North Carolina, nicknamed "The Tar Heel State," is a state located in the Southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south; Tennessee to the west; and Virginia to the north. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte. Other major cities are Greensboro, Durham, Winston-Salem, Fayetteville, Cary, Wilmington, High Point, and Asheville. North Carolina entered the Union on Nov. 21, 1789 and is the 12th state of the U.S.