Washington County is located in the Tidewater Region of Northeast
North Carolina. It has a total area of 420 square miles, including
336 square miles of land and 84 square miles of water (Lynch and
Peacock, 1982). It is distinctly bounded to the north by the Roanoke
River and Albemarle Sound and to the west by ancient beach ridges
marking the boundary between the Lower Coastal Plain and the
Tidewater. To the east and south the County has no distinct boundary
but is a continuation of the wetlands that cover much of the
peninsula between the Albemarle and Pamlico Sounds. The northern
part of the county drains to the Albemarle Sound and the southern
part drains to the Pamlico Sound. The elevation of the County ranges
from a few feet above sea level in the east, to about 50 feet on the
western edge near Hoke (Lynch and Peacock, 1982). The climate of the
County is typically warm and humid in the summer and cool in the
winter. The number of freeze-free days per year is about 215, and
the average yearly precipitation is about 53 inches. Snowfall is
rare.
The history of the county has been shaped by to its location and
topography. Access to water transportation was an advantage, and the
port of Plymouth was the beneficiary. Over time, however, railroads
and highways have largely replaced water transportation and water
access has declined in importance. Originally, most of the county
was a vast expanse of forbidding swampland that resisted
development. People settled on the relatively small areas of higher
land along the river, the sound, and along the western boundary with
Martin County. Even today, the population of the county is
concentrated there. The population of the county has never been
large because the amount of farmland was limited, and few soils were
suited for high value crops such as tobacco or peanuts. Industry did
not develop because there was no significant waterpower or other
resources, and the population base was small.