Third North Carolina Provincial Congress

The Third North Carolina Provincial Congress was the third of five extra-legal unicameral bodies that met between 1774 and 1776 in North Carolina. They were modeled after the colonial lower house (House of Burgesses). These congresses created a government structure, issued bills of credit to pay for the movement, and organized an army for defense, in preparation for the state of North Carolina. These congresses paved the way for the first meeting of the North Carolina General Assembly on April 7, 1777 in New Bern, North Carolina.[1][2][3][4][5]

Samuel Johnston, Chowan County
Third North Carolina Provincial Congress (1775)
2nd Provincial Congress
April 3–7, 1775
4th Province Congress
April 4 – May 14, 1776
Hillsborough Presbyterian Church, site of the 3rd Congress
Overview
Legislative bodyNorth Carolina Provincial Congress
JurisdictionNorth Carolina, United States
Meeting placeHillsborough, North Carolina
Term1775
Members213 Delegates (35 counties, 9 towns/districts)
PresidentSamuel Johnston
SecretaryAndrew Knox
Assistant SecretaryJames Glasgow
Sessions
1stAugust 20, 1775 – September 10, 1775

The third congress met in Hillsborough, from August 20 to September 10, 1775. Its president was Samuel Johnston (The Second congress president, John Harvey had recently died).[4][5]

Legislation

This congress, which included representatives of all 35 counties and nine towns (also called districts), officially established itself as the highest governmental body in the province after British Governor Josiah Martin had fled, ending royal government rule. The last Province of North Carolina General Assembly had met on April 48, 1875 before Governor Martin disbanded its House of Burgesses.[3][4]

The congress divided the state into 6 military districts for purposes of organizing militia and for determining representation on a new Provincial Council. These districts included Edenton, Halifax, Hillsborough, New Bern, Salisbury, and Wilmington. Later, an additional district, Morgan, was added for the western part of the state, including counties that eventually became part of Tennessee (Davidson, Greene, and Washington). Much of the deliberations of the congress dealt with safety of its residents and preparation for war with Great Britain.[6][4][5]

Provincial Council and Committees of Safety

To govern North Carolina when the congress was not in session, a 13-member Provincial Council was elected, constituting the first executive body in a North Carolina free of British rule. Cornelius Harnett was elected as the first president of the council.[4][5]

The following members were elected to the council by the delegates:[5]

  • The Honorable Samuel Johnston, Esquire; Cornelius Harnett and Samuel Ashe, Esquires, Wilmington District
  • Thomas Jones and Whitmell Hill, Esquires, Edenton District
  • Abner Nash and James Coor, Esquires, New Bern District
  • Thomas Person and John Kinchen, Esquires, Hillsborough District
  • Willie Jones and Thomas Eaton, Esquires, Halifax District
  • Samuel Spencer and Waightstill Avery, Esquires, Salisbury District

The delegates formed a Committee of Safety at the state level. The delegates also elected members of the military district Committees of Safety "for their common defence against their Enemies, for the Security of their Liberties and properties". These committees at the district level would become the roots of the militias. The following persons were elected to the Committees of Safety for military districts:[5]

  • Wilmington District: Frederick Jones, Sampson Mosely, Archibald Maclaine, Richard Quince, Thomas Davis, William Cray, Henry Rhodes, Thomas Routledge, James Kenan, Alexander McAlister, George Mylne, John Smith and Benjamin Stone.
  • Edenton District: Luke Sumner, William Gray, John Johnston, Thomas Benbury, Gideon Lamb, Joseph Jones, Miles Harvey, Lawrence Baker, Kenneth McKinzie, Stevens Lee, Charles Blount, Isaac Gregory and Day Ridley.
  • Hillsborough District: William Taylor, Joseph Taylor, Samuel Smith, John Atkinson, John Butler, William Johnston, John Hinton, Joel Lane, Michael Rogers, Ambrose Ramsey, Mial Scurlock, John Thompson and John Lark.
  • New Bern District: John Easton, Major Croom, Roger Ormond, Edward Salter, George Barrow, William Thomson, William Tisdale, Benjamin Williams, Richard Ellis, Richard Cogdell, William Brown, James Glasgow and Alexander Gaston.
  • Salisbury District: John Crawford, James Auld, Hezekiah Alexander, Benjamin Patten, John Brevard,[7] Griffith Rutherford, William Hill, John Hamlin, Charles Galloway, William Dent, Robert Ewart and Maxwell Chambers.
  • Halifax District: James Leslie, John Bradford, David Sumner, Allen Jones, William Eaton, Drury Gee, John Norwood, the Revd Henry Pattillo, James Mills, William Bellamy, William Haywood, Duncan Lamon and John Webb.

