Visit Us!

Welcome to Tyrrell County, North Carolina nature’s buffer zone, sprawled between the urban mainland and the popular stretch of North Carolina’s Outer Banks. 

Tyrrell County is a diverse economic and ecological destination located between the northeast North Carolina urban mainland and the Outer Banks. Founded in 1729 and named for one of the Lord Proprietors, Tyrrell County hosts a special and abundant environment where red wolves howl and black bear and bobcats roam. Bald eagles and peregrine falcons soar over alligator and rose- crested orchids and pitcher plants.

The county seat Columbia, was incorporated in 1793. Other communities include Gum Neck, Kilkenny, Fort Landing, Frying Pan Landing, Newfoundland, and Woodley.

The county hosts a wealth of water and land based ecotourism venues and we are blessed by the Scuppernong in the heart of the county and Alligator River, to the east, Lake Phelps to our south and the Albemarle Sound, to our north.

We are home to the 110,000-acre Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, established in 1990. The refuge and surrounding county lands are home to one of the last large habitats of the black bears on the eastern seaboard.

We are also home to the Red Wolf Education and Health Care Facility, striving to maintain the health of the only Red Wolf population in the world and educate the public on the impact of reintroducing a native, endangered species.

Pettigrew State Park and Somerset Plantation round out the experiences available in our great area. A day visit to Somerset will put you back in time to 1830.

Commerce is also at home in Tyrrell County where world class agri-business and fishing helps feed the world and provides seeds for others to chart their economic harvests. The county hosts a wealth of water and land based ecotourism venues and is embraced by the Scuppernong and Alligator Rivers and the Albemarle Sound. The county is poised for residential, recreational, and commercial growth and is aggressively adding the infrastructure necessary for multi-faceted development enhancing an already unparalleled quality of life.