As one of the Thirteen Colonies formed during the British colonization of North America, North Carolina is among the oldest states and as a result filled with history.
From the ancient Appalachian Mountains to the ever-changing barrier islands on the Atlantic Coast, North Carolina is a state rich in history. Towns like Bath and New Bern were founded in pre-Revolutionary times, centuries ago, while cities like Greensboro have played key roles in the social movements of the Civil Rights Era.
The list focuses on continuously-inhabited towns, almost all of which have colonial origins, but the lands today known as North Carolina have been inhabited for more than 10,000 years. The state encompasses lands of eight federally- or state-recognized Indigenous tribes, such as the Haliwa-Saponi, the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina, and the Waccamaw Siouan.
In this list, we’ll take a walk through history to see these 16 must-visit historic towns in North Carolina.
Table of Contents
1. Bath
Of all the historic towns in North Carolina, Bath is the first. Today, Bath is a quiet, coastal village, but it has over 300 years of tumultuous history. Bath was founded in 1705 and in its years has seen popular uprisings, religious movements, and war.
Bath was even briefly the home of the infamous pirate Blackbeard. In Historic Bath, you can walk in the path of Blackbeard and learn more about the oldest town in North Carolina.
2. New Bern
New Bern is the second-oldest historic town in North Carolina and also the state’s first permanent capital. Founded in 1710, the town quickly became an important political and economic center.
New Bern boasts nationally-recognized colonial architecture and the unique Firemen’s Museum, where you can explore the Great Fire of 1922 and the history of the oldest firefighting brigade in North Carolina.
New Bern is also the place where pharmacist Caleb Bradham created Pepsi (originally called Brad’s Drink) in 1893.
3. Boone
Mountain towns of western North Carolina like Boone hold a special place in my heart. While Boone is not one of the oldest towns in North Carolina, it is the center of the history of Appalachian North Carolina.
Named for the explorer Daniel Boone, the town features historic sites like the US Post Office-Boone and Blair Farm, one of only remaining buildings from the 19th century.
4. Warrenton
Warrenton was founded in 1779 and played a critical role in North Carolina’s 19th-century tobacco and cotton industries. The town, despite its size, has an extensive historic district, where most of the buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
However, this historic town in North Carolina is more notable for recent history. Warrenton is the county seat of Warren County, a historically poor and predominantly Black community. After the county was chosen as the site of a toxic landfill, residents resisted the creation through protests and birthed the environmental justice movement.
5. Greensboro
Greensboro is now the third-largest city in North Carolina. Though it was officially founded in 1808, colonial settlement in the area dates back to the mid-18th century. But what makes Greensboro historic is more modern.
In 1960, four Black students sat at a segregated lunch counter at Woolworth’s, a five-and-dime retail store, and kicked off the Greensboro sit-ins in which hundreds of people participated. These historic protest actions lasted for months and were incredibly impactful as part of the larger Civil Rights Movement.
The history of the Greensboro sit-ins can be explored at the International Civil Rights Center & Museum, which is housed in the location of the first sit-ins.
6. Asheville
The unofficial capital of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Asheville has its roots as a frontier outpost, not unlike Boone. However, when the Vanderbilt family constructed the massive, stunning Biltmore Estate, the city gained fame.
The building, which I considered among the most beautiful in the U.S., remains the country’s largest home. It’s also the perfect place to spend a day during a romantic getaway in Asheville.
But Asheville’s historic architecture doesn’t stop there. At the turn of the 20th century, Asheville was developing as a boomtown with architectural styles classic of the era. Those buildings were preserved in the decades following and the city has a way of making you step back in time. Follow the Asheville Urban Trail to better learn this city’s unique history.
7. Edenton
I can’t stress enough the beauty of the North Carolina coast. Edenton, the third of the oldest towns in North Carolina, encapsulates that beauty. Described as the prettiest town in the South, Edenton is a center of historic sites, culture, and coastal recreation.
Follow the town’s history through the self-guided museum tour, where you visit sites like the well-preserved Cupola House and Saint Paul’s Episcopal Church, the second-oldest church in the state.
The tour also highlights the town’s role in the Maritime Underground Railroad and the life of formerly-enslaved abolitionist Harriet Jacobs.
8. Cherokee
Adjacent to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, you can find Cherokee, a historic town in N.C. that’s the capital of the sovereign Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.
Beyond being a gateway to the splendid nature of the Appalachian Mountains, Cherokee is home to a people and a culture that precedes the country that surrounds it. Cherokee is a must-visit historic town in North Carolina where you can learn about the Cherokee peoples, support Indigenous community members, and enjoy the stunning land they steward.
