User:Leakeyroof/NC County Descriptions

Alamance Description
Alamance County is located in the North-Central portion of North Carolina and is called after the creek by the same name - Alamance - a Native American word describing the blue-colored mud found in the creekbed.

Alexander Description
Alexander County is located in the Western portion of North Carolina and was named in honor of the Alexander family who were leaders in Colonial North Carolina.

Alleghany Description
Alleghany County is located in the North-West portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Virginia. It was named for an Indian tribe, and the name is derived from "a corruption of the Delaware Indian name for the Allegheny River and is said to have meant "a fine stream".

Anson Description
Anson County is located in the Southern portion of North Carolina and shares a border with South Carolina. It was named for George Anson, 1st Baron Anson, a British Admiral, who circumnavigated the globe from 1740 to 1744, and later became First Lord of the Admiralty.

Ashe Description
Ashe County is located in the upper Northwest corner of North Carolina and shares border with Tennessee and Virginia. It was named for Samuel Ashe, Governor of North Carolina from 1795 to 1798.

Avery Description
Avery County is located in the Northwestern portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Tennessee. It was named for Col. Waightstill Avery, a Revolutionary War officer and the first attorney general of North Carolina.

Beaufort Description
Beaufort County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and it took its present name from Henry Somerset, Duke of Beaufort to whom King Charles II granted tracts of land in the New World called "Carolina".

Bertie Description
Bertie County is located in the Northeastern portion of North Carolina and was named for James and Henry Bertie to whom King Charles II granted tracts of land in the New World called "Carolina".

Bladen Description
Bladen County is located in the Southeastern portion of North Carolina and was named for English commissioner of trade and plantations Martin Bladen.

Brunswick Description
Brunswick County is located in the Southeastern portion of North Carolina and was named for King George I, who was also the Duke of Brunswick and Lunenburg.

Buncombe Description
Buncombe County is located in the Western portion of North Carolina and was named for Edward Buncombe, a Revolutionary War colonel.

Burke Description
Burke County is located in the Western portion of North Carolina and was named for Thomas Burke, delegate to the Continental Congress and governor of the state 1781-1782.

Cabarrus Description
Cabarrus County is located in the South-Central Piedmont portion of North Carolina and was named for Stephen Cabarrus, then Speaker of the North Carolina House of Commons.

Caldwell Description
Caldwell County is located in the Western portion of North Carolina and was named for Joseph Caldwell, the first president of the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill.

Camden Description
Camden County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Virginia. It was named for Sir Charles Pratt, Earl of Camden, in gratitude for the support he gave to the colonists.

Carteret Description
Carteret County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and was named for John Carteret to whom King Charles II granted tracts of land in the New World called "Carolina".

Caswell Description
Caswell County is located in the North-Central portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Virginia. It was named for Richard Caswell, the first Governor of North Carolina.

Catawba Description
Catawba County is located in the Western portion of North Carolina and was named for the Catawba Indians.

Chatham Description
Chatham County is located in the Central portion of North Carolina and was named for William Pitt, Earl of Chatham, who defended American rights in the British Parliament.

Cherokee Description
Cherokee County is located in the extreme Southwest corner of North Carolina and shares borders with Georgia and Tennessee. It was named for the Cherokee Indians who inhabited its land before European settlement began.

Chowan Description
Chowan County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and was originally called Shaftesbury Precinct of Albemarle County. It was renamed Chowan Precinct around 1681 for the Chowan River, itself named for the Chowanoac Indians who inhabited the region.

Clay Description
Clay County is located in the Southwest portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Georgia. It was named for Henry Clay, a U.S. congressional leader and presidential candidate from Kentucky.

Cleveland Description
Cleveland County is located in the Southwest portion of North Carolina and shares a border with South Carolina. It was named for Col. Benjamin Cleveland, a hero of the Revolutionary War.

Columbus Description
Columbus County is located in the South-Central portion of North Carolina and shares a border with South Carolina. It was named for explorer Christopher Columbus.

Craven Description
Craven County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and it was named in honor of the Earl of Craven to whom King Charles II granted tracts of land in the New World called "Carolina".

Cumberland Description
Cumberland County is located in the South-Central portion of North Carolina and its name was derived from the title of Prince William Augustus, the Duke of Cumberland, the son of King George II.

Currituck Description
Currituck County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Virginia. Its name was taken from an Indian word meaning "land of the wild geese".

Dare Description
Dare County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and was named in honor of Virginia Dare, the first English child born in America.

Davidson Description
Davidson County is located in the Central portion of North Carolina and was named for William Lee Davidson, a Revolutionary War general.

Davie Description
Davie County is located in the Central portion of North Carolina and was named for William R. Davie, Governor from 1798-1799 and founder of the University of North Carolina.

Duplin Description
Duplin County is located in the Southeastern portion of North Carolina and was named for Thomas Hay, Lord Duplin, a member of the English Board of Trade and Plantations.

Durham Description
Durham County is located in Central North Carolina and was named for Dr. Bartlett Durham who sold 4 acres of land to create the Town of Durham, County seat of Durham, North Carolina.

