Pasquotank River
Encyclopedia
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Located between Camden
Camden County, North Carolina
-Schools:There are five schools in Camden County: Grandy Primary School, Camden Intermediate School, Camden Middle School, Camden County High School, and CamTech High School. However one other former school lies in Shiloh. It was a community school for the Shiloh area. The school is now home to a...
and Pasquotank
Pasquotank County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2010, there were 40,661 people, 13,907 households, and 9,687 families residing in the county. The population density was 154 people per square mile . There were 14,289 housing units at an average density of 63 per square mile...
counties, the Pasquotank connects directly to the Albemarle Sound
Albemarle Sound
Albemarle Sound is a large estuary on the coast of North Carolina in the United States located at the confluence of a group of rivers, including the Chowan and Roanoke. It is separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Outer Banks, a long barrier peninsula upon which the town of Kitty Hawk is located,...
and is part of the Intracoastal Waterway
Intracoastal Waterway
The Intracoastal Waterway is a 3,000-mile waterway along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States. Some lengths consist of natural inlets, salt-water rivers, bays, and sounds; others are artificial canals...
via Elizabeth City.
History
The name "Pasquotank" is derived from pashetanki, an AlgonquianAlgonquian languages
The Algonquian languages also Algonkian) are a subfamily of Native American languages which includes most of the languages in the Algic language family. The name of the Algonquian language family is distinguished from the orthographically similar Algonquin dialect of the Ojibwe language, which is a...
word translated as "where the current forks." The river gained importance in trade and shipping during the American colonial period. Some principle industries along the Pasquotank were transport, logging, and oyster harvesting; more recently the commercial viability of the river has declined, with more traffic traversing the Intracoastal Waterway by way of Coinjock. The Battle of Elizabeth City
Battle of Elizabeth City
The Battle of Elizabeth City of the American Civil War was fought in the immediate aftermath of the Battle of Roanoke Island. It took place on February 10, 1862, on the Pasquotank River near Elizabeth City, North Carolina. The participants were vessels of the U.S...
was fought on the Pasquotank River where a small Confederate fleet was sunk in defense of the City. The Confederate ships sunk on the Pasquotank River in the battle were the CSS Black Warrior, CSS Fanny
CSS Fanny
CSS Fanny was a small propellor-driven steamer used by the Confederate Navy to defend the sounds of northeastern North Carolina. Originally operated by the Union, she was captured early in the war by the Confederate Navy, and later lost at the battle for Elizabeth City...
, CSS Sea Bird
CSS Sea Bird
CSS Sea Bird was a sidewheel steamer in the Confederate States Navy.Sea Bird was built at Keyport, New Jersey in 1854, was purchased by North Carolina at Norfolk, Virginia in 1861 and fitted for service with the Confederate States Navy. She was assigned to duty along the Virginia and North Carolina...
, and the CSS Appomattox
CSS Appomattox
CSS Appomattox was a small propellor-driven steamer used early in the war by the Confederate Navy to defend the sounds of northeastern North Carolina...
. The river is now primarily frequented by pleasure boaters.