Sometimes, when the puzzle pieces are not fitting, I go looking again. This is how it finally stuck in my head that as years went by boundaries changed. Names in one place now, might be another name years before - but the same place.
So I make it a practice to review the North Carolina maps of the particular time period of the person that I am researching.
The newest county in North Carolina is Avery, established in 1911.
While the first counties were Albemarle, Clarendon and Craven in 1664. (My Counties)
There are also counties that were established then dissolved. So if county names are not one of the current 100 counties, look for extinct counties. (Remembering the North Carolina Counties that No Longer Exist)
Here are a few resources that might help:
This 13-page typed document gives a history of the settlement of McDowell County, including some names of those who settled around the county seat, as well as the outlying areas.
About 1730, a man named Edmonson explored what is now McDowell County, North Carolina and is earliest know record of this area's exploration. Many had made their way into the Upper basin of the Catawba River, near what is now Old Fort, by 1740. This made Davidson's Fort the westernmost stockade for settler's. NC Digital Library McDowell County
North Carolina History County Formation Time Map 1664 - 1911 by Kelly Agan
NCpedia North Carolina Counties
NCpedia County formation Dates and Parent Counties
NCpedia Formation of Tennessee (Important to search neighboring States, especially if the families you are researching live near state lines)
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