NORTHAMPTON COUNTY

Northampton was formed in 1741 from Bertie. It was named in honor of James Crompton, Earl of Northampton, an English nobleman. It is in the northeastern section of the State. It is bounded by the State of Virginia and Halifax, Bertie and Hertford counties. The present land area is 536.48 square miles. The population from the 2010 Census was 22,099. Of that population, 8,668 were white, 12,895 were black or African American, 101 were American Indian, 39 were Asian, 2 were Pacific Islander and 181 were of a different race. Another 213 were reported to be of two or more races and 305 were Hispanic or Latino of any race. In 1806 Atherton was established as the courthouse. Jackson is currently the county seat.

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Parts of Northampton County are in the Chowan River Basin and parts are in the Roanoke River Basin. It is considered a part of the Coastal Plain region of the state.

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 and NC State Archives)

NC LIVE resources

NC Natural Heritage Program database

WorldCat (Searches numerous library catalogs)