and Georgia
to the south, Tennessee
to the west and Virginia
to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh
, and its largest city is Charlotte
. In the past five decades, North Carolina's economy has undergone a transition from heavy reliance upon tobacco and furniture making to a more diversified economy with engineering, biotechnology
, and finance sectors.
North Carolina has a wide range of elevations, from sea level on the coast to 6684 feet (2,037.3 m) at Mt.
1584 Sir Walter Raleigh establishes the first English colony on Roanoke Island, old Virginia (now North Carolina).
1587 Colony of Roanoke: a second group of English settlers arrives on Roanoke Island off North Carolina to re-establish the deserted colony.
1718 Off the coast of North Carolina, British pirate Edward Teach (best known as "Blackbeard") is killed in battle with a boarding party led by Lieutenant Robert Maynard.
1784 Western North Carolina (now eastern Tennessee) declares itself an independent state under the name of Franklin; it wasn’t accepted into the United States, and only lasted for four years.
1789 North Carolina ratifies the United States Constitution and is admitted as the 12th U.S. state.
1857 The SS Central America sinks about 160 miles east of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, drowning a total of 426 passengers and crew, including Captain William Lewis Herndon. The ship was carrying 13–15 tons of gold from the San Francisco Gold Rush.
1859 The current Cape Lookout, North Carolina, lighthouse is lit for the first time. Its first-order Fresnel lens can be seen for about 19 miles (30 kilometers), in good conditions.
1861 Union forces attack Cape Hatteras, North Carolina.
1861 American Civil War: US Navy squadron captures forts at Hatteras Inlet, North Carolina.
1871 In North Carolina, William Woods Holden becomes the first governor of a U.S. state to be removed from office by impeachment.