Independent Auditors' Consent


The Board of Directors
First Bancorp

We  consent  to  incorporation  by  reference  in  the  Amendment  No.  1 to the
Registration  Statement  of First  Bancorp  on Form S-8  relating  to the  First
Bancorp  1994  Stock  Option  Plan and the  Registration  Statement  on Form S-3
relating to the Dividend  Reinvestment  and Common Stock  Purchase Plan of First
Bancorp,  of our report  dated  January 22, 1999,  relating to the  consolidated
balance  sheets of First  Bancorp and  subsidiaries  as of December 31, 1998 and
1997, and the related consolidated  statements of income,  comprehensive income,
shareholders'  equity  and cash  flows for each of the  years in the  three-year
period ended  December 31, 1998,  which report  appears in the December 31, 1998
Annual Report on Form 10-K of First Bancorp.



/s/KPMG LLP
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KPMG LLP

Raleigh, North Carolina
March 17, 1999