Topics Related to Revolutionary NC
This article originally appeared in Recall, the magazine of the North Carolina Military Historical Society; republished with permission. North Carolina formed Davie County out of Rowan County in 1836 and named it in honor of William Richardson Davie, a man of great importance to North Carolina. Davie served as a soldier in the Revolutionary War, represented the state at the Federal Convention of 1787, acted as special envoy to France, served as Governor of North Carolina, and helped found the University of North Carolina.
As the American Revolution began after Lexington & Concord, Cumberland County, North Carolina was heavily populated by Scottish Highlanders, many of whom had Loyalist sympathies. 1 However, not all were opposed to independence. A group of Cumberland men were involved in a local committee that had connections to the Wilmington Safety Committee and decided to take a stand for the Colonialists in the debate with the Crown while not quite declaring independence.
“I long to hear that you have declared an independancy—and by the way in the new Code of Laws which I suppose it will be necessary for you to make I desire you would Remember the Ladies….”Abigail Adams to her husband, John Adams, March 31, 1776
The woodpeckers eagerly peck away at the giant trees while squirrels scurry about as one strolls through the peacefulness and beauty of nature found in Currie, NC. A trail passes by a grassy savannah heading towards Moores Creek. The area is a unique eco-system containing carnivorous plants and perhaps an elusive alligator or two, but amid the wonder of nature, mounds of dirt appear that cast a shadow over what was a bloody struggle that occurred here almost 250 years ago.
The American Revolution VS. The American Revolutionary WarDid you know that when historians talk about the American Revolution, they are not only referring to the fighting that took place? The American Revolution encompasses not only the American Revolutionary War but also the social, political, and cultural transformations occurring in eighteenth-century North America.
A typical Christmas night in eighteenth-century America did not go as one might expect. The Christmas season today brings many nostalgic memories of cozy drinks, opening presents, and time spent with loved ones. This wasn’t the Christmas of colonial and revolutionary America, where the potential of rowdiness and drunkenness filled the streets.
The America 250 NC commemoration offers the opportunity to explore the rich tapestry of local history across the state. Through the support of an America 250 NC County Committee Grant, the Gaston County commemoration team is working to highlight history of the region through their programming.
Western North Carolinians’ frustrations with dishonest government officials bubbled over with the formation of the Regulator movement in 1768. Regulators protested officials’ excessive taxes, illegal fees, and other mistreatments of the public. The Regulator’s also resented their lack of representation in the colonial government. The movement’s name captures member's desire to regulate their own lives without representation in the government.