About Wilmington

Wilmington is a city in New Hanover County, North Carolina, United States. The population was estimated at 100,000 as of 2006; The Census Bureau 2006 estimates set the population of the Wilmington Metropolitan area at 326,166, making it the sixth largest metropolitan area in the state.date=September 2007 It is the county seat of New Hanover County. It was named in honor of Spencer Compton, the Earl of Wilmington, who was Prime Minister under George II.

Wilmington was settled on the Cape Fear River and offers its historic downtown with it's one mile long Riverwalk as a main tourist attraction. It is minutes away from nearby beaches. The National Trust for Historic Preservation named Wilmington, North Carolina one of its [http://www2.preservationnation.org/dozen_distinctive_destinations/2008/Wilmington 2008 Dozen Distinctive Destinations®]. City residents have the advantage of living nestled between a river and the ocean.

Wilmington is also known as the childhood home of basketball great Michael Jordan and journalist David Brinkley; famous Wilmington natives include Sonny Jurgenson, Charles Kuralt, Charlie Daniels, Roman Gabriel, Meadowlark Lemon, Trot Nixon, Alge Crumpler and Hilarie Burton. It is also home to the WWII Battleship USS North Carolina (BB-55). Now a war memorial, the ship is open to public tours and is on display across from the downtown port area. The town is home to the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, the Wilmington Hammerheads USL soccer team, the training camp site for the Charlotte Bobcats and the [http://www.capefearmuseum.com Cape Fear Museum]. The city has become a major center of American film and television production; motion pictures such as Blue Velvet, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Empire Records, Cape Fear, Black Knight, 28 Days, The Crow, and some of Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End as well as television shows such as The WB's Dawson's Creek and One Tree Hill have been produced there.