Delegates

John Baptista Ashe, New Hanover County
Thomas Burke, Orange County
Richard Caswell, Dobbs County
Joseph Hewes, Edenton
William Hooper, New Hanover County
Robert Howe, Brunswick County
Samuel Johnston, Chowan County
Allen Jones, Northampton County
Willie Jones, Halifax County
James Kenan, Duplin County
Alexander Martin, Guilford County
Abner Nash, New Bern
Benjamin Williams, Johnston County

There were 213 delegates, representing 35 counties and 8 towns/districts in North Carolina.

County/Town RepresentingDelegates
AnsonDavid Love
AnsonWilliam Pickett
AnsonSamuel Spencer
AnsonWilliam Thomas
AnsonThomas Wade
BeaufortJohn Cowper
BeaufortRoger Ormond
BeaufortJohn Patton
BeaufortThomas Respess, Jr.
BertieThomas Ballard
BertieWilliam Brimmage
BertieWilliam Bryan
BertieJohn Campbell[8]
BertiePeter Clifton
BertieWilliam Gray
BertieCharles Jaycocks
BertieJonathan Jaycocks
BertieJohn Johnston
BertieDavid Standly
BertieZedekiah Stone
BladenWalter Gibson
BladenThomas Owen[9]
BladenNathaniel Richardson
BladenThomas Robeson, Jr.
BladenWilliam Salter
BrunswickThomas Alton
BrunswickRobert Ellis
BrunswickRobert Howe
BrunswickRoger Moore
BrunswickParker Quince
ButeThomas Eaton
ButeGreen Hill
ButeRev. Henry Pattillo
ButeWilliam Person
ButeJosiah Reddick
ButeJethro Sumner
CarteretJohn Eason
CarteretSolomon Sheppard
CarteretWilliam Thompson
CarteretEnoch Ward
CarteretBryce Williams
ChathamJohn Birdsong
ChathamElisha Cain
ChathamWilliam Clark
ChathamJeduthan Harper
ChathamRichard Kennon
ChathamMatthew Jones
ChathamAmbrose Ramsey
ChathamJoseph Rosser
ChathamRobert Rutherford
ChathamJohn Thompson
ChowanThomas Benbury
ChowanJames Blount
ChowanJosiah Grandbury
ChowanThomas Hunter
ChowanSamuel Johnston
ChowanThomas Jones[10]
CravenJacob Blount
CravenWilliam Bryan
CravenRichard Cogdell[11]
CravenJames Coor
CravenEdmund Hatch
CravenJoseph Leech
CumberlandFarquard/Farquhard Campbell[12]
CumberlandAlexander McAllister
CumberlandAlexander McKay
CumberlandThomas Rutherford
CumberlandDavid Smith
CurrituckThomas Jarvis
CurrituckGideon Lamb
CurrituckSolomon Perkins
CurrituckJames Ryan
CurrituckJames White[13]
DobbsAndrew Bass
DobbsSimon Bright
DobbsRichard Caswell
DobbsJames Glasgow
DobbsGeorge Miller
DobbsAbraham Sheppard
DobbsSpyars Singleton
DuplinRichard Clinton
DuplinWilliam Dickson[14]
DuplinThomas Gray
DuplinThomas Hicks
DuplinJames Kenan
EdgecombeRobert Bignal[15]
EdgecombeThomas H. Hall
EdgecombeThomas Hunter
EdgecombeHenry Irwin
EdgecombeDuncan Lamon
GranvilleMemucan Hunt
GranvilleJohn Penn
GranvilleThomas Person
GranvilleJohn Taylor
GranvilleJohn Williams
GuilfordGeorge Cortner
GuilfordWilliam Dent
GuilfordJames Park Farley
GuilfordThomas Henderson
GuilfordAlexander Martin
GuilfordRansom Sutherland
GuilfordNathaniel Williams
HalifaxJohn Geddy/Gettie[16]
HalifaxJames Hogun
HalifaxNicholas Long
HalifaxDavid Sumner
HalifaxJohn Webb
HertfordLawrence Baker
HertfordMatthew Brickel
HertfordWilliam Murfree
HertfordDay Ridly
HertfordGeorge Wynns
HydeJoseph Hancock
HydeJohn Jordan
JohnstonNeedham Bryan
JohnstonWilliam Bryan
JohnstonJohn Smith
JohnstonSamuel Smith
JohnstonBenjamin Williams
MartinJohn Everitt
MartinWhitmell Hill
MartinKenneth McKenzie
MartinWilliam Slade
MartinJohn Stuart
MartinWilliam Williams
MecklenburgJohn McKnitt Alexander
MecklenburgWaightstill Avery
MecklenburgJames Houston
MecklenburgSamuel Martin
MecklenburgJohn Phifer
MecklenburgThomas Polk
New HanoverJohn Baptista Ashe
New HanoverSamuel Ashe
New HanoverWilliam Hooper
New HanoverJohn Alexander Lillington
New HanoverGeorge Moore
New HanoverJames Moore
NorthamptonJeptha Atherton
NorthamptonHowell Edmunds
NorthamptonDrewry Gee
NorthamptonAllen Jones
NorthamptonSamuel Lockhart
OnslowIsaac Guion
OnslowJohn King
OnslowHenry Rhodes
OnslowJohn Spicer
OnslowEdward Starkey
OrangeJohn Atkinson
OrangeThomas Burke
OrangeThomas Hart
OrangeJohn Kinchen
OrangeJohn Williams
PasquotankThomas Boyd
PasquotankDempsey Burgess
PasquotankDevotion Davis
PasquotankEdward Everagin
PasquotankJoseph Jones
PerquimansBenjamin Harvey
PerquimansMiles Harvey
PerquimansThomas Harvey
PerquimansAndrew Knox
PerquimansWilliam Skinner
PittWilliam Bryan
PittJames Gorham
PittJames Latham
PittRobert Salter
PittJohn Simpson
RowanWilliam Kennon
RowanMatthew Locke
RowanWilliam Sharpe
RowanJames Smith
RowanSamuel Young
RowanMoses Winslow
SurryMartin Armstrong
SurryWilliam Hill
SurryRobert Lanier
SurryJoseph Williams
SurryJoseph Winston
TryonRobert Alexander
TryonWilliam Graham
TryonFrederick Hambright
TryonJoseph Harden
TryonJohn Walker
Tyrrell Jeremiah Frazier
Tyrrell Thomas Hoskins
Tyrrell Stephen Lee
Tyrrell Joseph Spruill
Tyrrell Peter Wynn
WakeThomas Hines
WakeJohn Hinton
WakeTheophilus Hunter
WakeTignal Jones
WakeJoel Lane
WakeJohn Rand
WakeMichael Rogers
Bath TownWilliam Brown[17]
Brunswick TownMaurice Moore
Campbellton Town[note 1]James Hepburn
Campbellton Town[note 1]Robert Rowan
Edenton TownJasper Charlton
Edenton TownJoseph Hewes
Halifax TownWillie Jones
Hillsborough TownWilliam Armstrong
Hillsborough TownFrancis Nash
Hillsborough TownNathaniel Rochester
New Bern TownJames Davis
New Bern TownRichard Ellis[18]
New Bern TownAbner Nash
New Bern TownWilliam Tisdale
Salisbury TownWilliam Kennon
Salisbury TownHugh Montgomery
Wilmington TownCornelius Harnett
Wilmington TownArchibald MacLaine

