Editing Columbus County, North Carolina (section)

===Colonial settlement===
As America was colonized by the British, the area encompassing Columbus County was first organized part of the Bath Precinct of North Carolina, established by the British Crown in 1696. In 1729 a southern portion was split off by the General Assembly to create New Hanover County, and five years later Bladen was formed out of part of New Hanover. In 1764 Brunswick County was formed out of Bladen and New Hanover. Throughout this time the area was largely forested and had few white settlers, though the General Assembly established two roads through the area in 1764. [[William Bartram]], a botanist from Pennsylvania, journeyed to Lake Waccamaw to study the flora and fauna of the region in the 1730s, creating the first detailed written account of the area.{{sfn|Rogers|1946|p=12}} At least two skirmishes of the [[American Revolutionary War]] were fought on Columbus soil: one near [[Pireway]] and another at Brown Marsh.{{sfn|Rogers|1946|p=13}}