The earliest European settlers that came into Carolina were "illegals" from Virginia, who were primarily English and Welsh, with a few Scots-Irish as well. Once it became "legal" to settle in the new colony, again this first group was from Virginia and they settled in the Albemarle region along the mouths of the many rivers. Of course, they shared the land with the Native Americans already there. The second group to arrive landed along the Ashley River in South Carolina - and the land in between slowly began to fill up - with two distinct cultures.

During the Lords Proprietors' control of Carolina, there never was a single "gigantic influx" of people. The early settling of Carolina was slow and sporadic. By 1729, there had been only twelve towns established, and two of these had already been abandoned. And, by 1729, those that had come to Carolana mostly lived within 50-75 miles from the coast - there just weren't many rivers that were navigable too far inland and the cutting of new roads was an expensive and laborious task, with few in place.

But, people did come - some picked up and left soon, thanks to the heat, the humidity, and the mosquitos - but soon, more and more stayed. Sooner still, because of their diverse backgrounds, religions, and personal outlooks, things got quite interesting, to say the least. This section will attempt to describe all these diverse groups - perhaps in too general of terms for some folks - to "paint a picture" of how Carolina grew and how it survived, thanks to everyone who stuck it out.