USA > North Carolina > Alamance County > Some neglected history of North Carolina, being an account of the revolution of the regulators and of the battle of Alamance, the first battle of the American Revolution > Part 2
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Introductory
tirely abandoned in 1693." (Hunter, Sketches of Western North Carolina. )
"In 1707 a company of Huguenots, as the French Protestants were called, settled on the . Trent, and in 1709 the Lords Proprietors grant- ed to Baron de Graffenreidt ten thousand acres of land on the Neuse and Cape Fear rivers for colonization purposes. In a short time after- wards a great number of Germans and about fifteen hundred Swiss followed the Baron and settled at the confluence of the Neuse River ; the town was called 'New Berne,' after Berne in Switzerland, the birth place of De Graffen- reidt. This was the first important introduc- tion into the eastern section of the Province of a most excellent class of liberty-loving peo- ple, whose descendants, wherever their lots were cast in our country, gave illustrious proof of their valor and patriotism during the Revo- lutionary War.
"On September 21, 1711, the Tuscarora In- dians fell upon the settlements along the Roan- oke. Pamlico, and Neuse rivers and massa- cred several hundred of the inhabitants and burned their villages. For three days the sav- ages made war with fire and tomahawk, until stopped by aid sent from Virginia and South! Carolina to assist Governor Edward Hyde in subduing the Indians. In 1718 a treaty of
27
Introductory
peace and friendship was entered into by the planters and the Tuscaroras.
"In 1729 the Lords Proprietors, with the ex- ception of Lord Granville, surrendered to the British Government the Province of Carolina and its government with all its franchises under the patent of Charles II, and their property in the soil, for 2,500 pounds sterling. The popu- lation at that time did not exceed ten thousand inhabitants. George Burrington was governor at the time the sale was made, and on recom- mendation of the Lords Proprietors the Crown reappointed him the first Roval Governor of the Colony of North Carolina. In February, 1731, he officially wrote the Duke . of New Castle ; 'The inhabitants of North Carolina are not in- dustrious, but subtile and crafty to admiration ; always behaved insolently to their governors; some of them, they have imprisoned; drove others out of the country and at other times have set up a governor of their own choice sup- ported by men under arms. These people are neither to be cajoled or outwitted. Whenever any governor attempts to effect anything by such means he loses his time and labor and shows his ignorance.'"
Lord Granville's portion of the colony of Carolina was not laid out in severalty for him until 1734. His portion, being one-eighth, was adjoining the southern boundary of the Prov-
28
Introductory
ince of Virginia. At this time a strong tide of emigration was moving toward the western hills, from the Chowan and Roanoke settle- ments. Already adventurous individuals and even families of hardy pioneers had extended their migrations as far west as the head waters of the Yadkin and Catawba Rivers.
"In 1734 Gabriel Johnston, a Scotchman by birth, and a physician by profession, once a pro- fessor of Oriental Languages in the University of St. Andrew, a man of broad mind and liberal views, was appointed Governor, under whose prudent administration the province increased in population, wealth. and happiness. At the time of its purchase by the Crown the population did not exceed 13,000 ; it was now more than 45.000. About this date a tide of migration began to pour into the Province from Virginia and Maryland. A company from Virginia. headed by James Crump and his son Rowland. a mere lad. settled on the Yadkin River near the mouth of the little Yadkin. Col. Jacob Byrd, of Virginia, with a party of followers located on the Hyco in North Carolina, just across the Virginia line about twenty miles. Nehemiah Hearne, from Summerset, Maryland, emigra- ted to the Province and located at the junction of Rocky River with the Great Yadkin. In 1752 the Moravians from Wachovia, in Ger- many, settled the town of Salem. Their first
29
Introductory
settlement was called 'Bethabara;' the first house erected, however, was their church; on which they placed a bell brought from Wac- hovia.
"In 1754 Arthur Dobbs was appointed Gov- ernor by the Crown. His administration of ten years presented a continued contest between himself and the legislature on frivolous and un- important matters: his high-toned-temper for Royal prerogatives was sternly met by indom- itable resistance on the part of the colonists. The people were grievously oppressed by Lord Granville's land agents, Childs and Corbin. The latter was seized and carried to Enfield. where he was compelled to give bond and se- curity to produce his books and disgorge his il- iegal fees. During the entire administration of Governors Johnston and Dobbs, commencing in 1734 and ending in 1765, a strong tide of emigration had been pouring into the Prov- ince of North Carolina from two opposite di- rections. One current from Pennsylvania, pas- sing down through Virginia, forming settle- ments, and another current coming from the South, was spreading over the inviting lands and expansive domains of the Carolinas. Near the close of Governor Johnston's administra- tion numerous settlements had been made on the beautiful plateau country between the Yad- kin and Catawba Rivers. In 1756 Fort Dobbs
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Introductory
was built, about twenty miles west of Salisbury, for the protection of settlers in this territory.
"In 1764, Governor Dobb's health beginning to fail, he was given a furlough and William- Tryon was commissioned Lieutenant-Governor on October 27, 1764, and on the death of Gov- ernor Dobbs, April 3, 1765, he qualified as Gov- ernor, Commander-in-Chief, and Captain-Gen- eral of the Province of North Carolina. Tryon was a soldier by profession and looked upon the sword as the true sceptre of government. [See Appendix A.] He knew when to flatter and when to threaten : he knew when discretion was the better part of valor : and when to use such force and cruelty as achieved for him from the Cherokee Indians the bloody title of The Great Wolf of North Carolina.' He could use courtesy toward the Assembly, when he desired large appropriations for his magnificent palace : and knew how to bring to bear the blandishments of the female of society of his family, and all the appliances of generous hospitality." ( Wheeler's History of North Carolina, part I. p. 49.)
On March 22, 1765, Great Britain passed the odious Stamp Act. This act produced great excitement throughout the Province. Meetings of the people were held, who, with a unanimity never before heard of, declared they would not submit to the law. The Speaker in the Gen- eral Assembly then in session told the Governor the law would be resisted to "blood and death."
1.
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Introductory
In 1765 the British sloop Viper, with the stamp paper aboard, accompanied by the British man-of-war Diligence, carrying twenty-one guns, arrived at Brunswick. Colonel Ashe, at the head of a concourse of people, proceeded to the Governor's mansion. demanded and arrested Dr. William Houston. the stamp agent for the Province, and compelled him to take oath never to perform the duties of his office. (See Appendix B.) The event of greatest historic importance during Tryon's administra- tion was the organization and revolution of the Regulators and the "Battle of Alamance," the first battle for American liberty and inde- pendence. It is not deemed necessary here to enter into details of the circumstances leading to this unfortunate occurrence. The reader will find in the succeeding chapters a full history of the revolution of the Regulators. Many true. patriots, who did not comprehend the magnitude of their grievances, fought against them. But the principles of right and justice for which they fought could never die. In less than four years all the thirteen colonies were found battling for the same principles, and borne along on the rushing tide of revolu- tion. The men on the seaboard of Carolina, with Colonels Ashe and Waddell at their head, nobly opposed the Stamp Act in 1765, and pre- vented its execution. The patriotic people of
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Introductory
Orange, Granville, and Anson counties in 1766 organized themselves into the famous Regula- tors to enforce their rights and liberties. ( See Appendix C.) The men on the seaboard looked for evils from across the waters, and were pre- pared to resist oppression on their shores before it should reach the soil of the State. The west- ern men were seeking redress for grievances that oppressed them at home, under the misrule of all officers, from the Governor down. Had Waddell, Ashe and Caswell understood all the circumstances, and the yoke of oppression which the Regulators had to bear, they would have acted like Thomas Person of Granville, James Hunter, Harmon Husband, and others of Orange, and favored the distressed, even though they might have felt under obligations to maintain peace and uphold the dignity of the law. "Harmon Husband, the leader of the Regulators, has been denounced by Tryon's apologists as a turbulent and seditious charac- ter. If such he was, then John Ashe and Hugh Waddell, for opposing the Stamp Act laws, were equally seditious and turbulent." ( Hunter, Sketches of Western North Carolina. )
The next greatest event in the provincial his- tory of North Carolina was the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence, signed and pro- claimed on May 20, 1775, at Charlotte, North Carolina.
1
.
CHAPTER I
Early Settlers Inherited Liberty-loving Spirits Which Their Fathers and Forbears of Old Fought for With Cromwell on English Soil; the Province of North Carolina from 1735 to 1740; Unlawful Taxes and Oppressive Government; Want of a Circulating Medium; William Tryon Commissioned Governor, 1764; Passage of the Stamp Act, 1765; Arrival of the Sloops "Diligence" and "Viper"; Governor Tryon's Barbecue; Duel of Simpson and White- hurst: Boston Tea Party; the Building of the Gov- ernor's Palace at Newberne and Description of the Edifice.
