As many North Carolinians know, much of the comedy film “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby,” starring such famous actors as Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly, was shot here in North Carolina. Inspired by the quote, “If you ain’t first, you’re last!” from the lead character Ricky Bobby, I decided to research our state’s superlatives.
And, as it turns out, North Carolina is first in quite a few things.
1 – First in flight
An obvious one for natives, and as noted on many license plates, North Carolina is home to the first powered flight. This was achieved in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, on Dec. 17, 1903, when Orville and Wilbur Wright, commonly known as The Wright Brothers, flew their powered airplane 120 feet (36.5 meters) for 12 seconds. Within a few more attempts, they were able to pilot the plane 852 feet (260 meters) for 59 seconds. Their achievement laid the foundation for modern aviation, forever changing travel, navigation, and warfare.
2 – First gold rush
A little less known to the world, but North Carolina is home to the first gold rush in North America. The North Carolina Gold Rush was first kicked off when word got out that a 12-year-old boy named Conrad Reed discovered a 17-pound gold nugget in Little Meadow Creek, Cabarrus County, North Carolina, in 1799. It was then around 1803 that gold mining operations began in Cabarrus and Mecklenburg counties, quickly spreading around the state and peaking around the 1830s. Without the gold fever in North Carolina, there likely would not have been a California Gold Rush in 1848.
3- First public university
For better or for worse (if you’re a Blue Devil or member of the Wolf Pack), the first public university in North America was no other than the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Chartered in 1789, UNC Chapel Hill began holding courses in 1795, making this state school the first public university to hold classes and graduate students. Some notable Chapel Hill students include James K. Polk, Thomas Wolfe, Andy Griffith, Jeff MacNelly, Michael Jordan, Lewis Black, and Ken Jeong.
4- First miniature golf course
Growing up in North Carolina in the 80s and 90s, it was quite common to see miniature golf courses, especially at touristy spots by the beach. Putt-Putt golf was an adventure for many North Carolina families on Friday or Saturday nights. But did you know that North Carolina is home to the first miniature golf course? This may help explain its popularity across the state. The first miniature golf course was in Pinehurst, North Carolina — known as “The Golf Capital of the World.” The first mini-golf course was named “Thistle Dhu” (pronounced “This’ll Do” in a Scottish accent), and it was founded in 1916, created by wealthy steamship magnate James Barber.
5- First Pepsi-Cola (aka Brad’s Drink)
Although Pepsi-Cola is not the first soda or soft drink, it was the first major challenger to Coca-Cola and became a leader in sodas throughout the world. Their competition sparked what would be known as the first major price war in American business (aka The Cola Wars), helping to drive prices down throughout the 1930s. Pepsi-Cola, originally named Brad’s Drink, was invented in New Bern, North Carolina, in 1893 by pharmacist and businessman Caleb Bradham. It officially became “Pepsi-Cola” in 1898, likely named after the term “dyspepsia,” a medical term for indigestion, because the drink was designed to ease indigestion and boost energy. Unlike Coca-Cola, Pepsi did not contain cocaine but instead had pepsin which is considered a digestive aid (and a related source of the product’s name origin).
6- First forestry school
North Carolina is home to the first forestry school, named the Biltmore Forest School. The school was founded by German forester Dr. Carl A. Schenck and funded by businessman George Washington Vanderbilt II in 1898. Lasting from 1898 to 1913, this original forestry school was located on the Biltmore Estate in the portion of the land that would become Pisgah National Forest in 1916. They taught such practices as sustainable logging, reforestation, and conservation. These efforts directly led to the eventual establishment of the United States Forest Service, government-owned parks (Weeks Act of 1911), and Pisgah National Forest with the assistance of Robert Doughton, Josephus Daniels, and Gifford Pinchot.
7- First state-owned art museum
The first state-owned art museum, located in Raleigh, North Carolina, was The North Carolina Museum of Art (NCMA). Although this museum first opened in 1956, the state began appropriating taxes for it in 1947, taking as much as $1 million (about $14,775,400 in January 2025 terms) to fund the state-owned art. With the joint efforts of Gov. Gregg Cherry (1945–1949), Robert Lee Humber, Gov. Kerr Scott (1949–1953), and the Samuel H. Kress Foundation the museum was able to garner the funds, art, and government backing it needed to open and operate.
The last word
At the end of Talladega Nights, Ricky Bobby’s dad, Reese Bobby played by actor Gary Cole, admits that his intoxicated offhand statement, “If you ain’t first, you’re last,” was a nonsensical philosophy for life. He went on to say, “You can be second, third, fourth… hell, you can even be fifth!”
This clarification by his sobered father helped Ricky realize that being obsessed with coming in first place wasn’t always the best. Instead, Ricky could see that people can choose their successes on their own terms — while keeping core values and integrity intact.
Much is the same for North Carolina — we can be first in many things, but we must keep our values and integrity along the way. Aviation, gold, leisure, and medicine are noble pursuits, while state-controlled education, land, and art are surely the fast lane to a loss of individual control. We can let some other state be first in those.
