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North Carolina is bounded on the E and SE by the Atlantic Ocean, on the N by Virginia, on the W by Tennessee, and on the S by Georgia and South Carolina. It is 52,712 sq. mi. in area, of which 49,067 are land and 3,645 are water. Elevation ranges from sea level in the E to 6,684 ft. at Mount Mitchell, the highest peak E of the Mississippi River. Raleigh is the state capital. The largest cities are Charlotte, Raleigh, Greensboro, Durham, Winston-Salem, Fayetteville, Cary, High Point, Wilmington, and Asheville.

Nicknames Tar Heel State; Old North State

Colors Blue and red

Bird Cardinal

Flower Dogwood

Tree Pine

Shell Scotch bonnet

Motto Esse Quam Videri (To Be Rather Than to Seem)

There are 100 counties in the state:

County	County Seat
Alamance	Graham
Alexander	Taylorsville
Alleghany	Sparta
Anson	Wadesboro
Ashe	Jefferson
Avery	Newland
Beaufort	Washington
Bertie	Windsoe
Bladen	Elizabethtown
Brunswick	Bolivia
Buncombe	Asheville
Burke	Morganton
Cabarrus	Concord
Caldwell	Lenoir
Camden	Camden
Carteret	Beaufort
Caswell	Yanceyville
Catawba	Newton
Chatham	Pittsboro
Cherokee	Murphy
Chowan	Edenton
Clay	Hayesville
Cleveland	Shelby
Columbus	Whiteville
Craven	New Bern
Cumberland	Fayetteville
Currituck	Currituck
Dare	Manteo
Davidson	Lexington
Davie	Mocksville
Duplin	Kenansville
Durham	Durham
Edgecombe	Tarboro
Forsyth	Winston-Salem

County	County Seat
Franklin	Louisburg
Gaston	Gastonia
Gates	Gatesville
Graham	Robbinsville
Granville	Oxford
Greene	Snow Hill
Guilford	Greensboro
Halifax	Halifax
Harnett	Lillington
Haywood	Waynesville
Henderson	Hendersonville
Hertford	Winton
Hoke	Raeford
Hyde	Swan Quarter
Iredell	Statesville
Jackson	Sylva
Johnston	Smithfield
Jones	Trenton
Lee	Sanford
Lenoir	Kinston
Lincoln	Lincolnton
Macon	Franklin
Madison	Marshall
Martin	Williamso
McDowell	Marion
Mecklenburg	Charlotte
Mitchell	Bakersville
Montgomery	Troy
Moore	Carthage
Nash	Nashville
New Hanover	Wilmington
Northampton	Jackson
Onslow	Jacksonville

County	County Seat
Orange	Hillsborough
Pamlico	Bayboro
Pasquotank	Elizabeth City
Pender	Burgaw
Perquimans	Hertford
Person	Roxboro
Pitt	Greenville
Polk	Columbus
Randolph	Asheboro
Richmond	Rockingham
Robeson	Lumberton
Rockingham	Wentworth
Rowan	Salisbury
Rutherford	Rutherfordton
Sampson	Clinton
Scotland	Laurinburg
Stanly	Albemarle
Stokes	Danbury
Surry	Dobson
Swain	Bryson City
Transylvania	Brevard
Tyrrell	Columbia
Union	Monroe
Vance	Henderson
Wake	Raleigh
Warren	Warrenton
Washington	Plymouth
Watauga	Boone
Wayne	Goldsboro
Wilkes	Wilkesboro
Wilson	Wilson
Yadkin	Yadkinville
Yancey	Burnsville