North Carolina is a state located in the Southeastern United States along its Atlantic Seaboard. It was one of the original Thirteen Colonies, and the home of the first English colony in the Americas. It was also the location of the first successful powered heavier-than-air flight by the Wright brothers at Kill Devil Hills near Kitty Hawk in 1903. Today, it is a fast-growing state with an increasingly diverse economy and population. As of July 1, 2006, the population estimate is 8,856,505[3] - a 10% increase since April 1, 2000. North Carolina is the 3rd most populous U.S. state in the southeast, behind Florida and Georgia. North Carolina is a state in the United States. Its capital is Raleigh and its largest city is Charlotte.