Affiliate disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you use them, at no extra cost to you. Our editorial recommendations are independent of these relationships.
North Carolina County
Duplin County, North Carolina
Duplin Winery and North Carolina's wine country capital - from Duplin Winery in Rose Hill (the largest winery on the East Coast - Duplin Winery produces muscadine wines from North Carolina's native grape variety, selling millions of bottles annually and making Duplin County the center of North Carolina's wine industry) to the county's extraordinary hog and poultry production (Duplin County is consistently North Carolina's top hog-producing county - the county's hog population of roughly 2.3 million animals in a county of 59,000 people represents one of the highest ratios of hogs to humans of any county in the United States) and the Coharie Tribe's homeland.
Affiliate disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you use them, at no extra cost to you. Our editorial recommendations are independent of these relationships.
What do you need to do?
Tell us your goal and we'll guide you step-by-step to the right office, forms, and official resources.
Office: Duplin County Fire and Emergency Management – 209 Seminary Street, Kenansville, NC 28349 | Non-Emergency: (910) 296-2160 | Emergency: 911 | Hours: Mon–Fri 8 AM–5 PM
Services: All-hazards prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery; oversees a Fire Marshal Division managing 25 fire departments countywide; maintains Hyper-Reach emergency alert notifications
Related: Duplin County Communications (E-911 Addressing and 911 Dispatching).
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-117 and NC-11/24/50 serve Kenansville, the county seat, in the coastal plain of southeastern North Carolina
Transit: Duplin County Transportation Department – rural transit system, fleet of 14 ADA-compliant vehicles.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Duplin County Building Inspections Department – accessible via duplinnc.gov
Services: Building code enforcement and permit issuance for the growth and safety of Duplin County properties
Related: All Code, Plan, and Permit Reviews for Fire/Emergency Management submittals must be made by email; plan reviews take up to 7 business days once invoiced fees are paid.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
County VSO: Duplin County Veterans Services Office – Kenansville, NC – assists veterans and dependents with filing claims and gathering documentary evidence for benefits before the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
Libraries
LIBRARIES
System: Duplin County Public Library System – 6 locations
Main Branch: Kenansville Headquarters Library – Kenansville, NC
Related: Additional branches serve Albertson, Beulaville, Faison, Rose Hill, and Warsaw – confirm current hours for each branch directly with the county.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Duplin County is genuinely and proudly home to DUPLIN WINERY, North Carolina’s oldest continuously operating winery and the largest producer of muscadine wine anywhere in the world; the winery’s roots trace back to the early 1950s, when the Canandaigua Wine Company opened a South Carolina plant and began contracting with Carolina farmers, including the Fussell family of tiny Rose Hill, to grow muscadine grapes; in 1972, brothers D.J. Fussell Sr. and his sibling planted their first 30 acres of muscadine vines, not realizing the legacy they were beginning – when Canandaigua’s contract fell through a few years later, D.J. Fussell Sr. converted his old construction warehouse into a small winemaking operation, officially founding Duplin Winery in 1975 (some sources cite 1976); the business struggled for its first two decades, with North Carolina legislation eventually offering a crucial tax break to in-state wine bottlers that helped the winery survive its leanest years; everything changed in 1995, when scientific research revealed that wine consumed in moderation could help prevent heart attacks and strokes – and that muscadine grapes, the very grape Duplin specialized in, contained the highest levels of heart-healthy resveratrol of any grape variety studied (Duplin’s own Scuppernong Blush was found by a Campbell University study to contain 74.45 parts per million of resveratrol, compared to just 28.0 ppm in a comparable French Bordeaux); sales exploded as a result, climbing from roughly 15,000 cases in 1995 to nearly 175,000 by 2005, and Duplin Winery has continued to grow ever since – the winery’s home facility in Rose Hill today boasts a 1.6-million-gallon tank capacity, produces roughly 450,000 cases annually across more than 36 varieties, and ranks among the 40 largest wineries in the entire world, drawing over a million visitors a year to its tasting rooms; along with its own 1,600 acres of North Carolina vineyards, the winery sources additional grapes from suppliers across six states, and has expanded with additional tasting-room locations in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina (2015) and Panama City Beach, Florida (2023); the muscadine grape itself carries deep historical significance for North Carolina – its close relative, the Scuppernong, is recognized as the very first grape ever cultivated in the United States and serves today as North Carolina’s official state fruit
Notes: Duplin Winery’s genuine, extensively documented status as North Carolina’s oldest operating winery and the world’s largest muscadine wine producer – built from a converted construction warehouse into a 1.6-million-gallon operation – is one of the most significant agricultural and culinary heritage sites found anywhere in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
GIS Portal: Duplin County GIS – accessible via duplinnc.gov
Parcel Search: Duplin County Tax Department
Addressing/911: Coordinated through Duplin County Communications, E-911 Addressing
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Facility: Duplin County Animal Services (DCAS) – 287 Fairgrounds Drive, Kenansville, NC 28349 | (910) 296-2159 | Email: [email protected] | Hours: Tue–Fri 12–5 PM, Sat 10 AM–4 PM (closed Sun/Mon; animal interactions end 30 minutes before close)
Services: Adoptions are walk-in only, no appointment needed (reclaim/surrender requires a scheduled appointment); daily rabies vaccinations available for $10 during business hours; female/male dog adoption $140 (includes rabies/5-way shots, bordetella, mandatory spay/neuter); cat adoption $115 (includes rabies/FVRCP shots, mandatory spay); all adopted animals must be spayed/neutered within 30 days
Related: Duplin County Humane Society – PO Box 88, Kenansville, NC, (910) 798-1694, a separate nonprofit organization.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Duplin County Solid Waste and Recycling Department – collects, recycles, and disposes of solid waste countywide
Environmental Complaints: NC Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) – deq.nc.gov
NOTES
Duplin County is genuinely home to Duplin Winery, North Carolina’s oldest operating winery and the world’s largest producer of muscadine wine, founded in 1975 from a converted construction warehouse in Rose Hill. All contact information above was sourced from official county, city, library, and shelter pages as of this writing; phone numbers and hours should be reconfirmed directly with the relevant office before a visit.
