Polk County (1855)
Formed out of Henderson and Rutherford counties, Polk County was established in 1855. It had almost been established eight years earlier, but an 1847 act establishing the county was repealed in 1848. The demarcated land was given back to Henderson and Rutherford. An 1855 act, with almost the same wording, was passed, however. The almost 238 mile county had been finally established. Until 1903, there remained among some residents a few disputes regarding the boundary between Henderson and Polk.
The county’s namesake is not James K. Polk, a North Carolina native and the eleventh president of the United States. It is Colonel William Polk, a North Carolinian and Revolutionary War hero who survived Valley Forge and fought the British and Tories in numerous battles, including Germantown, Brandywine, and Eutaw Springs. He was wounded in all three. When the war ended, he was only twenty-two years old.
The county seat of Polk County is Columbus—the namesake is Dr. William Columbus, one of the forerunners in establishing the county. The county’s current population is 19,226 (a 2006 estimate).
Sources:
David Leroy Corbitt, The Formation of the North Carolina Counties, 1663-1943 (Raleigh, reprint, 1969).
See Also:
Related Categories: Counties, PlacesRelated Encyclopedia Entries: Arthur Dobbs (1689-1765), Edward Vail (1717-1777), Edenton Tea Party, Bunker Hill Covered Bridge, Carteret County (1722), Robert Howe (1732-1786), Republicanism, William Hooper (1742-1790), Watauga Association, Cross Creek, William Richardson Davie (1756-1820), Alfred Moore (1755-1810), Principles of an American Whig, Stamp Tax Protests (Wilmington), Sons of Liberty, Non-Importation Movement, Merchants Committees of Inspection, The Justice and Policy of Taxing the American Colonies in Great Britain Considered, Provincial Convention (1775), Tories, John Alexander Lillington (c.1725-1786), Richard Dobbs Spaight (1758-1802), Archibald Maclaine (1728-1790), The Great Seal of the State of North Carolina, Philip Alston, John Penn (1741-1788), The Test, Port Act, Cornelius Harnett, Thomas Burke (1747-1783), David Fanning (1755-1825), William Richardson Davie (1756-1820), Lincoln County (1779), Gaston County (1846), Randolph County (1779), Edgecombe County (1741), Guilford County (1771), Battle of Guilford Court House, Chowan County (1681), Pamlico County (1872), Nash County (1777), Battle at the Mouth of Sandy Creek, Battle of Plymouth (1864), Granville County (1746), Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge, Rutherford's Campaign, Royal Governor William Tryon (1729 - 1788), Tryon Palace, Royal Governor Josiah Martin (1737 - 1786), Battle of Cowan’s Ford (February 1, 1781), The Battle of Ramsour’s Mill (June 20, 1780)
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Region: Mountains