I was always told that “Tarheel” came from the fact that the tar on the road sticks to one’s heels in the summer in North Carolina. Sounded good.
My boss asked how this could be if teh name predates paved roads. I figure there must be a better description of the origin.
I recall that it has something to do with workers (loggers?) putting tar inside their shoes (in the heel) to keep them from slipping off while working.
Of course, I’m a U of MD grad (GO TERPS!!!) and hope that the truth of the “tarheel” is just as silly as my story.
Si non e vero, e ben trovato.
IIRC, it actually had to do with shipbuilding. In the days of wooden ships, NC provided a lot of the wood and pine tar (used to seal the ships hull) during construction.
As I post this, the talk show guest on WPTF 680 AM in Raleigh, NC is the author of “Y’all Spoken Here”. This topic came up, and he endorsed the Pine Tar explanation. He also noted there is a controversy whether it is one word or two.
OK, here’s the version I heard…
During the War of the Revolution (between the colonists (who eventually become the U.S.) and the British), some British military person (unknown?) commented that the fighters from North Carolina “stuck” to the British (hounded, pursued, badgered) “like tar on the heel of a boot”.
The North Carolinians took this as a complement, and proudly referred to themselves as “tarheels”.
And Spirtle, I may hate the holes more, being a Dookie, but you may hate Dookies mare than TarHoles lately. Who knows?
Another cite, a teensy bit different from Uncle Bill’s.
I don’t hate Dookies at all, especially after Saturday’s homecoming game!! :D:D:D