Person County, as we know it today,  was first part of Edgecombe County in 1746; part of  Granville County from 1746-1752; included in Orange County until 1778, and even part of Caswell County until 1791/1792. By dividing Caswell County into two squares–each side measuring approximately twenty (20) miles in length, two counties of 400–square miles were formed. 

The county was named for General Thomas Person, a Revolutionary War Patriot, who made significant contributions to Person County and surround areas. He was a trustee of the University of North Carolina, donating large sums of money to the institution and being recognized by the construction of Person Hall.

Lieutenant Colonel Stephen Moore (fondly bestowed the title of General) was another  Revolutionary War hero of note, commanding troops in Person County. The story is told of his riding to the top of hill, admiring the beauty of the view and vowing to return to his "Lost Eden" after the war. In 1793 he purchased property in the southern part of the county and named it Mt. Tirzah (Mount Beautiful) or "General Moore's Mountain."  The old home is still located at its original site and owned by a descendant. The front porch overlooks the same inspiring view.  Moore was buried on a nearby hill.

Person County was a well–established plantation center before the Civil War. Crops included tobacco, cotton, corn, wheat, oats, fruits, vegetables, cattle, hogs and sheep—many of the same crops grown here today. 

During the Civil War, Person County supplied 800 to 1000 soldiers to the Confederate cause. A granite monument on the Person County Courthouse lawn honors E. Fletcher Satterfield, who advanced the Confederate flag at Gettysburg. After the war, the area's large plantations were divided into many small farms.

J.A. Long, W.W. Kitchin, A.R. Foushee, J.S. Bradsher, J.C. Pass, W.F. Reade, and R.E. Long were key leaders who helped make a transition to a more diversified economic base after the Civil War. The Norfolk and Western Railroad Company was a major influence around 1890, facilitating the addition of tobacco processing plants and warehouses. Although the processing plants disappeared many years ago, a few of the warehouses still stand.

J.A. Long established Peoples Bank in 1891 and the Roxboro Cotton Mills in 1899, later  known as Tultex Yarns. Long died in 1915 but was succeeded by his son, J.A. Long, Jr., who began attracting new business to Roxboro. Baker Company opened here in 1923, making textiles a major contributor to the local economy. Baker was merged with Collins and Aikman Corporation (C&A), becoming a major industry in Person County.

Lake Hyco and Lake Mayo became major forces in the economic equation here. Person County contains parts of three major river basins:  the Neuse, the Roanoke and the Tar, providing essential clean drinking water to the south and east of the state. Rivers coursing over this scenic plateau and forming numerous valleys include the Tar, Little, Flat, Mayo and Hyco. The area's ridges are not narrow and sharp like those in much of the Piedmont, and the gullies and ditches are not as abrupt. The land gathers into strong swells, small enough to represent the flat plateaus of the Piedmont yet intersecting with wide meadows. Person County claims two small mountains—Mt. Tirzah and Hagars Mountain.

Roxboro is the only incorporated municipality in the county although there nine townships, many with community centers or postal offices. The Town or Roxboro was chartered Jan. 9, 1855. An annexation in 1998 brought the town's population to 8000 and the county's latest census registers 33,000.