As early as 1585, the first English explorers traveled to the area that would become Beaufort County, but it was not until the 1690s that the first settlements were established. In 1705, the Town of Bath was founded as the first town in North Carolina.

The region had a number of names until 1712, when the county was named after Henry Somerset, Duke of Beaufort. The settlement of Washington was started in the 1770s by James Bonner on his farm, which was located on the Pamlico and Tar Rivers. Originally named the “Forks of the Tar”, Washington was given its current name in 1776 to honor General George Washington. Washington is the first town in the United States to be named for the country’s first president, thus it sometimes goes by the name of “Original Washington”.

Washington was incorporated as a town by the assembly at Hillsboro in 1782. In 1875, the county seat was transferred from Bath to Washington.

Washington is located at the intersection of US Highway 17 and US Highway 264 and is, in many ways, a typical small North Carolina town. The town has new residential and commercial development on its major corridors and its downtown is still a destination for shopping, dining, and socializing.

However, in many other ways, Washington has untapped potential and assets that many communities lack that make it far from typical. Much of this potential is its proximity to the Pamlico and Tar rivers. Having the first “big water” opportunity from the Raleigh/Durham area, the County has attracted new residents, including retirees. Washington is also attracting interests in investment in the community as a whole and in Washington’s downtown, which is ideally located on the waterfront of the Pamlico River.