Raleigh, North Carolina

**Raleigh** ( ) is the capital city of North Carolina as well as the county seat of Wake County.It is the second most populated city in North Carolina, after Charlotte. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. The area is also nicknamed "The Triangle".

Raleigh is part of the Research Triangle area, which includes Durham and Chapel Hill. The "Triangle" nickname began after the 1959 plan and construction of the Research Triangle Park, in Durham and Wake Counties. It is in the middle of the three cities and their universities.

The Research Triangle area makes up the U.S. Census Bureau's Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill Combined Statistical Area (CSA). It had an estimated population of 2,242,324 in 2020.

## History

Raleigh was made in 1770. In 1788, it became North Carolina's state capital. The first state fair happened in 1853 and has continued to happen every year. Raleigh was not hurt by the Civil War. It did not grow much after the Civil War.

In the early 1900s, Raleigh had streetcars, but they got rid of them later. Raleigh got its first TV station in 1956. In 1959, the Research Triangle Park was built. This caused people to move to the area for the jobs. In the late 1900s, Interstate 40 and Interstate 440 (freeways)were built, helping traffic. Since the late 1900s, Raleigh has grown quickly.

### November 28, 1988 tornado

On November 28, 1988, Raleigh was hit by a F4 tornado. The tornado formed after a very warm late November day. A line of thunderstorms that was spotted over the Charlotte area during the afternoon hours hit Raleigh just after 1:00 a.m. ET, however the National Weather Service (NWS) issued no tornado or severe thunderstorm watches for the area. They believed the conditions had not support the right for a tornado. There were two fatalities in the city of Raleigh, and four in total.

### 2011 tornado

On April 16, 2011, an EF3 tornado struck Raleigh, killing 24 people in North Carolina and four in Raleigh.

## Geography

Raleigh is in north-central North Carolina. It is in a hilly area. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a size of 149.60 square miles (387.5 km<sup>2</sup>). 148.54 square miles (384.7 km<sup>2</sup>) is land and 1.07 square miles (2.8 km<sup>2</sup>) (0.72%) is water. The Neuse River goes through the northeastern part of the city. Most of the city is in Wake County, but a small part of Raleigh is in Durham County.

### Cityscape

Raleigh is divided into many areas, and each of them use a Raleigh address and a ZIP code that begins with the numbers 276.

## Climate

Raleigh has a mild climate. The summers are hot, with an average high of about 90°F (32°C). The winters are cool, with an average high of about 50°F (10°C). It snows about twice a year with a total of six inches (15 centimeters). Raleigh also gets around 45 inches of rain.

## Transportation

Raleigh has a lot of good transportation. Some freeways are Interstate 40, I-440, and I-540. Some highways are U.S. Route 1, 64, and 70, and N.C. highway 50. Raleigh also has a Amtrak station and a big airport.

## Other websites

- Official website of Raleigh, NC
- Raleigh Chamber of Commerce
- From Crossroads to Capitol: the Founding and Early History of Raleigh, N.C.

## Infobox (settlement)

- **name**: Raleigh
- **settlement type**: List of capitals in the United States, State capital city
- **nickname**: City of Oaks, Raleigh Wood, Oak City
- **image skyline**: Raleigh photo collage.jpg
- **image caption**: Clockwise from top left: North Carolina State University Memorial Bell Tower, NC State bell tower, Former Monument at the North Carolina State Capitol (now removed), houses in Boylan Heights (Raleigh, North Carolina), Boylan Heights, houses in Historic Oakwood, statue of Sir Walter Raleigh, skyline of the downtown, Fayetteville Street (Raleigh), Fayetteville Street, and the Warehouse (Raleigh), warehouse district
- **image seal**: Seal of Raleigh, North Carolina.svg
- **image blank emblem**: City of Raleigh logo.svg
- **blank emblem type**: Logo
- **image map**: Wake County North Carolina incorporated and unincorporated areas Raleigh highlighted.svg
- **map caption**: Location in Wake County, North Carolina, Wake County and the state of North Carolina
- **pushpin map**: USA North Carolina#USA
- **pushpin map caption**: Location within North Carolina##Location within the United States
- **pushpin relief**: yes
- **subdivision type**: Country
- **subdivision name**: United States
- **subdivision type1**: List of states and territories of the United States, State
- **subdivision name1**: North Carolina
- **subdivision type2**: List of counties in North Carolina, Counties
- **subdivision name2**: Wake County, North Carolina, Wake, Durham County, North Carolina, Durham
- **government type**: Council–manager government, Council–manager
- **governing body**: Raleigh City Council
- **leader title**: Mayor
- **leader name**: Mary-Ann Baldwin
- **leader party**: Democratic Party (United States), D
- **leader title1**: Raleigh City Council, Council
- **established title**: Municipal charter, Chartered
- **established date**: December 31, 1794
- **named for**: Sir Walter Raleigh
- **total type**: Total
- **unit pref**: Imperial
- **area total km2**: 387.5
- **area land km2**: 384.7
- **area water km2**: 2.8
- **area total sq mi**: 149.6
- **area land sq mi**: 148.5
- **area water sq mi**: 1.1
- **area water percent**: 0.72
- **population rank**: List of United States cities by population, 41st in the United States
List of municipalities in North Carolina, 2nd in North Carolina
- **population total**: 467665
- **population as of**: 2020 United States census, 2020
- **population density sq mi**: 3148.3
- **population density km2**: 1215.6
- **population urban**: 1,106,646 (US: List of United States urban areas, 43rd)
- **population density urban km2**: 770.1
- **population density urban sq mi**: 1,994.6
- **population metro**: 1413982 (US: List of metropolitan statistical areas, 42nd)
- **population demonym**: Raleighite
- **timezone**: Eastern Time Zone (North America), EST
- **utc offset**: –05:00
- **timezone dst**: Eastern Daylight Time, EDT
- **utc offset dst**: –04:00
- **elevation ft**: 331
- **postal code type**: ZIP Codes
- **area code type**: North American Numbering Plan, Area code(s)
- **area code**: Area code 919, 919, Area code 984, 984
- **blank name**: Federal Information Processing Standards, FIPS code
- **blank info**: 37-55000
- **blank1 name**: Geographic Names Information System, GNIS feature ID
- **blank1 info**: 2404590
- **blank2 name**: Major airport
- **blank2 info**: Raleigh–Durham International Airport