Coree

The Coree lived south of the Neuse River in the coastal country around Core Sound and Cape Lookout. Their villages stood among the forests, marshes and waterways of the Carolina coast. John Lawson recorded two of their settlements, Coranine and Raruta, early in the eighteenth century, by which time warfare and disease had greatly reduced their numbers.

In 1711 the Coree joined the Tuscarora and other allies in war against English settlers. The conflict ended in defeat and heavy losses. In 1715 surviving Coree and Machapunga were assigned land at Lake Mattamuskeet, where they shared a village. Others remained among the Tuscarora. The name of the Coree lived on in the sound and barrier banks along the coast of their former homeland.