1. On February 9, 1861, North Carolina held a statewide vote to decide whether to secede from the Union. The majority voted in favor of secession, making North Carolina the last state to join the Confederacy.

2. In 1960, four black college students from North Carolina A&T State University staged a sit-in at a segregated Woolworth's lunch counter in Greensboro. The protest sparked a nationwide movement of sit-ins and other nonviolent civil rights actions. February 9 has since been commemorated as "Greensboro Four Day" in North Carolina.

3. On February 9, 1895, the Catawba Indian Tribe of North Carolina was formally recognized by the state government. This recognition gave the tribe legal status and provided a basis for their ongoing efforts to preserve their cultural heritage and land rights.

4. Charlotte-born author and civil rights activist Julius Chambers was born on February 9, 1936. Chambers played a key role in numerous landmark court cases challenging institutionalized racism in North Carolina, including the landmark Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education case. He died in 2013.

5. North Carolina's first black Lieutenant Governor, Robert Preyer, was inaugurated on February 9, 1965. Preyer served as Lieutenant Governor under Governor Dan K. Moore from 1965 to 1969. He later served as a judge on the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina.