union lines, where they became essentially free. Following the collapse of the Confederacy in 1865, North Carolina, along with other former Confederate States (except Tennessee), was put under direct control by

2880-602: The Union on May 20, 1861, becoming the tenth of eleven states to join the Confederate States of America . Following the Civil War, the state was restored to the Union on July 4, 1868. On December 17, 1903, Orville and Wilbur Wright successfully piloted the world's first controlled, sustained flight of a powered, heavier-than-air aircraft at Kitty Hawk in North Carolina's Outer Banks . North Carolina often uses

2976-540: The fall line . Railroads were built to connect the new industrializing cities. The state was the site of the first successful controlled, powered and sustained heavier-than-air flight , by the Wright brothers , near Kitty Hawk on December 17, 1903. In the first half of the 20th century, many African Americans left the state to go North for better opportunities, in the Great Migration . Their departure changed

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3072-412: The 1970s, North Carolina has seen steady increases in population growth. This growth has largely occurred in metropolitan areas located within the Piedmont Crescent , in places such as Charlotte, Concord, Greensboro, Winston-Salem, Durham and Raleigh. The Charlotte metropolitan area has experienced large growth mainly due to its finance, banking, and tech industries. By the 1990s, Charlotte had become

3168-502: The American Revolution, Quakers and Mennonites worked to persuade slaveholders to free their slaves. Some were inspired by their efforts and the language of the Revolution to arrange for manumission of their slaves. The number of free people of color rose markedly in the first couple of decades after the Revolution. Many free people of color migrated to the frontier, along with their European-American neighbors, where

3264-696: The Civil War, the Wilmington-to-Raleigh stretch of the railroad was vital to the Confederate war effort; supplies shipped into Wilmington were moved by rail through Raleigh to the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia . In 1860, North Carolina was a slave state, in which one-third of the state's total population were African-American slaves. The state did not vote to join the Confederacy until President Abraham Lincoln called on it to invade its sister state, South Carolina , becoming

3360-405: The Civil War. The phrase "First at Bethel, Farthest at Gettysburg and Chickamauga, and Last at Appomattox", later became used through much of the early 20th century. After secession, some North Carolinians refused to support the Confederacy. Some of the yeoman farmers chiefly in the state's mountains and western Piedmont region remained neutral during the Civil War, with others covertly supporting

3456-793: The Coastal Plain. To the west, it is mostly bounded by the Blue Ridge Mountains , the easternmost range of the Appalachians. The width of the Piedmont varies, being quite narrow above the Delaware River but nearly 300 miles (475 km) wide in North Carolina . The Piedmont's area is approximately 80,000 square miles (210,000 km ). The French word Piedmont comes from the Italian : Piemonte , meaning " foothill ", ultimately from Latin "pedemontium", meaning "at

3552-511: The Confederacy's most famous army. The largest battle fought in North Carolina was at Bentonville , which was a futile attempt by Confederate General Joseph Johnston to slow Union General William Tecumseh Sherman 's advance through the Carolinas in the spring of 1865. In April 1865, after losing the Battle of Morrisville , Johnston surrendered to Sherman at Bennett Place , in what is today Durham . North Carolina's port city of Wilmington ,

3648-719: The Crown (they were called "Tories" or Loyalists). The American victory at King's Mountain gave the advantage to colonists who favored American independence, and it prevented the British Army from recruiting new soldiers from the Tories. The road to Yorktown and America's independence from Great Britain led through North Carolina. As the British Army moved north from victories in Charleston and Camden, South Carolina ,

3744-619: The Experimental Forest was littleleaf disease, which affects shortleaf pine trees. Some other notable examples in the Georgia Piedmont: 33°43′42″N 83°17′34″W  /  33.72833°N 83.29278°W  / 33.72833; -83.29278 Piedmont (United States) The Piedmont / ˈ p iː d m ɒ n t / is a plateau region located in the Eastern United States . It

3840-760: The Mississippi River. Starting in 1540, the Native polities of the Mississippian culture fell apart and reformed as new groups, such as the Catawba , due to a series of destabilizing events known as the " Mississippian shatter zone ". Introduction of colonial trading arrangements and hostile native groups from the north such as the Westo Indians hastened changes in an already tenuous regional hierarchy. As described by anthropologist Robbie Ethridge ,

3936-407: The Mississippian shatter zone was a time of great instability in what is now the American South, caused by the instability of Mississippian chiefdoms, high mortality from new Eurasian diseases, conversion to an agricultural society and the accompanying population increase, and the emergence of Native "militaristic slaving societies". Historically documented tribes in the North Carolina region include

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4032-474: The Native Americans, who had no immunity to the new disease (it had become endemic over centuries in Europe). According to the historian Russell Thornton, "The 1738 epidemic was said to have killed one-half of the Cherokee , with other tribes of the area suffering equally." After the Spanish in the 16th century, the first permanent European settlers of North Carolina were English colonists who migrated south from Virginia . Virginia had grown rapidly and land

4128-406: The Piedmont is the remnant of several ancient mountain chains that have since been eroded. Geologists have identified at least five separate events which have led to sediment deposition, including the Grenville orogeny (the collision of continents that created the supercontinent Rodinia ) and the Appalachian orogeny during the formation of Pangaea . The last major event in the history of

4224-459: The Piedmont was the break-up of Pangaea, when North America and Africa began to separate. Large basins formed from the rifting and were filled by the sediments shed from the surrounding higher ground. The series of Mesozoic basins is almost entirely located inside the Piedmont region. Piedmont soils are generally clay -like ( Ultisols ) and moderately fertile. In some areas they have suffered from erosion and over-cropping, particularly in

4320-453: The Piedmont. In the late 16th century, the first Spanish explorers traveling inland recorded meeting Mississippian culture people at Joara , a regional chiefdom near what later developed as Morganton . Records of Hernando de Soto attested to his meeting with them in 1540. In 1567, Captain Juan Pardo led an expedition to claim the area for the Spanish colony and to establish another route to reach silver mines in Mexico. Pardo made

4416-422: The Revolutionary War, fierce guerrilla warfare erupted between bands of pro-independence and pro-British colonists. In some cases the war was also an excuse to settle private grudges and rivalries. North Carolina had around 7,800 Patriots join the Continental Army under General George Washington ; and an additional 10,000 served in local militia units under such leaders as General Nathanael Greene . There

4512-427: The South where cotton was historically the chief crop. In the central Piedmont region of North Carolina and Virginia , tobacco is the main crop, while in the north region there is more diversity, including orchards , dairying , and general farming . The portion of the Piedmont region in the Southern United States is closely associated with the Piedmont blues , a style of blues music that originated there in

4608-438: The Southern Division of the Continental Army and local militia prepared to meet them. Following General Daniel Morgan 's victory over the British Cavalry Commander Banastre Tarleton at the Battle of Cowpens on January 17, 1781, southern commander Nathanael Greene led British Lord Charles Cornwallis across the heartland of North Carolina, and away from the latter's base of supply in Charleston, South Carolina. This campaign

4704-434: The Southern states that emphasized equal rights for African-Americans. In 1868, a constitutional convention restored the state government of North Carolina. Though the Fifteenth Amendment was also adopted that same year, it remained in most cases ineffective for almost a century, not to mention paramilitary groups and their lynching with impunity. The elections in April 1868 following the constitutional convention led to

4800-405: The arrival of Europeans. King Charles II granted eight lord proprietors a colony they named Carolina after the king and which was established in 1670 with the first permanent settlement at Charles Town (Charleston). Because of the difficulty of governing the entire colony from Charles Town, the colony was eventually divided and North Carolina was established as a royal colony in 1729 and was one of

4896-503: The city was named after Sir Walter Raleigh , sponsor of Roanoke , the "lost colony" on Roanoke Island . The population of the colony more than quadrupled from 52,000 in 1740 to 270,000 in 1780 from high immigration from Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania , plus immigrants from abroad. North Carolina did not have any printer or print shops until 1749, when the North Carolina Assembly commissioned James Davis from Williamsburg Virginia to act as their official printer. Before this time

