Incorporated in 1705, Bath was North Carolina's first port of entry. Located near the mouth of the Pamlico River, it developed a trade in naval stores, furs, and tobacco.

Juan Pardo explored the area in 1566-1567, establishing Fort San Juan in 1567 at the site of the Native American community of Joara, near the present-day city of Morganton. The fort lasted only 18 months, however, as the local inhabitants killed all but one of the 120 men Pardo had stationed in the area.

In 1893, hoping to duplicate the recent success of Coca-Cola, Caleb Bradham introduced "Brad's Drink" at his pharmacy in New Bern, North Carolina. The former doctor-in-training believed his syrupy concoction, made from a mix of sugar, water, caramel, lemon oil, nutmeg, and other natural additives, aided digestion, and re-named the drink "Pepsi-Cola" in 1898 after the word "dyspepsia".

Dellview is located in the Muddy Fork watershed, a tributary of Buffalo Creek flowing to the Broad River in South Carolina. The town collects no taxes from its residents, most of whom are relatives. Its population was 13 at the time of the 2010 census.

Richard Caswell was the first and fifth governor of the U.S. state of North Carolina, serving from 1776 to 1780 and from 1785 to 1787. He was also the president of the provincial congress that wrote the first Constitution of North Carolina in 1776.

The western honey bee was one of the first domesticated insects, and it is the primary species maintained by beekeepers to this day for both its honey production and pollination activities.

North Carolina has led the nation in sweet potato production since 1971, producing nearly three times as many sweet potatoes annually (1.7 billion pounds) as California (629 million pounds), the second highest producing state.

In 1712, North Carolina and South Carolina became distinct colonies. Each prospered in its own right after this peaceful divorce.

The first public university chartered under the US Constitution, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is one of three universities that claims to be the oldest public university in the United States and the only such institution to confer degrees in the eighteenth century as a public institution.

Three North Carolina natives have served as president of the United States: Andrew Jackson, James K. Polk, and Andrew Johnson.