Edgecombe Description
Edgecombe County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and was named for Baron Richard Edgecombe, English member of Parliament and lord of the treasury.

Forsyth Description
Forsyth County is located in the Central portion of North Carolina and was named for Colonel Benjamin Forsyth, a state legislator who fought and died in the War of 1812.

Franklin Description
Franklin County is located in the North-Central portion of North Carolina and was named for Benjamin Franklin.

Gaston Description
Gaston County is located in the Southwestern portion of North Carolina and shares a border with South Carolina. It was named for William Gaston, member of the U.S. House of Representatives and justice of the Supreme Court of North Carolina.

Gates Description
Gates County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Virginia. It was named for General Horatio Gates, an American brigadier general in the Revolutionary War.

Graham Description
Graham County is located in the far Western portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Tennessee. It was named for William A. Graham, U.S. senator and Governor of North Carolina.

Granville Description
Granville County is located in the Central portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Virginia. It was named for John Lord Carteret, second Earl Granville, who was granted the land of the Granville District by King George II.

Greene Description
Greene County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and was named for Revolutionary War commander Nathanael Greene.

Guilford Description
Guilford County is located in the Central portion of North Carolina and was named for Francis North, First Earl of Guilford and father of the prime minister of Great Britain at the time.

Halifax Description
Halifax County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and its name was derived from George Montague, Second Earl of Halifax and president of the British Board of Trade and Plantations.

Harnett Description
Harnett County is located in the Central portion of North Carolina and was named for Cornelius Harnett, Revolutionary War patriot and delegate to the Continental Congress.

Haywood Description
Haywood County is located in the far Western portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Tennessee. It was named for John Haywood, the state treasurer at the time.

Henderson Description
Henderson County is located in the Southwestern portion of North Carolina and shares a border with South Carolina. It was named for Leonard Henderson, chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court from 1829-1833.

Hertford Description
Hertford County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Virginia. It was named for Francis Seymour Conway, Earl and later Marquis of Hertford.

Hoke Description
Hoke County is located in the South-Central portion of North Carolina and was named for prominent Confederate general and railroad president Robert F. Hoke.

Hyde Description
Hyde County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and was named for Edward Hyde to whom King Charles II granted tracts of land in the New World called "Carolina".

Iredell Description
Iredell County is located in the Western portion of North Carolina and was named for James Iredell, North Carolina attorney general during the Revolution and delegate to the U.S. Constitutional Convention who was later appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court by President George Washington.

Jackson Description
Jackson County is located in the Southwestern portion of North Carolina and shares a border with South Carolina. It was named for President Andrew Jackson.

Johnston Description
Johnston County is located in the Central portion of North Carolina and was named for Royal Governor of North Carolina Gabriel Johnston.

Jones Description
Jones County is located in the Southeastern portion of North Carolina and was named for radical Revolutionary War leader and Anti-Federalist Willie Jones.

Lee Description
Lee County is located in the Central portion of North Carolina and was named for Confederate general Robert E. Lee.

Lenoir Description
Lenoir County is located in the Southeastern portion of North Carolina and was named for General William Lenoir, a prominent Revolutionary War hero, Speaker of the State Senate, and trustee of the University of North Carolina.

Lincoln Description
Lincoln County is located in the Southwestern portion of North Carolina and was named for Revolutionary War general Benjamin Lincoln, who was appointed by George Washington to receive Lord Charles Cornwallis's sword when the British commander surrendered at Yorktown.

Macon Description
Macon County is located in the Southwestern portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Georgia. It was named for Nathaniel Macon, an early nineteenth-century North Carolina political leader who served as both a U.S. senator and the Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Madison Description
Madison County is located in the Southwestern portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Tennessee. It was named for President James Madison.

Martin Description
Martin County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and was named for Josiah Martin, the last Royal Governor of North Carolina.

McDowell Description
McDowell County is located in the Southwestern portion of North Carolina and was named for Revolutionary War Colonel Joseph McDowell.

Mecklenburg Description
Mecklenburg County is located in the Southern portion of North Carolina and shares a border with South Carolina. It took its name from the German duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, home of the wife of King George III, Charlotte Sophia.

Mitchell Description
Mitchell County is located in the far Western portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Tennessee. It was named for University of North Carolina professor Elisha Mitchell, who died exploring the famous mountain peak in western North Carolina that now bears his name (Mount Mitchell).

Montgomery Description
Montgomery County is located in the South-Central portion of North Carolina and was named for General Richard Montgomery, a Revolutionary War brigadier.

Moore Description
Moore County is located in the South-Central portion of North Carolina and was named for Alfred Moore, a Revolutionary War captain who later served as a U.S. Supreme Court justice.

Nash Description
Nash County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and was named for Revolutionary War General Francis Nash.

New Hanover Description
New Hanover County is located in the Southeastern portion of North Carolina and was named in honor of England's King George I of the House of Hanover.

Northampton Description
Northampton County is located in the Northeastern portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Virginia. It was named for James Compton, Earl of Northampton.

Onslow Description
Onslow County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and was named for Arthur Onslow, Speaker of the House of Commons in the British Parliament.