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4992-528: The coastal settlements, but by 1718 piracy in the Carolinas was on the decline. Growth was strong in the middle of the 18th century, as the economy attracted Scots-Irish , Quaker , English and German immigrants. A majority of the North Carolina colonists generally supported the American Revolution , although there were some Loyalists . Loyalists in North Carolina were fewer in number than in some other colonies such as Georgia, South Carolina, Delaware, and New York. During colonial times, Edenton served as

5088-400: The colonists either traveled away with or assimilated into local native culture. Virginia Dare , the first English person to be born in North America, was born on Roanoke Island on August 18, 1587; the surrounding Dare County is named for her. As early as 1650, settlers from the Virginia colony had moved into the Albemarle Sound region. By 1663, King Charles II of England granted

5184-434: The demographic characteristics of many areas. North Carolina was hard hit by the Great Depression , but the New Deal programs of Franklin D. Roosevelt for cotton and tobacco significantly helped the farmers. After World War II , the state's economy grew rapidly, highlighted by the growth of such cities as Charlotte, Raleigh, and Durham in the Piedmont region. Research Triangle Park , established in 1959, serves as

5280-441: The earthworks are protected as part of Oconee National Forest. European settlers took advantage of the water power available at the rapids. The first water-powered mills were established prior to 1809. At various times, the community hosted a grist mill, paper mill, cotton gin, and textile mill. The paper mill was notable as the first in the state of Georgia, having started in operation shortly after 1810. The community flourished for

5376-464: The east to Bethania (northwest of Winston-Salem ). On October 25, 1836, construction began on the Wilmington and Raleigh Railroad to connect the port city of Wilmington with the state capital of Raleigh . In 1840, the state capitol building in Raleigh was completed, and still stands today. In 1849, the North Carolina Railroad was created by act of the legislature to extend that railroad west to Greensboro , High Point , and Charlotte . During

5472-424: The farthest into Union lines of any Confederate regiment. During the Battle of Chickamauga , the 58th North Carolina Regiment advanced farther than any other regiment on Snodgrass Hill to push back the remaining Union forces from the battlefield. At Appomattox Court House in Virginia in April 1865, the 75th North Carolina Regiment, a cavalry unit, fired the last shots of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in

5568-439: The foot of the mountains", similar to the name of the Italian region of Piedmont ( Piemonte ), abutting the Alps . The surface relief of the Piedmont is characterized by relatively low, rolling hills with heights above sea level between 200 feet (50 m) and 800 feet to 1,000 feet (250 m to 300 m). Its geology is complex, with numerous rock formations of different materials and ages intermingled with one another. Essentially,

5664-407: The functional relationship of land use. The Scull Shoals Mill was an integral part of the region's cotton economy. However, it was killed by the effects of the economic system that, for a while, gave the mill life, but ultimately disintegrated from its own abuses. A post office called Scull Shoals was established in 1825, and remained in operation until 1861. The United States Forest Service acquired

5760-457: The generally non-slave-holding yeoman farmers of North Carolina. While slaveholding was slightly less concentrated compared to some other Southern states, according to the 1860 census, more than 330,000 people, or 33% of the population out of 992,622 people in total, were enslaved African Americans. They lived and worked chiefly on plantations in the Piedmont and Coastal Plain regions of the state. In addition, 30,463 free people of color lived in

5856-401: The governor of North Carolina, who promised safe-haven and a pardon, Blackbeard was killed in an ambush by troops from Virginia. In 1996, Intersal, Inc., a private maritime research firm, discovered the remains of a vessel likely to be the Queen Anne's Revenge , which was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places . North Carolina became one of the Thirteen Colonies and with

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5952-442: The homelands of the historic Cherokee people, who are believed to have migrated over time from the Great Lakes area. In the 500–700 years preceding European contact, the Mississippian culture built elaborate cities and maintained far-flung regional trading networks. Its largest city was Cahokia , which had numerous mounds for different purposes, a highly stratified society, and was located in present-day southwestern Illinois near

