Kahtenuaka Territories
This map illustrates three overlapping geographic layers central to the history and present-day engagement of the Tuscarora Indians of Kahtenuaka Territories (TIOKT).
The lightest shading depicts the Historical Kahtenuaka Territories, covering the Coastal Plain river basins and traditionally occupied lands stretching from the Roanoke River system to the Great Pee Dee River in present-day eastern North Carolina and South Carolina. These lands include cultural areas connected to the Tuscarora, Coree, Mattamuskeet, Machapunga, Neusiok, Pamlico, Waccamaw, and our other allied communities.
A second shading identifies the Core Communities of Residence, including Robeson and Scotland Counties in North Carolina and adjoining Marlboro and Dillon Counties in South Carolina—locations where many TIOKT citizens reside today.
A third shading highlights the TIOKT Economic Development Regions, representing places of active partnership and forward-looking investment. These include Craven, Hyde, and Dare Counties in North Carolina, as well as Marlboro and Dillon Counties in South Carolina. Examples of projects include ongoing partnerships with the Roanoke Island Historical Association (RIHA), which produces The Lost Colony historical drama, as well as the New Bern Historical Society.
Together, these layers encompass both the deep historical presence of the Kahtenuaka People across the eastern Carolinas and the contemporary strategic regions critical to cultural, educational, and economic initiatives.
1. Historical Kahtenuaka Territories (Light Blue) These lands represent the broad ancestral territories inhabited and used by the Tuscarora and allied peoples—including the Coree, Mattamuskeet, Bear River, Machapunga, Neusiok, Pamlico, Waccamaw, and others. These territories span the Coastal Plan from the Roanoke to the northern side of the Pee Dee River, and to the coast, including our old reservation site at Lake Mattamuskeet and numerous archaeological sites throughout the Coastal Plain. Historical shading covers all listed NC and SC counties between the Roanoke and Great Pee Dee Rivers.
2. Core Communities of Residence (Dark Blue) These counties represent the places where TIOKT citizens live most densely today, primarily straddling the North Carolina-South Carolina border. They include Robeson and Scotland Counties in NC, and Marlboro and Dillon Counties in SC.
3. TIOKT Economic Development Areas (Yellow) These areas reflect present-day TIOKT partnerships and economic initiatives in traditional territories of the Tuscarora and allied tribes—particularly around historically important areas along the Inner Banks and rivers in Craven, Dare, and Hyde Counties in NC) and Marlboro and Dillon Counties in SC.