Pikeville

History

Torhunta was a large Native American farming community in present-day northern. The Native Americans left North Carolina and returned to their home in New York where they became members of the Iroquois Nation. After the Native Americans left the area, there was an influx of settlers who came into the rich Neuse River lands and began to clear plantations. Many of these settlers were of the Religious Society of Friends, also known as Quakers. Samuel Pike moved to the area and settled on the south side of Nahunta Swamp which had been granted by King George II of Great Britain in 1763. This grant of land included between 2,500 and . In 1785, Pike deeded most of this land to his only son Nathan. It was this Nathan Pike for whom the township, the Post Office, and later the town was named. Nathan Pike owned and operated a large tavern, shop, trading post and hotel. It was then known as Pike’s Junction. In 1856, the first post office opened. During the period of 1793 to 1835 Pike sold around of his land to other families who came here to settle. During General Sherman’s Carolinas campaign in 1865, Pikeville suffered the same fate of many southern towns. Union soldiers destroyed the hotel and tavern Nathan Pike had built, and many buildings and homes were damaged or destroyed. Some of General Sherman’s forces camped in areas east of Pikeville during this time. The first school in the area was located at a crossroads named Mount Carmel in 1865. In 1908, the Pikeville grade school was made Pikeville High School. It was composed of the schools of Mount Carmel, Sherrad’s Cross Roads, Pleasant Grove, Oak Dale, Possum Trot, Taylor’s Oak Grove, Smith’s Patetown as well as Pikeville grade School. In 1960, Charles B. Aycock High School was opened in Pikeville in honor of the state…

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all of it land.

Race & ethnicity