Tyrrell County, North Carolina

Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox U.S. county

Tyrrell County (Template:IPAc-en Template:Respell)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="North Carolina Collection">Talk Like a Tarheel Template:Webarchive, from the North Carolina Collection website at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved August 16, 2023.</ref> is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,245,<ref name="2020CensusQuickFacts"/> making it the least populous county in North Carolina. Its county seat is Columbia.<ref name="GR6">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The county was created in 1729 as Tyrrell Precinct and gained county status in 1739.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

HistoryEdit

The county was formed in 1729 as Tyrrell Precinct of Albemarle County, from parts of Bertie Precinct, Chowan Precinct, Currituck Precinct, and Pasquotank Precinct. It was named for Sir John Tyrrell, one of the Lords Proprietors of Carolina.

With the abolition of Albemarle County in 1739, all of its constituent precincts became counties. In 1774, the western part of Tyrrell County was combined with part of Halifax County to form Martin County. In 1799, the western third of what remained of Tyrrell County became Washington County. In 1870, the half of Tyrrell County east of the Alligator River was combined with parts of Currituck County and Hyde County to form Dare County

GeographyEdit

Template:Maplink According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of Template:Convert, of which Template:Convert is land and Template:Convert (34.56%) is water.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Tyrrell County, due to its proximity to the Outer Banks, has been designated as part of the Inner Banks.<ref name="N&O">Template:Cite news</ref>

Wildlife in the county includes bears, red wolves, and pitcher plants.<ref name= campbell/>

National protected areaEdit

Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge (part)<ref name= campbell/>

State and local protected areasEdit

Alligator River Game Land<ref name="NCWRC Game Lands">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

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Alligator River Area Outstanding Resource Water (part)
Buckridge Coastal Reserve Dedicated Nature Preserve
Buckridge Game Land<ref name="NCWRC Game Lands"/>
Emily and Richardson Preyer Buckridge Coastal Reserve
Emily and Richardson Preyer Buckridge Reserve (part)
J. Morgan Futch Game Land<ref name= kozak/>
Lantern Acres Game Land (part)<ref name="NCWRC Game Lands"/>
New Lake Game Land<ref name="NCWRC Game Lands"/>
Palmetto-Peartree Preserve<ref name= kozak/>
Pettigrew State Park (part)
Texas Plantation Game Land<ref name="NCWRC Game Lands"/>

Major water bodiesEdit

Albemarle Sound
Alligator River
The Frying Pan<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

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Adjacent countiesEdit

Perquimans County – north
Pasquotank County – north
Camden County – north
Currituck County – northeast
Dare County – east
Hyde County – south
Washington County – west
Chowan County – northwest

Major highwaysEdit

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DemographicsEdit

Template:US Census population

2020 censusEdit

citation
CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Race	Number	Percentage
White (non-Hispanic)	1,879	57.9%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic)	934	28.78%
Native American	5	0.15%
Asian	43	1.33%
Other/Mixed	112	3.45%
Hispanic or Latino	272	8.38%

As of the 2020 census, there were 3,245 people in Tyrrell, making it North Carolina's least-populous county.<ref name= tester>Template:Cite news</ref>

Demographic changeEdit

Tyrrell County's population peaked in 1940 with 5,556 residents. The population subsequently declined to about 4,000 residents, where it remained for several decades before shrinking further due to outmigration fueled by diminished job opportunities.<ref name= campbell>Template:Cite news</ref> Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses, Tyrrell's population dropped by 26 percent, the largest population drop by percentage in the state.<ref name= tester/>

Government and politicsEdit

Tyrrell County is governed by a five-member Board of County Commissioners. The elections for County Commissioners are partisan and at large.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> To save money, some of Tyrrell's government services are consolidated with other neighboring rural counties such as Hyde and Washington.<ref name= campbell/>

Tyrrell County is a member of the Albemarle Commission, a regional economic development organization which serves several counties in eastern North Carolina.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

In 2022, Tyrrell County is represented by Ed Goodwin in the 1st district in the North Carolina House of Representatives and Bobby Hanig in the 1st district in the North Carolina Senate.

In the 2020 elections in Tyrrell County, Republicans took more votes than Democrats in federal and statewide contests.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

EconomyEdit

Tyrrell County's economy is heavily reliant on agriculture—with its largest crop being potatoes<ref name= campbell/> — as well as forestry and fishing.<ref name= Igleman/> The county also hosts a small tourism industry centered around hunting, fishing, and bird watching.<ref name= campbell/><ref name= Igleman/> Taking advantage of tourists on their way to the Outer Banks. It suffers from high poverty and food insecurity rates.<ref name= Igleman>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>