"At length the thrill of action drew forth an errand of war, the long-smothered passions which so slowly deepened into a settled convic- tion that peace could never smile upon the Province of North Carolina while the suprem- acy of Great Britain endured. Multiply all assumptions of superiority, all public tokens of contempt, all enforcements of unpalatable law, all restraints upon provincial commerce, and all espionage upon the brainwork which really wrought in behalf of peace, seeking a fair re- conciliation. with guarantees of representation and personal rights, and their product repre- sents that incubus whose dead weight was upon
-
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Some Neglected History
the colonists. It is a historic statement that, the longer a burden remains, the heavier it is felt. It fretted, then aroused, then inspired, and at last set free the pent-up fires which cast it off forever. Rocked to and fro by the heaving of the heart it would smother, at last it was com- pelled to increase in force in proportion as the real vitality of a true soul-life pervaded its nature."
British will was as firm and daring in the child as with the parent.
The legacies of English law, the inheritance of English liberty were inherited by the colonists -their eradication or withdrawal was impossi- ble. The time had passed for compromise or termination of their enjoyment. The issue long before fought out on English soil by Crom- well was bearing fruit in an English ascendency to be renewed under new conditions. And the authority which might have gladly welcomed the prodigious elasticity and growth of the American dependencies as the future glory of Great Britain was used to convert the filial relation into slavery.
"The love of country springing up from the rich soil of domestic affections is a feeling coex- tensive with social union itself. Although a dreary climate, barren lands, treacherous In- dians, and unrighteous laws, wickedly admin- istered, may repress the luxurious growth of
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1707635
Of North Carolina
this sentiment, it will still maintain firm root in the heart and bear with patience most cruel wrongs. When exiled from his fatherland he yearns for it as a child yearns for home, and though he may, by legal oath, renounce and disclaim allegiance to his own and swear fealty to another government, yet the invisible links of patriotism which bind him to his country can- not be severed, his lips and his hands bear false witness against his truthful heart."
Stronger, far, is the sentiment in the bosom of him whose country is a pleasant land, where nature in glorious beauty and rich beneficence woos him on every side; where' education quickens into refining activity the intellect of society and where just laws, rightly adminis- tered, impress all possessions, whether of prop- erty or character, with the broad seal of security. An honest justified pride elevates the spirit of the citizen of a land so favored; makes him a vigilant guardian of its rights and honor; and inspires him with a profound reverence for the heroes and their valorous deeds consecrated by the opinions of the just as the basis upon which its glory rests.
In the Province of North Carolina from 1735 to 1740, while Governor Johnston was in power, Lord Granville's land agents were making trouble with the colonists, and the lawful taxes were many times multiplied by the tax gather-
٢٩/٠ ١٠
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Some Neglected History
ers. There was a lack of currency, no gold or silver, and barely enough English money to pay taxes. Contentions were arising between the rulers and the ruled .: (Col. Rec .. Vol. 8, pp. 395, 396.)
When William Tryon was commissioned Lieutenant-Governor of the Province of North Carolina on October 27. 1764 ( and on the death of Governor Dobbs, April 3, 1765, he qualified as Commander-in-Chief and Captain-General of the Province of North Carolina ) .. like Reho- boam of old he made the burdens of the colonists more grievous. He denied many of the western counties the right of representation and vetoed the acts of the General Assembly at will. (Col. Rec., Vol. 7, pp. 146, 283, 539.)
About 1765 the British Parliament asserted the right to tax the colonists without their con- sent, and early in 1765 was passed the odious Stamp Act. From one end of the Province to the other meetings of the people were held, in which their indignation was forcibly expressed, and with a unanimity never before equaled, be- fore or since. they declared they would not sub- mit to the law.
On the 28th of November, 1765, the British man-of-war Diligence, carrying twenty-one guns, accompanied by the British sloop-of-war Viper, arrived at Brunswick in the Colony of North Carolina, with the stamps on board, but
44.
2
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Stamp Act Riot at Newberne in 1765.
Facing page 30.
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Of North Carolina
her arrival having been anticipated for some time, an armed force from Brunswick and New Hanover counties was on the ground ready to resist the landing of the stamp paper. ( Colo- nel Waddell in North Carolina Booklet, June 10, 1901.)
