North Carolina

History and Background The state was named in honor Charles IX of France and then King Charles I and King Charles II of England. Concentrated on agriculture and developed the plantations exporting tobacco, cotton, corn, vegetables, grain, fruit and livestock The Southern Colonies had the largest slave population who worked on the plantations.Plantations grew cotton, tobacco, rice, sugar, indigo, and other crops. By 1775, North Carolina was governed a Royal Colony.

Founder John White and 121 settlers founded the Roanoke Colony. This was the first attempt at an English settlement founded in the New World. White's daughter Eleanor White and her husband Ananias Dare had a child on August 18, 1587 who they named Virginia Dare. She was the first English person born in America. Oddly, when explorers returned in 1590, they discovered that all the colonists on Roanoke Island were gone. There were only two clues left: the word "Croatoan" that had been carved on a post in the fort along with the letters "Cro" Carved on a tree. No one has ever discovered what actually happened to the settlers, and Roanoke is called "The Lost Colony."

Flag History The dates on the flag are of the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence (May 20th, 1775) and of the Halifax Resolves (May 20th, 1861), documents that place North Carolina at the forefront of the American independence movement. Both dates also appear on the Seal of North Carolina.

Climate Average annual temperatures range from 66 ° in the eastern region to 60 °F in the central region and 55 °F (13 °C) in the mountains. July and August are the wettest months, and October and November are the driest. Annual precipitation varies from 46 to 54 inches on the coast, 44 to 50 inches. Severe storms are rare and heavy snow is infrequent. Hurricanes occasionally occur along the coast, and there have been tornadoes inland.

Education The University of North Carolina opened its doors to students at Chapel Hill in 1795 as the first state university in the United States. Chapel Hill’s campuses include North Carolina State University (1887) at Raleigh; the North Carolina School of the Arts (1963) at Winston- Salem, which was the first state-supported residential school for the performing arts

What Children did for Fun When the children weren't making up games to play, they played many games that are still played today. Colonial children jumped rope, played tennis, swinging, scotch-hopper (modern day hopscotch), and played on a see-saw. The children even played leap frog, tag, hide-and-seek, sack and relay races.