North Carolina Trivia & Tidbits - Page 3

Looking for North Carolina trivia? Try our list North Carolina little know facts, tidbits and trivia.

—Since the 1750s, Yates Mill has stood on its foundation despite floods, hurricanes and war. The restored and working gristmill is the centerpiece of Historic Yates Mill County Park near Raleigh.

first appeared: 9/9/2007

—A 70-year-old slab of blackened pork periodically goes on display at the Mecca Restaurant in Raleigh, continuing a curious tradition begun in 1937 when the owner’s grandfather bought the ham from a farmer. Most of the time, the 25-pound ugly ham stays in the freezer.

first appeared: 8/26/2007

—Established in 1912, the Robeson County Health Department in Lumberton (pop. 20,795) was the first rural health department in the United States.

first appeared: 8/12/2007

—The state’s largest marina is Kings Point on Lake Norman in Cornelius (pop. 11,969), with more than 700 wet and dry berths on a 25-acre site.

first appeared: 7/29/2007

—Conjoined twins Chang and Eng Bunker, born in 1811 in Siam, settled in Wilkesboro (pop. 3,159) in the 1830s after traveling and lecturing as celebrities and giving the world the term “Siamese twins.” The twins died at age 63 and are buried at the White Plains Baptist Church Cemetery in Surry County.

first appeared: 7/15/2007

—Thelonious Monk, one of the most influential jazz pianists and an architect of bebop, was born in 1917 in Rocky Mount (pop. 55,893). He formed the Thelonious Monk Quartet, which included John Coltrane, in 1957 and wrote more than 70 compositions.

first appeared: 7/1/2007

—Established in 1742, the John Whitley farm in Williamston (pop. 5,843) is the state’s oldest family business. Among the family mementos is the original land deed from King George II.

first appeared: 6/17/2007

—The nation’s first Innocence Inquiry Commission was created last year. The state panel investigates claims by prison inmates who maintain that they are innocent of the crimes for which they were convicted.

first appeared: 6/3/2007

—When Hurricane Isabel struck Belhaven (pop. 1,968) in 2003 and forced the closing of the local hospital, Dr. Charles Boyette opened his home as a makeshift emergency room. Boyette, 71, began his medical practice in 1964 in Belhaven and served as the town’s mayor for nearly 30 years.

first appeared: 5/28/2007

—The first written declaration of independence from England by any American colony was the Halifax Resolves, adopted by 83 delegates to the state’s Fourth Provincial Congress on April 12, 1776, at Halifax (pop. 344). The document gave rise to the nation’s Declaration of Independence.

first appeared: 5/6/2007

—The remnants of Stagville in Durham, once one of the largest plantations in the South with 30,000 acres and 900 slaves, today encompass 71 acres and include late-18th- and 19th-century plantation buildings, a barn and slave homes.

first appeared: 4/22/2007

—Thousands of rockhounds each year prospect at Emerald Hollow Mine in Hiddenite, the only emerald mine in the United States open for public mining. The site encompasses 70 acres with a half-mile of waterways.

first appeared: 4/8/2007

—In 1899, the U.S. Postal Service merged the post offices of Winston, founded in 1849, and Salem, founded in 1766, and created a Winston-Salem postmark. In 1913, the cities were officially merged.

first appeared: 3/25/2007

—The world’s largest turkey processing plant, with 1 million square feet, is Butterball LLC in Mount Olive (pop. 4,567). Carolina Turkey bought the Butterball brand last October for $325 million from ConAgra Foods.

first appeared: 3/11/2007

—In 1820, during a debate over the Missouri Compromise, Rep. Felix Walker gave a rambling, irrelevant speech before Congress. He defended the speech, saying it was not intended for Congress, but for his constituents in Buncombe County. Buncombe, or “bunkum,” soon came to suggest any foolish talk.

first appeared: 2/27/2007

—A stationary antique red British double-decker bus is a welcome sight in downtown Asheville (pop. 68,889), where the Double Decker Coffee Co. serves up coffee, milkshakes and desserts.

first appeared: 2/11/2007

—The world’s only multi-channel re-circulating whitewater river is the U.S. National Whitewater Center, which opened last year and is located on 300 acres along the Catawba River near Charlotte. Paddlers of all skill levels, from weekend warriors to Olympic athletes, use the river. Rock climbing and mountain biking and running trails are among other activities available.

first appeared: 1/28/2007

In the 1950s, trucking company owner Malcom McLean invented container shipping, whereby a tractor-trailer can be loaded directly onto a ship. Before his invention, the backbreaking and time-consuming work involved unloading and reloading crates of cargo by hand. McLean was born in 1914 in Maxton (pop. 2,551).

first appeared: 1/14/2007

—The Stompin’ Grounds, also known as the Clogging Capital’s Hall of Fame, is in Maggie Valley (pop. 607). Scottish immigrants brought clogging dances to the region.

first appeared: 12/17/2006

—The Elizabethan Gardens on Roanoke Island near Manteo (pop. 1,052) are a memorial to the first English colonists in the New World. Adopted as a project by the Garden Club of North Carolina in 1951, the gardens feature antique statues, period furniture, rose and herb gardens, and other native shrubs, flowers and trees.

first appeared: 12/3/2006

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