CAROLINA, NORTH, one of the United States of America, is bounded on the north by Virginia, on the east by the Atlantic Ocean, on the south by South Carolina, and on the west by Tennessee. It lies between long. 75. 45. and 84. W. and lat. 33. 50. and 36. 30. N., being four hundred and thirty miles in length by a hundred and eighty in breadth, and containing an area of 50,000 square miles. This state is divided into sixty-three counties. It contains no large towns. Besides Raleigh, which is the seat of government, the most considerable are Newbern, Fayetteville, Wilmington, Edenton, Washington, Hillsborough, Halifax, Tarborough, Salisbury, and Salem. The principal rivers are the Roanoke, Chowan, Neuse, Pamlico, Cape Fear, Yadkin, and Catawba. Of these, Cape Fear affords the best navigation. The two principal sounds on the coast are those of Pamlico and Albemarle. Dismal Swamp lies partly in Virginia and partly in this state. There are three celebrated and dangerous capes on the coast, Hatteras, Look-out, and Fear. For about sixty miles from the sea, and in its whole width, North Carolina is a dead level, diversified only by occasional openings in the immense forest with which it is covered. Beyond this monotonous plain rise mountains and hills, from whose summits is beheld a beautiful tract of country, which recedes westward beyond the range of vision, and is adorned with forests of lofty trees. On the level parts the soil is indifferent; but on the banks of rivers, such as the Roanoke, it is remarkably productive. In some parts of this champaign country there are glades of rich swamp and ridges of oak land of a black and fruitful soil, which form an exception to the general sterility. That portion of the state which extends to the west of the mountains is for the most part very fertile, abounding in trees of various kinds. Wheat, rye, barley, oats, and flax, are the crops usually cultivated. Indian corn and pulse of all kinds are also abundant throughout the state, and cotton is raised in considerable quantities. Of the plains in the low country, the largest natural growth is the pitch-pine, a tall and beautiful tree. It affords pitch, tar, turpentine, and various kinds of lumber, which
together constitute about one half of the exports of the state. In the back country a variety of fruits and medicinal plants grow spontaneously. North Carolina abounds in iron ore; and it is the only one of the United States in which gold has been discovered in any considerable quantities. It is found in almost every part of this territory, intermixed with the soil. Mines have been established, but hitherto they have not proved very productive.
This state has not reached that perfection of culture which it is capable of arriving at from its natural advantages. The want of sufficient inland navigation, and also of harbours, is described as the cause of this backwardness. There are several large rivers, but their mouths are blocked up with sand. The best of the harbours, which are all indifferent, are Wilmington, Newbern, and Edenton. Since 1815, however, the state has been zealously engaged in several extensive improvements, such as the construction of canals and roads, and the draining of marshes and swamps.
Like all the southern states, North Carolina has a considerable diversity of climate, occasioned by the physical peculiarities of its parts. The level parts of the country are unhealthy, but in the hilly parts the reverse is the case. The summer day is hot, but the evening is refreshing and cool. Autumn is temperate and serene; and in some years the winters are so mild, that autumn may be said to continue till the spring. The wheat harvest commences in June, and that of Indian corn in September. In 1827 merchandize to the value of 276,791 dollars was imported into North Carolina, and to the amount of 449,237 exported.
The Christian denominations in this state are numerous. At Chapel Hill there is a respectable institution entitled the university of North Carolina. Lately considerable attention has been paid to education, and academies have been established in various places. The population in 1810 amounted to 555,500, and in 1820 to 638,829.