That a new county is hereby laid off and established, to be formed out of portions of Currituck and Tyrrell and Hyde Counties, bounded as follows, to wit: Beginning in the north of Long Shoals River at a point on the north side of said river known as Rawls' Point, thence running up said river to the dividing line between the Counties of Hyde and Tyrrell, thence running west said line to Alligator River, thence running the various courses of said river to its mouth, thence running a course across the Albemarle and Currituck Sounds, so as to strike a point on the Currituck Sound known as Lone Point of Marsh, thence running a northeast by east course to the Atlantic Ocean, thence running south along the sea beach to Hatteras Inlet, thence running a direct course across the Pamlico Sound to the place of beginning.
(Pub. Laws 1869-70, ch. 36, § 1.)