Two weeks prior to this date, a body of men. on learning that Dr. William Houston, the stamp distributor, was a guest at the Governor's Mansion, surrounded that place and requested to speak with the stamp distributor ; this Gov- ernor Tryon refused. The people then began to make preparations to burn the mansion. When Tryon realized their intentions he asked the leader into his residence. He boldly entered and in a few moments returned with Houston, the stamp distributor. Governor Tryon was then made prisoner in his palace, while Houston was taken to Wilmington and carried before the Mayor, Moses John de Ros- sett, and the Board of Aldermen, in the Court- House, where he was forced to take oath that he would never offer for sale within the borders of the Province of North Carolina any of the King's stamp paper. Here is Houston's resig- nation and comments on same, as published in North Carolina Gazette :
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Some Neglected History
COPY OF MR. WILLIAM HOUSTON'S RESIGNATION OF HIS OFFICE OF STAMP DISTRIBUTOR FOR THE PROVINCE OF NORTH CAROLINA.
I do hereby promise that I will never receive any Stamped paper which may arrive from Europe in conse- quence of any Act lately passed in the Parliament of Great Britain, nor officiate in any means as Stamp Mas- ter or Distributor of Stamps within the Province of North Carolina, either directly or indirectly, and I do hereby notify all the inhabitants of His Majesty's prov- ince of North Carolina, notwithstanding my having re- ceived information of my being appointed to the said stamp office, not to apply hereafter for any stamp paper. or to distribute the same until such time as it will be agreeable to the inhabitants of this Province : Hereby de- claring that I do execute these presents of my own free Will and Accord, without any Equivocation or mental reservation whatsoever
In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 16th day of November, 1765.
WM. HOUSTON,
(Reprinted from North Carolina Gazette, 20th Novem- ber, 1765.)
(November 20.)
(Numb. 58.)
North Carolina Gazette.
WILMINGTON, November 20, 1765.
On Saturday, the 19th of last month, about Seven of the Clock in the evening, near Five Hundred People as- sembled together in this town, and exhibited the effigy of a certain HONOURABLE GENTLEMAN: and after letting it hang by the Neck for some Time, near the Court-House, they made a large Bonfire with a Number of Tar Barrels, &c., and committed it to the flames. The
AMP
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Of North Carolina
reason assigned for the People's dislike to that Gentle- man, was, from being informed of his having several times expressed himself much in favour to the STAMP- DUTY. After the Effigy was consumed, they went to every House in Town, and bro't all the Gentlemen to the Bonfire, and insisted upon their drinking. LIBERTY, PROPERTY, and no STAMP-DUTY, and confusion to Lord B-te and all his adherents, giving three Huzzas at the conclusion of each Toast. They continued together until 12 of the Clock, and then dispersed without doing any Mischief. And on Thursday, 3Ist of the same Month, in the evening, a great Number of People again assembled, and produced an Effigy of Liberty, which they put in a coffin, and marched in solemn Procession with it to the Church Yard, a Drum in mourning beating before them, and the Town Bell. muffled, ringing a doleful Knell at the Same Time: But before they committed the Body to the Ground they thought it advisable to feel its Pulse: and when finding some Remains of life. they re- turned back to a Bonfire ready prepared, placed the Effi- gy in a large Two-arm'd Chair, and concluded the even- ing with great Rejoicings, on finding that LIBERTY had still an existence in the colonies. Not the least injury was offered to any person.
On Saturday, the sixteenth of this Inst., Dr. William Houston, Esq .. Distributor of STAMPS for this Prov- ince, came to this Town. upon which three or four Hun- dred People immediately gathered together, with Drums beating and Colours flying, and repaired to the House where the said Stamp Officer put up at, and insisted upon knowing "Whether he intended to execute his said Office or not?" He told them "that He should be very sorry to execute any Office disagreeable to the People of the Prov- ince." But they, not content with such a Declaration, carried him to the Court-House, where he signed a Resignation satisfactory to the whole.
As soon as the STAMP-OFFICER had comply'd with their desire, they placed him in an Arm-Chair, carried him first around the Court-House, giving three Huzzas at every corner, and then proceeded with him around one of the squares of the town, and sat him down at the door of his Lodgings, formed themselves in a large Circle round him, and gave three Cheers. They then escorted him into the House, where was prepared the best Liquors
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Some Neglected History
to be had. and treated him very genteelly. In the evening a large Bonfire was made, and no person appeared in the Streets without having LIBERTY, in large capital let- ters, in his Hat. They had a large Table near the Bon- fire, well furnish'd with several Sorts of Liquors, where they drank in great Form all the favorite AMERICAN Toasts, giving three Cheers at the conclusion of each. The whole was conducted with great Decorum, and not the least insult offered to any person.
