All About North Carolina
North Carolina is a constituent state of the United States of America. Twelfth of the 13 original states, it lies on the Atlantic coast midway between New York and Florida. Bounded on the north by Virginia, on the east by the Atlantic Ocean, on the south by South Carolina and Georgia, and on the west by Tennessee, North Carolina has an area of 52,669 square miles (136,413 square kilometres). Its 3,826 square miles of inland water, the fifth largest such area of any state, are concentrated both in the extensive marshlands of the coastal tidewater and in the lakes and reservoirs of the Piedmont and Appalachian regions. These three physical regions are related to major diversities in life-styles among the people of the state, creating three distinct cultures within the state's boundaries. The capital is Raleigh.
North Carolina's beginnings were tied closely to the earliest attempts at English colonization of the New World. Roanoke Island in the northeast, a part of the heavily indented and island-fringed coast, was the site of the famous Lost Colony that vanished sometime after the original landing in 1587. This eastern region retains much of the flavour of colonial life, while the higher Piedmont region centred around Raleigh has become the state's hub of industry and population. The mountains of the west remain the focus of a lively folk culture and the home of a group of North American Indians.
North Carolina extends across three major physiographic regions of the United States - the Coastal Plain (or Tidewater), the Piedmont, and the Appalachian Mountains. In addition to giving the state a spectacular landscape, this variation has influenced the character of its climate, soils, plant life, and human geography.
As the land reaches westward from sea level, it rises gradually to the fall line, a zone some 30 miles (48 kilometres) in width that separates the Coastal Plain from the Piedmont. In the latter, the topography becomes irregular and rises about five feet (1.5 metres) a mile to the base of the Appalachians, a distance of about 140 miles. The mountains, many over 6,000 feet, have a worn, rounded appearance, reflecting a geologic origin older than the rugged peaks of the American West. Mount Mitchell, rising to 6,684 feet (2,037 metres), is the highest peak east of the Mississippi.
North Carolina's economy depends largely on industry and agriculture, but tourism is gaining in importance. Research Triangle Park, located near Durham, Raleigh, and Chapel Hill, and University Research Park, in Charlotte, have become major focal points for industrial research and development. Economic growth has most dramatically affected the larger cities, especially Charlotte and Raleigh. By the end of the 1980s Charlotte had become one of the largest banking centres in the nation.
Tourism has a diversified base, including the attractions of both ocean and mountains as well as the memorials to the state's past. North Carolina shares with Tennessee the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which contains approximately 461,000 acres of mountain forestland and includes museums, nature trails, and campgrounds. The Appalachian National Scenic Trail passes through the park, and the Blue Ridge National Parkway begins in the park and extends to the Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. National seashores are located at Cape Hatteras and Cape Lookout. Other National Park Service sites mark the first English settlement on Roanoke Island (Fort Raleigh National Historic Site), the Wright brothers' first flight at Kill Devil Hills (Wright Brothers' National Memorial), the home of Carl Sandburg in Henderson county (Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site), and the battles at Guilford Courthouse and Moore's Creek Bridge.
Geographically, the state is one day's trucking time to New York City or to the rapidly expanding Florida market. Within the state, the highway system accounts for more than 80 percent of freight transportation; most of the remainder is conducted by rail. Raleigh–Durham and Charlotte airports serve as regional hubs for national airlines, thereby providing direct service to many U.S. cities as well as to some international destinations. North Carolina has two Atlantic gateways to world markets. Modern ports are found at Wilmington and Morehead City, both of which are equipped to handle any type of cargo.