Orange Description
Orange County is located in the North-Central portion of North Carolina and was named for William V of Orange, the infant grandson of King George III of England.

Pamlico Description
Pamlico County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and was named for the Pamlico Sound, which, in turn, was named for the Pamlico Indians.

Pasquotank Description
Pasquotank County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and was named after the Pasquotank Indians; the Indian word pásk-e'tan-ki means "where the current divides or forks".

Pender Description
Pender County is located in the Southern portion of North Carolina and was named for Confederate General William D. Pender.

Perquimans Description
Perquimans County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and was named for the Perquimans Indians of the area.

Person Description
Person County is located in the North-Central portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Virginia. It was named for Revolutionary War General Thomas Person.

Polk Description
Polk County is located in the Southwestern portion of North Carolina and shares a border with South Carolina. It was named for Revolutionary War Colonel William Polk.

Pitt Description
Pitt County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and was named for William Pitt, Earl of Chatham.

Randolph Description
Randolph County is located in the Central portion of North Carolina and was named for Peyton Randolph, the first president of the Continental Congress.

Richmond Description
Richmond County is located in the South-Central portion of North Carolina and shares a border with South Carolina. It was named for Charles Lennox, the Third Duke of Richmond.

Robeson Description
Robeson County is located in the South-Central portion of North Carolina and shares a border with South Carolina. It was named for Revolutionary War Colonel Thomas Robeson.

Rockingham Description
Rockingham County is located in the North-Central portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Virginia. It was named for Charles Watson-Wentworth, Second Marquis of Rockingham, the British prime minister at the time of the repeal of the Stamp Act and a supporter of American Independence.

Rowan Description
Rowan County is located in the Central portion of North Carolina and was named for Matthew Rowan, Governor of North Carolina at the time.

Rutherford Description
Rutherford County is located in the Southwestern portion of North Carolina and shares a border with South Carolina. It was named for Revolutionary War General Griffith Rutherford, a member of the North Carolina Provincial Congress.

Sampson Description
Sampson County is located in the Southeastern portion of North Carolina and was named for Colonel John Sampson, a member of the North Carolina House of Commons.

Scotland Description
Scotland County is located in the South-Central portion of North Carolina and shares a border with South Carolina. It was named for the ancestral home of many of its inhabitants.

Stanly Description
Stanly County is located in the Central portion of North Carolina and was named for John Stanly, a Speaker of the North Carolina House of Commons and, later, a U.S. congressman.

Stokes Description
Stokes County is located in the Northwestern portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Virginia. It was named for Captain John Stokes, a Revolutionary War officer and a member of the North Carolina House of Commons.

Surry Description
Surry County is located in the Northwestern portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Virginia. It was named for either the English County of Surrey (birthplace of Royal Governor William Tryon) or the Saura (Cheraw) Indians who populated the area.

Swain Description
Swain County is located in the Western portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Tennessee. It was named for David Lowry Swain, Governor of North Carolina and president of the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill.

Transylvania Description
Transylvania County is located in the Southwestern portion of North Carolina and shares a border with South Carolina. Representative Joseph P. Jordan, who was born on a farm in Transylvania, introduced a bill to the North Carolina House of Commons to establish a new county and he chose the name Transylvania from Latin words meaning "over the trees" or "across the woods".

Tyrrell Description
Tyrrell County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and was named for Sir John Tyrrell to whom King Charles II granted tracts of land in the New World called "Carolina".

Union Description
Union County is located in the South-Central portion of North Carolina and shares a border with South Carolina. Democrats wanted to name the county for one of their leaders (Andrew Jackson) and Whigs for one of theirs (Henry Clay), so "Union" was chosen as a compromise.

Vance Description
Vance County is located in the North-Central portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Virginia. It was named for Zebulon Baird Vance, Governor of North Carolina and U.S. congressman and senator.

Wake Description
Wake County is located in the Central portion of North Carolina and was named for Margaret Wake Tryon, the wife of Royal Governor William Tryon.

Warren Description
Warren County is located in the Northeastern portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Virginia. It was named for Joseph Warren, revolutionary Patriot and physician killed in the Battle of Bunker Hill.

Washington Description
Washington County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and was named for President George Washington.

Watauga Description
Watauga County is located in the Western portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Tennessee. It was named after the Watauga River ("Watauga" is an Indian word meaning "beautiful river").

Wayne Description
Wayne County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and was named for Revolutionary War General "Mad Anthony" Wayne.

Wilkes Description
Wilkes County is located in the Northwestern portion of North Carolina and was named for English statesman John Wilkes, a member of the Parliament who fought for American independence.

Wilson Description
Wilson County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and was named for Louis Dicken Wilson, a delegate to the constitutional convention of 1835, member of the General Assembly, and hero of the Mexican War.

Yadkin Description
Yadkin County is located in the Northwestern portion of North Carolina and was named for the Yadkin River.

Yancey Description
Yancey County is located in the Western portion of North Carolina and shares a border with Tennessee. It was named for Bartlett Yancey, U.S. congressman 1813-1817.