Immediately after the appointed STAMP-MASTER had comply'd with their COMMANDS, they called upon Mr. A. STUART, the printer ( who had not printed the Gazette for some weeks before the STAMP-ACT took Place. it having pleased God to afflict him with a danger- ous fever). When he appeared they ask'd him if "He would continue his Business, as heretofore, and publish a Newspaper ?" He told them that "As he had no stamp'd paper, and as a late ACT of Parliament FORBID the printing on any other paper, He could not." He was then positively told that "IF HE DID NOT, he might expect the same treatment of the STAMP MEN" and de- manded a positive answer. Mr. Stuart then answer'd, "That rather than run the Hazard of Life. being maimed. or have his Printing Office destroy'd, that he would com- ply with their Request;" but took the WHOLE for wit- ness, that he was compelled thereto.
His Excellency our GOVERNOR has been for some time ill of health : but we have the pleasure to say he is now recovering.
Circular letters were sent last week by the Governor to the Principal Inhabitants in this part of the Province, requesting their Presence at his Seat in Brunswick, on Monday last; where, after dinner, his Excellency con- ferr'd with them concerning the STAMP-ACT, the Re- sult of which shall be in our next. .
We hear from New Berne, that the inhabitants burn'd Doctor William Houston in Effigy during the sitting of their Superior Court. Mr. Houston. however, thinks there was too much of the Star Chamber Conduct made Use of, in condemning him unheard ; especially as he had never solicited the office. Nor had he then heard he was appointed STAMP-OFFICER. At Cross-Creek, 'tis said, they hanged his Effigy and Mr. Carter's together
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Of North Carolina
(Carter murdered his own wife), nor have they spared him in Duplin County. his home.
We are told that no clearances will be granted out of our Port till a Change of Affairs.
(Colonial Records of North Carolina, Vol. VII, pp. 124, 125, 126.)
After Dr. Houston was released he returned to the palace to comfort his dejected and dis- comfited master. (Colonel Waddell in North Carolina Booklet, June 10, 1901.)
On the arrival of the Diligence and Viper the armed force under command of Col. Hugh Waddell and Col. John Ashe took up arms against the British man-of-war and would not permit the officers to land a single piece of the King's odious stamp paper within the borders of the Province of North Carolina. They also forced them in February, 1766, to release several small vessels they had seized for not carrying stamp paper.
The amazed Governor sought to conciliate the enraged colonists by an ostentatious parade of hospitality. He caused three oxen to be roasted whole, a load of bread, and several bar- reis of beer to be provided as a feast for the common people. They attended on his invita- tion, but not to participate in nor partake of his hospitality, but only to throw the untasted bar- becue into the Cape Fear River, to burst the barrels and empty the beer upon the ground. The officers of the Diligence espoused the cause
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Some Neglected History
of the Governor, and a general fight ensued, and during the excitement Thomas Whitehurst, a relative of Mrs. Tryon, was killed. He fell in a duel with Simpson, master of the British sloop Viper, who took the side of the colonists. (Lossing, Field Book of the Revolution.)
The people gave three hearty cheers for North Carolina and quietly dispersed. Here is an act of North Carolina's sons worthy of all Roman or Grecian fame. It was then that the Royal Governor realized the character of the colonists he had to deal with. He and his party were much chagrined and insulted, and writhed under the mockery, and from that hour the Governor sought to annoy and oppress the col- onists.
Eight years after this (December. 1773), a party of forty or fifty men, disguised as Mo- hawk Indians, under cover of darkness, and without any resistance, boarded a British ship in Boston Harbor, containing a consignment of tea, and throwing the chests of the cargo over- board into the sea, came ashore echoing their bravery, which made the "Boston Tea Party" famous.
This "Boston Tea Party" has been celebra- ted by every writer on National history and
"Pealed and chimed on every tongue of fame."
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Of North Carolina
"North Carolina's children are taught to read it in their daily lessons; it adorns the picture books of the nurseries, and is chronicled in the remotest points of the republic."
Here is an act of the sons of "Old North Carolina" not committed on a harmless mer- chant vessel, nor on the crew of a freight ship ; not done under any disguise or mask, but on the representative of Royalty itself, command- ing a man-of-war of King George's Navy, on the one hand, and on the King's Royal Gov- ernor in his palace on the other, and in the open daylight. by well-known men of reputation ; much finer and more decided in its charac- ter, more daring in its action, more important in its results ; and yet not one-half of her sons have ever read of this exploit. Why? Because it is not recorded in history, for the reason that our histories are written by Northern histori- ans.
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