Tick Bite is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

on the

Contentnea Creek Contentnea Creek is a major tributary of the Neuse River in North Carolina, USA. It is part of the Neuse River Basin, and flows for 91 miles between the Buckhorn Reservoir (confluence of Moccasin and Turkey Creeks), where it begins, and Grifton, ...

near Grifton in Lenoir County,

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

, United States. The only business in the community was a

quarry A quarry is a type of open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some jurisdictions to reduce their envi ...

Tick Bite was decimated by

Hurricane Floyd Hurricane Floyd was a very powerful Cape Verde hurricane which struck the Bahamas and the East Coast of the United States. It was the sixth named storm, fourth hurricane, and third major hurricane in the 1999 Atlantic hurricane season. Floyd tr ...

in 1999. Contentnea Creek, which runs parallel to much of the town, before emptying into the

Neuse River The Neuse River ( , Tuscarora: Neyuherú·kęʔkì·nęʔ) is a river rising in the Piedmont of North Carolina and emptying into Pamlico Sound below New Bern. Its total length is approximately , making it the longest river entirely contained in No ...

, surged to levels that had not been seen (as estimated by county and state officials) in 500 years. The flooding set a new "500 year flood plain" for the area. Eagle Swamp, a tributary of Contentnea Creek, joins here. Tick Bite has a rich history as part of the homelands of the Tuscarora Indians and the location of Cowards Bridge, a major bridge on the road from Kinston to New Bern. During the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, troops were located at the bridge with earthen breastworks to protect the bridge from attack.

References

Unincorporated communities in North Carolina Unincorporated communities in Lenoir County, North Carolina Hurricane Floyd {{LenoirCountyNC-geo-stub