9. Chapel Hill
As home to one of the oldest public universities in the country, it’s only natural that Chapel Hill is a historic town in North Carolina. The town’s connection with the university has made it a cradle of culture, politics, and social movements throughout the eras.
Chapel Hill is also a town constantly living through history, as I lived there for four years and saw my fair share of historic moments.
In addition to the university, Chapel Hill has several historic districts and sites. I recommend a long afternoon stroll through the campus and areas like the Ghimghoul neighborhood and Old Chapel Hill Cemetery. The town has many plaques and historic sites that are best explored on foot. I promise you’ll find the town bursting with floral beauty if you can visit during springtime.
10. Hillsborough
Hillsborough is a charming, historic village up the road from where I used to live. The history stretches back to 1000 C.E. when Native Americans built villages that were inhabited for 700 years.
The village sites were along the Great Trading Path, one of several paths in North Carolina used by Indigenous peoples to trade, connect, and move swiftly across the lands. A replica of an Occaneechi Village stands near Hillsborough, managed in part by the Occaneechi Band of the Saponi Nation to serve as an educational display of the tribe’s past and present culture.
Hillsborough was settled by English surveyors in the mid-1700s. Hillsborough’s quaint historic district is home to sites like the Alexander Dickson House, the last headquarters of the Confederacy. There, the general of the largest Confederate army surrendered to Union officials toward the end of the American Civil War.
11. Old Salem
Embedded within the modern city of Winston-Salem is Old Salem, a historic village founded in 1766 by Moravian Protestants. The historic site is dedicated to researching the role of Black and Indigenous Americans in Old Salem.
Over 70 percent of the buildings in Old Salem are original constructions. This is a unique, well-preserved historic town in North Carolina that paints an authentic, honest picture of Southern society.
12. Raleigh
Raleigh, known as the City of Oaks, was established as a planned city in 1792 specifically to serve as the capital of the state. Naturally, as a capital city, it has been a center of culture, politics, and society and therefore history.
In the years following the Civil War, Raleigh saw the opening of several institutions of higher education for Black Americans, including Shaw University, the first Black college in the South.
Today, it is the site of many museums that focus on North Carolina history and culture, making it a city you can’t miss on your historic tour of the Tarheel State.
13. Tryon
Tryon is a historic mountain community established in 1885 that struck me as the quintessential railroad town. On one side of the main street, you have the charming brick buildings emblematic of the American small town, and on the other, the railroad tracks that once carried cargo and travelers across the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Tryon has a history of attracting artists, artisans, and writers, such as F. Scott Fitzgerald. The mountain town has also been one of the epicenters of North Carolina’s wine culture since the late 1800s.
From Tryon you can also explore the ethereal beauty of the Blue Ridge Mountains, for whose natural beauty North Carolina is well-known.
14. Halifax
Less than 20 years after its establishment, Halifax became the first town to officially declare American independence from the British Crown. On April 12th, 1776, provincial leaders in this historic town in N.C. adopted the Halifax Resolves, paving the way for the Declaration of Independence months later.
Halifax Day is celebrated every April 12th in Historic Halifax, where you can learn more at museums and other sites about this important historic moment. In fact, the day is so critical to the state’s history that April 12th, 1776 appears on the North Carolina flag.
15. Wilmington
Wilmington is an example of an American city that reckons with the brutal racist history that defines the nation. In the late 19th century, Wilmington was a thriving, majority-Black city that promised an integrated, prosperous future in a changing country.
However, in 1898 white supremacists orchestrated a massacre and a coup d’état that drove out Black residents and businesses. Rights gained by Black North Carolinians in the post-war era were stripped away as part of a larger racist movement across the American South.
The Wilmington insurrection of 1898 and other parts of this port city’s history can be explored in the city’s many historic districts and sites.
16. Beaufort
Bath isn’t the only town in the Tarheel State linked to Blackbeard. The English pirate ran his notorious ship, Queen Anne’s Revenge, aground on the coast of the third-oldest town in North Carolina.
He also lived for some time in Beaufort in a house today known as the Hammock House. I wouldn’t recommend digging for any hidden treasure in Beaufort or Bath, lest Blackbeard’s ghost come back to haunt you.
Conclusion
There are so many reasons to visit North Carolina, but the history alone is far more than enough to draw you in. The many historic towns in North Carolina are as fascinating and varied as the lands of the state itself.
So much can be learned about North Carolina today by understanding the state’s history. The diverse peoples of North Carolina represent the mosaic of cultures that compose the United States. Take a visit to the Tarheel State and walk away enriched with new knowledge and experiences.
Have you stepped through the history of Tarheel State? Let us know below what historic towns in N.C. you think are worth visiting.
