This content is from the North Carolina Gazetteer, edited by William S. Powell and Michael Hill. Copyright © 2010 by the University of North Carolina Press. Used by permission of the publisher. For personal use and not for further distribution. Please submit permission requests for other use directly to the publisher.

Some place names included in The North Carolina Gazetteer contain terms that are considered offensive.

"The North Carolina Gazetteer is a geographical dictionary in which an attempt has been made to list all of the geographic features of the state in one alphabet. It is current, and it is historical as well. Many features and places that no longer exist are included; many towns and counties for which plans were made but which never materialized are also included. Some names appearing on old maps may have been imaginary, but many of them also appear in this gazetteer.

Each entry is located according to the county in which it is found. I have not felt obliged to keep entries uniform. The altitude of a place, the date of incorporation of a city or town, may appear in the beginning of one entry and at the end of another. Some entries may appear more complete than others. I have included whatever information I could find. If there is no comment on the origin or meaning of a name, it is because the information was not available. In some cases, however, resort to an unabridged dictionary may suggest the meaning of many names."

--From The North Carolina Gazetteer, 1st edition, preface by William S. Powell

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Place Description
Bear Banks

coastal beach in SE Onslow County on the Atlantic Ocean between Bogue and Bear inlets. Mentioned in local records as early as 1713; also spelled Bare, Bar, and Barr. Known also as Bear Beach and Heady's Beach for Daniel Heady and four generations of his descendants who owned the area. The Banks are approx. 3½ mi. long.

Bear Bay

See Allenton.

Bear Beach

See Bear Banks.

Bear Branch

rises in W Haywood County near lat. 35°36' N., long. 83°10'50" W., and flows E to join Horse Creek in forming Rough Creek.

Bear Cove

in W Macon County at the head of Wayah Creek.

Bear Creek

community in SE Graham County at the mouth of Bear Creek.

Bear Creek Lake

central Jackson County on Tuckasegee River. Formed in 1954 as a reservoir for Nantahala Power and Light Company. Covers 476 acres, with a max. depth of 195 ft. Shoreline is 13.5 mi. Used for generating hydroelectric power. Named for Bear Creek, which feeds it. Also receives the waters of Sols, Flat, and Robinson Creeks. Known for bass and trout fishing. Alt. 2,560.

Bear Creek Township

SW Chatham County.

Bear Gap

S Yancey County between Blue Sea Creek and Beech Nursery Creek.

Bear Grass Creek

rises in central Craven County and flows S into Trent River S of New Bern.