6048-549: The largest research park in the United States. Formed near Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill, the Research Triangle metro is a major area of universities and advanced scientific and technical research. The Greensboro sit-ins in 1960 played a crucial role in the Civil Rights Movement to bring full equality to American blacks. By the late 1960s, spurred in part by the increasingly leftward tilt of national Democrats, conservative whites began to vote for Republican national candidates and gradually for more Republicans locally. Since

6144-399: The largest single surrender of Confederate soldiers at Bennett Place , when Joseph E. Johnston surrendered the Army of Tennessee and all remaining Confederate forces still active in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida, totalling 89,270 soldiers. Confederate troops from all parts of North Carolina served in virtually all the major battles of the Army of Northern Virginia ,

6240-518: The last or penultimate state to officially join the Confederacy. The title of "last to join the Confederacy" has been disputed; although Tennessee's informal secession on May 7, 1861, preceded North Carolina's official secession on May 20, the Tennessee legislature did not formally vote to secede until June 8, 1861. Around 125,000 troops from North Carolina served in the Confederate Army, and about 15,000 North Carolina troops (both black and white) served in Union Army regiments , including those who left

6336-436: The late 19th century. According to the Piedmont Blues Preservation Society, most Piedmont blues musicians came from Virginia, North and South Carolina, and Georgia. During the Great Migration , African Americans migrated to the Piedmont. With the Appalachian Mountains to the west, those who might otherwise have spread into rural areas stayed in cities and were thus exposed to a broader mixture of music than those in, for example,

6432-420: The laws and legal journals of North Carolina were handwritten and were kept in a largely disorganized manner, prompting the hiring of Davis. Davis settled in New Bern, married, and in 1755 was appointed by Benjamin Franklin as North Carolina's first postmaster. In October of that year the North Carolina Assembly awarded Davis a contract to carry mail between Wilmington, North Carolina and Suffolk, Virginia . He

6528-454: The mothers were free, their children were born free. Many had migrated or were descendants of migrants from colonial Virginia. As the flow of indentured laborers to the colony decreased with improving economic conditions in Great Britain , planters imported more slaves, and the state's legal delineations between free and slave status tightened, effectively hardening the latter into a racial caste. Conditions for both slaves and workers worsened as

6624-400: The notorious Crop-Lien system developed and was financially difficult on landless whites and blacks, due to high amounts of usury. Also due to the push for commodity agriculture, the free range was ended. Prior to this time people fenced in their crops and had their livestock feeding on the free range areas. After the ending of the free range people now fenced their animals and had their crops in

6720-513: The open. Democrats were elected to the legislature and governor's office, but the Populists attracted voters displeased with them. In 1896 a biracial, Populist-Republican Fusionist coalition gained the governor's office and passed laws that would extend the voting franchise to blacks and poor whites. The Democrats regained control of the legislature in 1896 and passed laws to impose Jim Crow and racial segregation of public facilities. Voters of North Carolina's 2nd congressional district elected

6816-437: The ranks of the former eclipsed the latter and expansion of farming operations into former Indigenous territories lowered prices. Unable to establish deep water ports such as at Charles Town and Norfolk, the economy's growth and prosperity was thus based on cheap labor and slave plantation systems, devoted primarily to the production of tobacco, then later cotton and textiles. In 1738–1739 , smallpox caused high fatalities among

6912-483: The reconstruction era, North Carolina had become a one-party state, dominated by the Democratic Party . The state mainly continued with an economy based on tobacco, cotton textiles and commodity agriculture. Large towns and cities remained in few numbers. However, a major industrial base emerged in the late 19th and early 20th century, in the counties of the Piedmont Triad , based on cotton mills established at

7008-425: The river changed quickly. Agricultural practices, particularly cotton farming, caused extensive erosion upstream. By 1860, the rapids was completely buried in silt from the farms. Silt continued to accumulate until the 1920s, when cotton farming ended. The river is again stable, with the rapids underneath an estimated fourteen feet of silt. The area most likely received its name from prehistoric earthworks upstream. At

7104-474: The rural Mississippi delta. Thus, Piedmont blues was influenced by many types of music, such as ragtime , country, and popular songs — styles that had comparatively less influence on blues music in other regions. Many major cities are located on the Atlantic Seaboard fall line , the eastern boundary of the Piedmont. (In Georgia and Alabama, where the Piedmont runs mostly east to west, the fall line

