Albemarle County, North Carolina facts for kids
Albemarle County, North Carolina was an important early area in what is now the U.S. state of North Carolina. It was like a large district or region within the old Province of North Carolina. This area covered the northeastern part of North Carolina today.
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History of Albemarle County
Albemarle County was named after a very important person named George Monck, 1st Duke of Albemarle. He was one of the eight "Lords Proprietors" who owned and managed the Province of Carolina. The Albemarle Sound, a large body of water nearby, is also named after him.
Early Beginnings
Albemarle County was quite large, covering about 1,600 square miles. However, its exact borders were not always clear. When the Carolina province was first divided, there was another area to the south called Clarendon County. This county was around the Cape Fear area, but people only lived there for a short time in the 1660s. Later, in 1696, Bath County was set up closer to the south.
Dividing the County
By 1671, Albemarle County was split into three smaller parts called "precincts." These were like smaller districts within the county. The three precincts were Shaftesbury, Carteret, and Berkeley.
From 1675 to 1677, a conflict known as the Chowanoc War happened in this area. This war was between the colonists and the Chowanoc Native American tribe.
Over time, the names of these precincts changed:
- In 1681, Berkeley was renamed Perquimans.
- By 1685, Shaftesbury became Chowan.
By 1689, Albemarle County stopped working as a single government unit. Instead, the four main "precincts" took over its duties. These precincts later became counties themselves in 1739. They were:
New Precincts Formed
More changes happened as the population grew:
- Around 1685, Carteret precinct was divided into Currituck and Pasquotank.
- In 1722, Bertie Precinct was created from part of Chowan. It included all the land west of the Chowan River.
- Tyrrell Precinct was formed in 1729. It was made from parts of Chowan, Bertie, Pasquotank, and Currituck.
- People living in the western part of Bertie asked for their own precinct as early as 1732. This led to the creation of Edgecombe Precinct. The exact date it was formed varies, but it was between 1732 and 1741.
Official End
Albemarle County was officially ended as a separate area in 1738. At that time, all the "precincts" were officially renamed "counties." This meant they became independent government areas, much like counties today.
