BEAUFORT COUNTY

Beaufort was first called Pamptecough, the name being changed about 1712. It was named for Henry Somerset, Duke of Beaufort, who in 1709 became one of the Lords Proprietors. It is in the eastern section of the State and is bounded by Craven, Hyde, Martin, Pamlico, Pitt, and Washington counties. The present land area is 827.97 square miles. The population from the 2010 Census was 47,759. Of that population, 32,551 were white, 12,223 were black or African American, 208 were American Indian, 165 were Asian, 19 were Pacific Islander and 1,986 were of a different race. Another 607 were reported to be of two or more races and 3,166 were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Bath, incorporated in 1705, was the first county seat. Washington was made the county seat in 1785.

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Beaufort County is predominantly in the Tar-Pamlico River Basin and in the Coastal Plain region.

References:

"American Factfinder." 2011. U. S. Census Bureau. Online at http://factfinder2.census.gov/. Accessed 3/3/2011.

Corbitt, David L. 2000. The Formation of the North Carolina Counties, 1663-1943. Sixth printing. Raleigh: State Department of Archives and History.

Powell, William Stevens, and Michael R. Hill. 2010. The North Carolina gazetteer: a dictionary of Tar Heel places and their history. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press.

Additional resources:

North Carolina Digital Collections. (Government & Heritage Library & NC State Archives)

NC LIVE resources

NC Natural Heritage Program database

WorldCat (Searches numerous library catalogs)