7200-399: The site of the community in 1936. The Forest Service operates the site as a historic recreation area. Although much of the community is buried in silt, remains of a mill and four-story brick warehouse are still visible. The flooding and silt continue to be a challenge managing the site. A portion of Oconee National Forest is used for silviculture research. An example of research conducted at

7296-487: The six forts in the interior, including Fort San Juan. Although the Spanish never returned to the interior, this effort marked the first European attempt at colonization of the interior of what became the United States. A 16th-century journal by Pardo's scribe Bandera, and archaeological findings since 1986 at Joara, have confirmed the settlement. In 1584, Elizabeth I granted a charter to Sir Walter Raleigh , for whom

7392-761: The slogan "First in Flight" on state license plates to commemorate this achievement, alongside a newer alternative design bearing the slogan "First in Freedom" in reference to the Mecklenburg Declaration and Halifax Resolves. North Carolina is defined by a wide range of elevations and landscapes. From west to east, North Carolina's elevation descends from the Appalachian Mountains to the Piedmont and Atlantic coastal plain . North Carolina's Mount Mitchell at 6,684 ft (2,037 m)

7488-415: The social system was looser. By 1810, nearly three percent of the free population consisted of free people of color, who numbered slightly more than 10,000. The western areas of North Carolina were mainly white families of European descent, especially Scotch-Irish , who operated small subsistence farms. In the early national period, the state became a center of Jeffersonian and Jacksonian democracy , with

7584-439: The state capital beginning in 1722, followed by New Bern becoming the capital in 1766. Construction of Tryon Palace , which served as the residence and offices of the provincial governor William Tryon , began in 1767 and was completed in 1771. In 1788, Raleigh was chosen as the site of the new capital, as its central location protected it from coastal attacks. Officially established in 1792 as both county seat and state capital,

7680-408: The state capital is named, for land in present-day North Carolina (then part of the territory of Virginia ). It was the second American territory that the English attempted to colonize. Raleigh established two colonies on the coast in the late 1580s, but both failed. The colony established in 1587 saw 118 colonists 'disappear' when John White was unable to return from a supply run during battles with

7776-604: The state from the 18th until the 20th century. Eastern North Carolina was settled chiefly by immigrants from rural England and Gaelic speakers from the Scottish Highlands . The Piedmont upcountry and western mountain region of North Carolina was settled chiefly by Scots-Irish , English, and German Protestants, the so-called " cohee ". Arriving during the mid-to-late 18th century, the Scots-Irish, people of Scottish descent who migrated to and then emigrated from what

7872-459: The state had a population of 10,439,388. Raleigh is the state's capital and Charlotte is its most populous city . The Charlotte metropolitan area , with an estimated population of 2,805,115 in 2023, is the most populous metropolitan area in North Carolina, the 22nd-most populous in the United States, and the largest banking center in the nation after New York City. The Research Triangle , with an estimated population of 2,368,947 in 2023,

7968-527: The state in 1711, known as Cary's Rebellion . In 1712, North Carolina became a separate colony, and in 1729 it became a royal colony, with the exception of the Earl Granville holdings. In June 1718, Queen Anne's Revenge , the flagship of pirate Blackbeard , ran aground at Beaufort Inlet, North Carolina, in present-day Carteret County . After the grounding, her crew and supplies were transferred to smaller ships. In November 1718, after appealing to

8064-580: The state legislature in 1870, in part by Ku Klux Klan violence and terrorism at the polls, to suppress black voting. Republicans were elected to the governorship until 1876, when the Red Shirts , a paramilitary organization that arose in 1874 and was allied with the Democratic Party , helped suppress black voting. More than 150 black Americans were murdered in electoral violence in 1876. Post–Civil War-debt cycles pushed people to switch from subsistence agriculture to commodity agriculture. Among this time

