Chatham Co., NC
History
Some of the first settlers of what would become the county were English Quakers, who settled along the Haw and Eno Rivers. The county was formed in 1771 from Orange County. It was named, like Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1758, for William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham, who served as British Prime Minister from 1766 to 1768 and opposed harsh colonial policies.In 1907, parts of Chatham County and Moore County were combined to form Lee County.
Modern Day Adjacent Counties
Chatham is bordered by Orange County on the north, Durham on the northeast, Wake to the east, Harnett on the southeast, Lee on the south, Moore on the southwest, Randolph in the west and Alamance to the northwest.Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chatham_County,_North_Carolina
The Chatham County Register of Deeds now has deeds online back to 17 Jan 1771 at http://www.chathamncrod.org/welcome.asp