About Duplin County
Duplin County is North Carolina’s most paradoxical agricultural county – home to the East Coast’s largest winery and the nation’s highest concentration of hog production per capita, making it simultaneously North Carolina’s wine capital and its most intensive livestock county.
Duplin Winery in Rose Hill – producing muscadine wines from North Carolina’s native Scuppernong and Carlos varieties – is the largest winery on the East Coast by volume, selling millions of bottles annually through retail and mail-order channels.
Duplin County’s hog population of approximately 2.3 million animals – in a county of fewer than 60,000 people – reflects the industrial-scale livestock production that has made eastern North Carolina the second-largest hog producing region in the United States.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Duplin County Tax Office at 118 Duplin Street, Kenansville, NC 28349, phone 910-296-2110. NC property assessed at 100% of market value. Appeal to Board of Equalization and Review.
Courts & Legal
Duplin County Clerk of Superior Court at 118 Duplin Street, Kenansville, NC 28349, phone 910-296-2126, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
CLERK OF SUPERIOR COURT
118 Duplin St, Kenansville, NC 28349
(910) 296-2104
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Duplin County Clerk of Superior Court, Kenansville (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Duplin County genealogical society was confirmed in available directories.
Probate & Estate
Losing someone and having to deal with courts and paperwork at the same time is hard. This section won’t make that easier, but it should tell you what to expect, what it costs, and where to go – so at least you’re not walking in blind.
Where to go
Duplin County Clerk of Superior Court – Estates Division 112 Duplin Street, Kenansville, NC 28349 (910) 296-1686 Duplin County is in southeastern North Carolina, seated in Kenansville.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
North Carolina has NOT adopted the Uniform Probate Code. Probate is handled by the Clerk of Superior Court – an elected official who serves as the ex officio judge of probate – in the county where the decedent was domiciled, under Chapter 28A of the North Carolina General Statutes. Unlike most states, North Carolina does not have a separate probate court; the Clerk’s Estates Division handles all wills, estates, and guardianship matters.
Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property of Decedent (“collection by affidavit,” N.C. Gen. Stat. § 28A-25-1 and § 28A-25-1.1) – available when the decedent’s personal property, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed $20,000, or $30,000 if the surviving spouse is the sole heir and receives all property covered by the statute. Filed at least 30 days after death, using Form AOC-E-203B. Real property CANNOT be transferred through this process. If the decedent left a will, the will must first be admitted to probate and a certified copy attached to the affidavit.
Summary Administration – an abbreviated procedure available only when the surviving spouse is the sole heir.
Full Estate Administration – required for larger or more complex estates; the personal representative (called “executor” if named in a will, “administrator” if intestate) is appointed by the Clerk and receives Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration.
Step 2: filing for administration
File the will (if any) and a petition with the Clerk of Superior Court, Estates Division, in the county where the decedent was domiciled.
The Clerk appoints the personal representative and issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration.
The personal representative publishes notice to creditors; North Carolina’s creditor claim period is typically at least three months from first publication.
The personal representative inventories the estate’s assets, pays debts and expenses, and distributes the remaining assets according to the will or North Carolina’s intestacy law, reporting back to the Clerk at key stages.
The estate is closed once a final accounting is filed and approved by the Clerk.
What it costs
Filing fees for full estate administration generally follow the statewide statutory schedule, which scales with the estate’s value.
North Carolina repealed its state estate tax in 2013. There is no state estate tax and no state inheritance tax – only the federal estate tax could apply, and only to very large estates.
Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
315 Beasley St, Kenansville, NC 28349
(910) 296-2126
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
224 Seminary St, Kenansville, NC 28349
(910) 296-2170
Office
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Health Department
Duplin County Health Department, 340 Seminary St, Kenansville, NC 28349
(910) 296-2130
Social Services
Duplin County Department of Social Services, 424 North Main St, Kenansville, NC 28349
(910) 296-2170
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Duplin County Health Department – Kenansville, NC
Services: Immunizations, WIC, environmental health, food and lodging inspections, vital records
Editorial independence: CountyOffices maintains strict editorial independence from our affiliate partners. Our content is researched from official government sources. Affiliate relationships do not influence our recommendations or the information we publish.
Editorial Trust
5 official sources cited
Reviewed by CountyOffices Editorial Team
Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Kenansville
Population: 49,000
Established: 1750
Tier: 3
Public Records
TruthFinder
Search public records for Duplin County residents.
