1. In 1960, a sit-in protest took place in Greensboro. Four African American students from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University sat down at a segregated lunch counter in a Woolworth's store and refused to leave. This sparked a wave of similar protests across the country and ignited the Civil Rights Movement.

2. On February 7, 1984, James Hunt Jr. became the first popularly elected Governor of North Carolina. He was a Democrat who focused on improving education and the economy during his two terms in office.

3. The North Carolina Symphony gave its first concert on February 7, 1932, in Raleigh. The orchestra has since become one of the most prominent in the country, with a full season of performances throughout the state each year.

4. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was founded on February 7, 1789. It is the oldest public university in the United States and has a long history of academic and athletic excellence.

5. In 1963, the first African American woman was elected to the North Carolina General Assembly. Katie Dorsett, a Democrat from Guilford County, served in the House of Representatives for 20 years and championed education, health care, and civil rights.