Carteret County
county in North Carolina, United States
Key facts
- Country
- United States
- State
- North Carolina
- Named after
- Sir George Carteret
- Seat
- Beaufort
- Largest community
- Morehead City
- County manager
- Sharon Griffin
- Total
- 1,330.41 sq mi (3,445.7 km )
- Land
- 507.60 sq mi (1,314.7 km )
- Water
- 822.81 sq mi (2,131.1 km ) 61.85%
- Estimate 2025
- 70,469
- Density
- 133.35/sq mi (51.49/km )
- Time zone
- UTC−5 ( Eastern )
- Summer dst
Article
Carteret County (/ˌkɑːr.təˈrɛt/ KAR-tuh-RET or /ˌkɑːr.tɜːrˈɛt/ KAR-tur-ET) is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 67,686. Its county seat is Beaufort. The county was created in 1722 as Carteret Precinct and gained county status in 1739. It was named for Sir George Carteret, one of the 17th century English Lords Proprietor, or for his descendant and heir John Carteret, 2nd Earl Granville.
Carteret County comprises the Morehead City, NC Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the New Bern-Morehead City, NC Combined Statistical Area. Most of the county is part of the Crystal Coast.