Editing Plymouth, North Carolina (section)

==History==
The Moratuc tribe of American Indians was living in a large settlement on Welch Creek near the current [[Domtar]] pulp mill site in 1585 when the area was explored by English settlers. Moratuc was an Indian name for the [[Roanoke River]]. The Moratuc tribe were probably an [[Algonquian peoples|Algonquian]] tribe, but there is debate that they may have been [[Iroquois]].<ref>Modlin</ref>

Plymouth was established in 1787 by Arthur Rhodes on {{convert|100|acre|km2}} of his Brick House plantation he subdivided into 172 lots. Note that "Brickhouse" is a common local [[patronym]]. In 1790, the [[North Carolina General Assembly]] named Plymouth a "port of delivery" and in 1808 it was named a "[[port of entry]]". The county seat of Washington County was moved to Plymouth from Lee's Mill, as [[Roper, North Carolina]], was then known, by special act of the General Assembly on January 31, 1823. A new [[courthouse]] was completed by November 1824 on the same site where the present courthouse stands. It stood until 1862 when it caught fire and burned to the ground from a shell fired by a [[Union Navy|Union gunboat]] during bombardment of Plymouth.

Plymouth has the historical distinction of being the site of the second-largest battle in North Carolina and its last Confederate victory, the [[Battle of Plymouth (1864)]], during the [[American Civil War]]. The Confederate [[ironclad warship]] [[CSS Albemarle|CSS ''Albemarle'']] — and its eventual sinking on October 27, 1864, while moored at a dock in Plymouth — are the centerpieces of this history.

[[File:Folder 1521 Plymouth Civil War Campaigns and Battles 14 May 1864 Scan 1.jpg|thumb|Plymouth in 1864]]
Beginning early in the war and for its remainder, the Union controlled the [[Albemarle Sound|Albemarle]] and [[Pamlico Sound]]s. The geographical importance for the Northern forces of Plymouth's location at the [[River mouth|mouth]] of the Roanoke River was the Union desire to push upriver and capture the vital [[Wilmington and Weldon Railroad]] line passing through [[Weldon, North Carolina]], which would completely cut off the major supply line for General [[Robert E. Lee]]'s army in Virginia from more southerly ports. This would essentially end all {{not a typo|[[materiel]]}} support for Lee's forces and force his defeat or retreat from Virginia.

[[Fort Branch]], located upriver at Hamilton, successfully blocked the Union gunboats and troops sailing upstream from Plymouth at the river bend called Rainbow Branch. The fort held until April 10, 1865, one day after General Lee [[Battle of Appomattox Court House|surrendered at Appomattox Courthouse, Virginia]], at which point it was abandoned and its cannons were hurled into the Roanoke River. Thus, the war histories of Fort Branch and Plymouth are intimately connected.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fortbranchcivilwarsite.com/history/index.htm |title=New Page 2 |access-date=November 10, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080509074050/http://www.fortbranchcivilwarsite.com/history/index.htm |archive-date=May 9, 2008 }}</ref>

[[Plymouth State Normal School]] was established to educate African American teachers. It was moved to Elizabeth City in 1903 and became Elizabeth City State University.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=57050 | title=Plymouth State Normal School Historical Marker }}</ref>

The Port O'Plymouth History Museum, located in the circa 1923 former [[Atlantic Coast Line Railroad]] station in downtown Plymouth, has an excellent, nationally recognized collection of Civil War artifacts, including one of the most complete belt-buckle and button collections in the U.S. and a model of the ironclad ram [[CSS Albemarle|CSS ''Albemarle'']].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.livinghistoryweekend.com/port_o.htm |title=Port O'Plymouth Civil War Museum |access-date=January 2, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080215230358/http://www.livinghistoryweekend.com/port_o.htm |archive-date=February 15, 2008 }}</ref>

The [[Garrett's Island House]], [[Latham House]], [[Perry-Spruill House]], [[Plymouth Historic District (Plymouth, North Carolina)|Plymouth Historic District]], and [[Washington County Courthouse (North Carolina)|Washington County Courthouse]], New Chapel Missionary Baptist Church are listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]].<ref name="nris">{{NRISref|version=2010a}}</ref>