- 1664 Albemarle County formed (original, extinct)
- 1668 Albemarle County subdivided into Carteret, Berkeley, & Shaftesbury Precincts
- 1681 Shaftesbury Precinct renamed Chowan Precinct
- 1722 Bertie Precinct formed from Chowan Precinct
- 1739 Bertie Precinct becomes Bertie County
- 1741 Edgecombe County formed from Bertie County
- 1746 Granville County formed from Edgecombe County
- 1754 Creation of Bertie Precinct, Edgecombe County, & Granville County repealed by King George II, in Privy Council
- 1756 Bertie , Edgecombe, & Granville re-created
- 1764 Bute County (extinct) formed from Granville County
- 1779 Franklin County formed from Bute County (extinct)
- 1787 Franklin County gains land from Wake County
- 1875 Franklin County gains land from Granville County
- 1881 Franklin County loses land to help form Vance County
