Category Archives: Albemarle Sound

Albemarle Sound: Voyage Through Centuries XI

Rising Seas and Sinking Land Nathaniel Batts may have been a recluse when he died in 1679, but he was a virtuoso wheeler-dealer in his younger days as fur trader, land owner, pardoned murderer, serial debtor, swindler, explorer who discovered … Continue reading

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Albemarle Sound: Voyage through Centuries X

Legacy Some of the counties surrounding Albemarle Sound are among the poorest and least populated in the state. They are also the most vulnerable to rising seas, as we shall see in the final chapter. Poverty and isolation are not … Continue reading

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Albemarle Sound: Voyage Through Centuries IX

The Mighty Herring Fisheries When the shadbush bloomed in spring, the hard work and celebrations began. Schools of shad and river herring teemed in from the ocean through inlets and into the Sound and up rivers, bound for their birth … Continue reading

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Albemarle Sound: Voyage Through Centuries: VIII

A War that Wasn’t Wanted and the Expedition Hurricane North Carolina did not want a fight. South Carolina must have been itching for one because she seceded in 1860, before President Lincoln took office. She commandeered federal forts in the … Continue reading

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Albemarle Sound: Voyage through the Centuries VII

Antebellum Albemarle America was riding its destiny. She had defeated the most powerful navy in the world, not once but twice. Cotton crops were thriving. Northern cotton mills were humming. Settlers were going west. Fish hauls came in as fast … Continue reading

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Albemarle Sound: Voyage through the Centuries: Part VI

Navigating the Sound It was the greatest real estate hoax in history. Come to the New World and you will find a better life, glowing reports implied. If you took the bait, you spent months  on a ship, in a … Continue reading

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Albemarle Sound: Voyage through the Centuries Part V

The Fight for Independence and the Independence Hurricane It took a lot for colonists in eastern North Carolina to consider revolt. All they wanted was fair treatment.  Don’t exploit us. Give us some say. We’ll be loyal subjects. But royal … Continue reading

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Albemarle Sound: Voyage Through the Centuries Part IV

Second Chances, the Albemarle Connection, a Revolt and Noxious Disease Less than a century after the first English families stepped ashore on Roanoke Island,  steady streams of pioneers were betting on hope. They were settling along the north shore of … Continue reading

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Albemarle Sound: Voyage through the Centuries Part III

The History and the Mystery of the Lost Colony In July, 1587, 115 English settlers and one Native American stepped ashore on Roanoke Island. Roanoke Island lies just inside the barrier beach, near the mouth of Albemarle Sound. Queen Elizabeth … Continue reading

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Albemarle Sound: Voyage through the Centuries: Part II

Estuaries: Cradle of Life What is an estuary? In simplest terms, it is a place where fresh water from rivers mixes with salt water from the sea. Under quiet conditions, “lighter” fresh water will float atop “heavier” salt water. But … Continue reading

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