8160-501: The state to join Union regiments elsewhere. Over 30,000 North Carolina troops died from combat or disease during the war. Elected in 1862, Governor Zebulon Baird Vance tried to maintain state autonomy against Confederate President Jefferson Davis in Richmond . The state government was reluctant to support the demands of the national government in Richmond , and the state was the scene of only small battles. In 1865, Durham County saw

8256-473: The state. They were also mainly concentrated in the eastern coastal plain, especially at port cities such as Wilmington and New Bern, where a variety of jobs were available. Most were descendants from free African Americans who had migrated along with neighbors from Virginia during the 18th century. The majority were the descendants of unions in the working classes between white women, indentured servants or free, and African men, indentured, slave or free. After

8352-462: The state. All of these men either had remained loyal to the Crown or aided Charles's restoration to the English throne after Cromwell . In 1712, owing to disputes over governance, the Carolina colony split into North Carolina and South Carolina . North Carolina became a crown colony in 1729. Most of the English colonists had arrived as indentured servants , hiring themselves out as laborers for

8448-454: The territory of South Carolina was originally known as the Province of North Carolina . The northern and southern parts of the original province separated in 1712, with North Carolina becoming a royal colony in 1729. Originally settled by small farmers, sometimes having a few slaves, who were oriented toward subsistence agriculture , the colony lacked large cities or towns. Pirates menaced

8544-465: The time of European settlement, erosion was exposing the skulls of indigenous persons buried there. However, the earthworks themselves have variously been known as Watson Springs Mound Site and Brightwell Mounds. Archaeologist Mark Kelly estimated most of the mound-building occurred in the late Etowah to Savannah periods (circa A. D. 1250). Work continued in the Lamar (late Mississippian ) period. Presently,

8640-419: The twelfth state to ratify the U.S. Constitution . After 1800, cotton and tobacco became important export crops. The eastern half of the state, especially the Coastal Plain region, developed a slave society based on a plantation system and slave labor. Planters owning large estates wielded significant political and socio-economic power in antebellum North Carolina. They placed their interests above those of

8736-555: The war took place at King's Mountain along the North Carolina–South Carolina border; on October 7, 1780, a force of 1,000 Patriots from western North Carolina (including what is today the state of Tennessee ) and southwest Virginia overwhelmed a force of some 1,000 British troops led by Major Patrick Ferguson . Most of the soldiers fighting for the British side in this battle were Carolinians who had remained loyal to

8832-498: The white Republican mayor and aldermen. They installed their own people and elected Alfred M. Waddell as mayor, in the only successful coup d'état in United States history . In 1899, the state legislature passed a new constitution, with requirements for poll taxes and literacy tests for voter registration which disenfranchised most black Americans in the state. Exclusion from voting had wide effects: it meant black Americans could not serve on juries or in any local office. After

8928-711: Was also active in North Carolina politics as a member of the Assembly and later as the Sheriff. Davis also founded and printed the North-Carolina Gazette , North Carolina's first newspaper, printed in his printing house in New Bern. Differences in the settlement patterns of eastern and western North Carolina, or the Atlantic coastal plain and uplands, affected the political, economic, and social life of

9024-628: Was less available. Nathaniel Batts was documented as one of the first of these Virginian migrants. He settled south of the Chowan River and east of the Great Dismal Swamp in 1655. By 1663, this northeastern area of the Province of Carolina , known as the Albemarle Settlements , was undergoing full-scale English settlement. During the same period, the English monarch Charles   II gave provincial land grants to

9120-568: Was some military action, especially in 1780–81. Many Carolinian frontiersmen had moved west over the mountains, into the Washington District (later known as Tennessee ), but in 1789, following the Revolution, the state was persuaded to relinquish its claim to the western lands. It ceded them to the national government so the Northwest Territory could be organized and managed nationally. A major American victory in

9216-674: Was the last Confederate port to fall to the Union, in February 1865, after the Union won the nearby Second Battle of Fort Fisher , its major defense downriver. The first Confederate soldier to be killed in the Civil War was Private Henry Wyatt from North Carolina, in the Battle of Big Bethel in June 1861. At the Battle of Gettysburg in July 1863, the 26th North Carolina Regiment participated in Pickett/Pettigrew's Charge and advanced

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