-
In 1663, North Carolina was founded by Virginia colonists, along with South Carolina (known together as Carolina). Later on, North and South Carolina became their own colonies. Carolina was founded because of King Charles II giving eight of his noblemen (called Lords Proprietors) the land.
-
In 1669, John Locke made the Fundamental Constitution. It was considered the "Grand Model." Its purposes were to protect the proprietary interests, to avoid the creation of a democracy, and to legalize slavery. It gave free men a voice in government but didn't give women and slaves a voice. They also planned on making a feudal government that gave the nobles names like Palatine, Landgrave, and Cacique.
-
In 1705, North Carolina's first city, Bath, was built. Quickly after it was built, it became an area of importance. Many government officials made businesses and built their houses in Bath. Later, there was a fort made called Fort Bath.
-
In 1712, North Carolina and South Carolina became their own separate colonies. North Carolina will later become a royal colony. The war with the Tuscarora Native Americans also started at this time.
-
On July 25th of 1729, the Lords Proprietors sold the colony to King George II, following South Carolina in becoming a royal colony, who became one ten years earlier. This marked the beginning of a prosperous time for North Carolina
-
In 1768, both North and South Carolina made the Regulator Movement to restore law and order and to establish the institutions of a local government. This movement was made by the Backcountry settlers (mostly farmers). Afterward, there was still tension between the farmers and England.
-
In 1774, the Edenton Tea Party was held. Penelope Barker was the woman who organized the tea party. In this protest, women put down their cups of tea in an act of protest against the Tea Act.
-
On August 29th of 1775, a hurricane hit the outer banks of North Carolina, killing 165 people and destroying many crops.
-
In 1776, North Carolina became the first state/colony to vote for independence. The first of North Carolina's major American Revolution battles fought at Moores Creek Bridge was also fought in 1776.
-
On November 21st of 1789, North Carolina became the 12th state of the United States. Other things that happened during this year were the University of North Carolina received a charter, and then became the first public school in the U.S.
-
In 1794, North Carolina moved their capital from New Bern to Raleigh. Before, both Edenton (1722-1743) and New Bern (1743-1792) were state capitals previously.
-
During the only 1800s, very little activity happened in the state. Others thought it was as if the state was asleep. This caused North Carolina to be known as the "Rip Van Winkle" state.
-
North Carolina fought with Georgia in 1804 over a 12-mile strip of land, known as the Walton War. This land was considered the "orphan strip" and was originally owned by the Cherokee.
-
In 1828, Andrew Jackson became the 7th president of the United States. This is important to North Carolina because Andrew Jackson was a native of that state.
-
In 1845, James K. Polk became the 11th president of the United States. His presidency was also important because, like Jackson, he was a North Carolina native. Polk was also the last Jacksonian to hold office and the last strong president until the time of the Civil War.
-
In 1861, North Carolina left the Union and joined the south. The citizens wanted to vote to undo the act rather than secede.
-
During 1861-65, the Civil War started. The war killed over 40,000 North Carolinians.
-
In the year 1865, the bloodiest battle in North Carolina, the Battle of Bentonville, took place. The battle defeated the Confederates and made many of them surrender at Bennett Place.
-
On December 17, 1903, the Wright Brothers made four flights in Kitty Hawk, and they made their first successful flight on that day. They have now invented the first successful airplane.
-
On June 4th, 1920, the 19th amendment was passed. This amendment gave women the right to vote, and it wasn't only important to North Carolina, but the United States as a whole. The amendment was ratified later on August 18th.
-
In 1943, Pembroke State College became the first four-year college for Native Americans. There isn't a lot of information on this event and it looks as if the name either changed or it doesn't exist anymore.
-
Hurricane Hazel hit North Carolina on October 5th, 1954. This natural disaster killed 19 people, injured several hundred people, and destroyed 15,000 homes.
-
On September 19th, a year after Hurricane Hazel, Hurricane Ione hit North Carolina. There's no information about damages to people and homes, but it cost $600,000,000 in damages to crops.
-
Hurricane Hugo hit North Carolina on September 10th, 1989. 61 people died in this hurricane and it cost over $1,000,000,000 in damages.
-
The area of Raleigh and Durham in North Carolina was ranked as the best place to live in 1994. Specific dates and other information are unknown.
-
During 1996, Hurricane Fran struck on August 23rd, killing 4 people, leaving 1.3 million people without power, and costing over $500,000,000 in damages. Governor Jim Hunt was re-elected to his fourth term, and Elaine Marshall was the first female elected to be secretary of state.
-
Three years after Hurricane Fran and ten years after Hurricane Hugo, another hurricane-Hurricane Floyd-hit North Carolina on September 7th, 1999. This hurricane killed 34 people and cost billions of dollars in damages.
-
On May 31st, 2003, police arrested the suspect of an Olympic bombing, Eric Robert Rudolph, in Murray, North Carolina. The bombing took place at the Centennial Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia in 1996.
-
On December 22nd, 2006, the North Carolina Hurricanes had won the Stanley Cup, but after, 17,000 people evacuated because of a fire and an explosion at a chemical plant near Apex.
-
On August 21st, 2011, seven people were killed during Hurricane Irene's landfall in North Carolina. There were also more than 600,000 power outages and $686 million in damages.
