Hot Times, Cool Places

North Carolina Vacation Facts

North Carolina Tourism Division,
301 N Wilmington Street, Raleigh, North Carolina 27601-2825; 919-733-8372; 800-847-4862; Fax: 919-715-3097. Web: http://www.visitnc.com.

State Blue Berry: blueberry

State Red Berry: strawberry

State Beverage: milk

State Bird: cardinal

State Boat: shad boat

State Carnivorous Plant: Venus flytrap

State Christmas Tree: Fraser fir

State Colors: red and blue

State Popular Dance: the shag

State Dog: Plott hound

State Fish: channel bass

State Flower: flowering dogwood

State Folk Dance: clogging

State Freshwater Trout: Southern Appalachian brook trout

State Fruit: Scuppernong grape

State Insect: honeybee

State Mammal: gray squirrel

State Motto: Esse Quam Videri (To be rather than to seem)

State Nickname: Tar Heel State and Old North State

State Quarter:

State Reptile: Eastern box turtle

State Rock: granite

State Seal:

State Shell: Scotch bonnet

State Soil: North Carolina cecil

State Song: The Old North State

State Precious Stone: emerald

State Tartan:

State Toast: The Tar Heel Toast

State Tree: pine

State Vegetable: sweet potato

State Wildflower: Carolina lily

Capitals

Fort Raleigh National Historic Site, 1401 National Park Drive, Manteo, North Carolina 27954; 252-473-5772; Fax: 252-473-2595. Web: http://www.nps.gov/fora. The site where Sir Walter Raleigh and others set up the first British colony in 1585. The colony disappeared with no trace of the colonists (any survivors probably got absorbed by the local natives). This site is now home to the nation's longest running outdoor symphonic drama, The Lost Colony, staged during the summer at the park's Waterside Theatre.

Edenton, North Carolina — Historic Edenton, P O Box 474, Edenton, North Carolina 27932; 252-482-2637. Web: http://www.edenton.com. During much of the Colonial period, North Carolina was without a fixed capital. Governors lived in their own homes, and legislatures moved from place to place, first meeting in private homes, then in courthouses when available. In 1722 the Assembly fixed Edenton as the capital, but the town truly began serving as capital of North Carolina in 1728 and served until 1766.

New Bern, North Carolina — Tryon Palace, 610 Pollock Street, P O Box 1007, New Bern, North Carolina 28563; 252-514-4900; 800-767-1560; Fax: 252-514-4876. Email: info@tyronpalace.org. Web: http://www.tryonpalace.org. Served as the capital of the colony as well as the first capital of the state (1766 to 1794).

Raleigh, North Carolina — North Carolina State Capitol, 1 E Edenton Street, Raleigh, North Carolina 27601; 919-733-4994; Fax: 919-715-4030. Web: http://www.ah.dcr.state.nc.us. Capital of the state since 1794.

State Songs

The Old North State; Heads Carolina, Tails California.

State Specials

North Carolina leads the U.S. in textile production.

The Cape Hatteras Lighthouse is the tallest brick lighthouse in the U.S.
The first drawbridge built in the United States was built over the Cape Fear River.

The University of North Carolina was the first public university in the United States.

North Carolina has the largest state-maintained highway system in the U.S., with 77,400 miles of roads.

The world's smallest daily newspaper is the Tryon Daily Bulletin.

The first miniature golf course was opened in Fayetteville, North Carolina.

The first English child born in America, Virginia Dare, was born in Roanoke, North Carolina, in 1587.

North Carolina was the first state to declare independence from England with the Mecklenburg Declaration of 1775.

Cabarrus County, North Carolina, was the site of America's first gold rush.

The first state art museum in the country is located in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Albemarle Sound is the largest freshwater sound in the world.

Famous North Carolinians

North Carolina Fun Facts