Travel Day -> North Carolina

November 21, 2024

North Carolina is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia to the southwest, and Tennessee to the west.

Abbreviation: NC

Capital: Raleigh

Temperature: 59 degrees, mostly sunny

Time: 2:00 PM (same time zone)

Nickname: "Tar Heel State"

In the 1770s, North Carolina produced a lot of tar to manufacture ships. Most tar production comes from small farms that also produce livestock and crops. North Carolina was and is a leading producer of tar, turpentine, rosin, and pitch.

‘Tar Heel’ was a term used for workers who went barefoot to collect sap used for the production of tar and pitch. It was a derogatory term associated with low-class workers. During the Civil War, soldiers began to call themselves ‘tar heels’ and completely annulled the shame and humiliation associated with this moniker. Today, North Carolina is known the world over as the ‘Tar Heel State.’

Population: 10.84m (PA 12.8m)

Size: 53,819 square miles (PA 46,000)

Cost of living: $38,295 (PA $49,040)

Minimum wage: $7.25

Statehood: November 21, 1789

State Flag:

Colors

The flag's colors are similar to the US flag, with red representing courage, white representing purity and liberty, and blue representing loyalty.

White star

The white star between the "N" and "C" represents North Carolina as one of the original 13 colonies. It's also associated with the state's nickname, "The Old North State".

Dates

The flag has two dates on ribbons above and below the star, representing important events in North Carolina's history:

April 12, 1776: The date of the Halifax Resolves, which authorized North Carolina delegates to vote for independence from Britain

May 20, 1775: The date of the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence, the first such declaration in North America