Northern Carolina, like Rhode Island in the North, drew the region's discontented masses. As the two locales evolved separately and as their differing geographies and inhabitants steered contrasting courses, calls for a formal split emerged. In 1712, North Carolina and South Carolina became distinct colonies.
North and South Carolina were never one complete state that fractured into two but rather a large, unmanageable colony that split into two colonies and subsequently became two separate states after the Revolutionary War. Of the two states, NC is actually bigger than SC, but SC is closer to the equator, giving it a warmer climate.
