North Carolina, or as some call it the Tar Heel State or the Old North State, was admitted into the Union on November 21, 1798. This highly varied and beautiful state has costal plains, rich soil inland and, to the west, the Appalachian Mountain range. The state also carries a colorful history going back to colonial days. Here are some interesting facts about the state.

Fact 1: Once relying mostly on the tobacco and furniture industry, North Carolina now is very active in the finance, engineering and biotechnology sectors. Also Christmas tree growing is very big in the state.

Fact 2: Hurricanes hit the state about every ten years, and there are fewer than 20 tornados per year. In April of 2011 25 tornadoes appeared in just that month alone.

Fact 3: The Spanish were the first to colonize the North Carolina area in 1597.

Fact 4: North Carolina was the last state to secede from the Union before the start of the Civil War.

Fact 5: For thousands of years before colonization indigenous people lived in the North Carolina area. There were even cities with active trade in the area hundreds of years before the arrival of Europeans.

Fact 6: The first public university (University of North Carolina Chapel Hill) in the United States was opened in North Carolina in 1795.

Fact 7: The pork barbeque is a big food item loved in the state. There are many regional rivalries and contest that revolve around barbequed pork.

Fact 8: North Carolina is the birthplace of many famous jazz musicians including John Coltrane and Thelonious Monk.

Fact 9: The North Carolina state bird is the cardinal and the state mammal is the gray squirrel.

Fact 10: The first powered airplane flight was performed by the Wright Brothers near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina in 1903.