Notes:

  1. Campbellton became part of Fayetteville in 1783.

References

  1. Butler, Lindley (2006). Powell, William Stevens (ed.). Encyclopedia of North Carolina, Provincial Congresses. University of North Carolina Press. pp. 917–918. ISBN 0807830712. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  2. "State Library of North Carolina. Information page for Tryon Palace". Archived from the original on 2008-05-03.
  3. Lewis, J.D. "3rd Provincial Congress". Carolina.com. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
  4. Connor, Robert Diggs Wimberly, ed. (1913). A Manual of North Carolina Issued by the North Carolina Historical Commission for the Use of Members of the General Assembly Session 1913. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
  5. North Carolina Provincial Congress. Minutes of the Provincial Congress of North Carolina. 10. pp. 164–220., August 20, 1775 – September 10, 1775
  6. Lewis, J.D. "North Carolina Militia". "The American Revolution in North Carolina. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
  7. Davidson, Chalmers G. (1979). "John Brevard, II". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  8. Parramore, Thomas C. Parramore (1979). "John Campbell". NCPEDIA. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  9. Powell, William S. (1991). "Thomas Owen". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  10. Powell, William S. (1988). "Thomas Jones". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  11. Watson, Alan D. (1979). "Richard Cogdell". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  12. Fields, William C. (1979). "Farquhard Campbell". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  13. Powell, William S. (1996). "James White". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  14. Ingram, Charles M. (1986). "William Dickson". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  15. Smith, Claiborne T., Jr. (1979). "Robert Bignal". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 1, 2019.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  16. Smith, Claiborne T., Jr. (1986). "John Geddy". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 1, 2019.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  17. Lewis, J.D. "William Brown". Carolana.com. Retrieved November 3, 2019.
  18. Carraway, Gertrude S. (1986). "Richard Ellis". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
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