Fourth North Carolina Provincial Congress

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Fourth North Carolina Provincial Congress (1776)
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Samuel Johnston - Governeur von Nord Karolina.jpg
President Samuel Johnston
Overview
Legislative body North Carolina Provincial Congress
Jurisdiction North Carolina, United States
Meeting place Halifax, North Carolina
Term1776
Members153 Delegates (35 counties, 8 Districts)
President Samuel Johnston [1]
Vice-President Allen Jones [2]
Secretary James Green Jr. [3] [4]
Assistant Secretary James Glasgow [4] [5]
Clerk John Hunt [4]
Sessions
1stApril 4, 1776 – May 14, 1776

The Fourth North Carolina Provincial Congress was one of five extra-legal unicameral bodies that met beginning in the summer of 1774 through 1776. They were modeled after the colonial lower house (House of Commons). These congresses created a government structure, issued bills of credit to pay for the movement, organized an army for defense, wrote a constitution and bill of rights that established the state of North Carolina, and elected their first acting governor in the fifth congress that met in 1776. These congresses paved the way for the first meeting of the North Carolina General Assembly on April 7, 1777 in New Bern, North Carolina. [6] The Fourth Congress met in Halifax from April 4 to May 14, 1776. Samuel Johnston served as president, with Allen Jones as vice-president. [6] [7] [4] [8] [1] [2]

Contents

Legislation

John Trumbull's painting, Declaration of Independence, depicting the five-man drafting committee of the Declaration of Independence presenting their work to the Congress. Hewes and Penn are depicted in the back row. Hooper missed the initial vote approving it on the Fourth of July, 1776, but was able to sign it on August 2, 1776. Declaration of Independence (1819), by John Trumbull.jpg
John Trumbull's painting, Declaration of Independence , depicting the five-man drafting committee of the Declaration of Independence presenting their work to the Congress. Hewes and Penn are depicted in the back row. Hooper missed the initial vote approving it on the Fourth of July, 1776, but was able to sign it on August 2, 1776.

The delegates authorized their representatives to the Second Continental Congress to vote for the Declaration of Independence, including Joseph Hewes, William Hooper, and John Penn. The 83 delegates present on April 12, 1776 adopted the Halifax Resolves. On April 13, 1776, the delegates formed a committee to start working on a North Carolina Constitution, which was ratified in December 1776 by the Fifth North Carolina Provincial Congress. In April, 1776, the congress passed a resolve to move loyalists while allowing them to dispose of their property. Later in May 1776, the congress passed a resolve to confiscate the property of those taking up arms against the United States. [9] [10] [11]

Members

Thomas Amis, Halifax County Thomas Amis.jpg
Thomas Amis, Halifax County
John Baptista Ashe, New Hanover County John Baptista Ashe.jpg
John Baptista Ashe, New Hanover County
Thomas Burke, Orange County Thomas Burke of North Carolina.jpg
Thomas Burke, Orange County
Richard Caswell, Dobbs County Richard Caswell (governor).jpg
Richard Caswell, Dobbs County
Philemon Hawkins, II, Bute County Hawkins Philemon III.png
Philemon Hawkins, II, Bute County
Joseph Hewes, Edenton Joseph Hewes.jpg
Joseph Hewes, Edenton
William Hooper, New Hanover County William Hooper.jpg
William Hooper, New Hanover County
Samuel Johnston, Chowan County Samuel Johnston Bust.JPG
Samuel Johnston, Chowan County
Allen Jones, Northampton County Allen Jones.jpg
Allen Jones, Northampton County
Willie Jones, Halifax County WillieJonesNC.jpg
Willie Jones, Halifax County
Abner Nash, New Bern AbnerNash.jpg
Abner Nash, New Bern
John Penn, Granville County JohnPenn.jpg
John Penn, Granville County
Nathaniel Rochester, Orange County NathanielRochester.jpg
Nathaniel Rochester, Orange County
Joseph Winston, Surry County Col. Joseph Winston.jpeg
Joseph Winston, Surry County

The following list shows the names of the delegates and the counties or districts that they represented: [4] [8] [12]

County or Town/DistrictDelegate
Anson John Child
Anson John Crawford
Anson Daniel Love
Anson James Pickett
Anson Samuel Spencer
Beaufort John Cowper
Beaufort Roger Ormond
Beaufort Thomas Respess, Jr.
Bertie John Campbell [13]
Bertie John Johnston
Bertie Charles Jaycocks
Bladen Thomas Amis [14]
Bladen Maturin Colville
Bladen James Council
Bladen Nathaniel Richardson
Bladen Thomas Robeson, Jr. [15]
Brunswick Unknown/Vacant
Bute William Alston [16]
Bute Philemon Hawkins [17]
Bute Green Hill [18]
Bute William Person
Bute Thomas Sherrod
Carteret John Backhouse [19]
Carteret Solomon Shepard
Carteret William Thompson
Chatham Elisha Cain
Chatham Jeduthan Harper
Chatham Ambrose Ramsey
Chatham Joseph Rosser
Chatham John Thompson
Chowan Thomas Benbury
Chowan John B. Beasly
Chowan Thomas Hunter
Chowan Samuel Johnston [1]
Chowan Thomas Jones [20]
Craven Jacob Blount [21]
Craven John Bryan
Craven William Bryan
Craven James Coor
Craven Lemuel Hatch
Cumberland Farquard/Farquhard Campbell [22]
Cumberland Alexander McAllister
Cumberland Alexander McCoy (McKay)
Cumberland Thomas Rutherford [23]
Cumberland David Smith
Currituck Samuel Jarvis
Currituck Gideon Lamb [24]
Currituck Solomon Perkins [25]
Currituck James Ryan
Currituck James White [26]
Dobbs Simon Bright
Dobbs Richard Caswell
Dobbs William McKinnie
Dobbs George Miller
Dobbs Abraham Sheppard
Duplin Richard Clinton
Duplin William Dickson [27]
Duplin Thomas Gray
Edgecombe Elisha Battle [28]
Edgecombe Nathan Boddie
Edgecombe William Haywood [29]
Edgecombe Henry Irwin [30]
Edgecombe Duncan Lemon [31]
Granville Charles A. Eaton
Granville Memucan Hunt
Granville John Penn
Granville Thomas Person
Granville John Taylor
Guilford William Dent
Guilford Ralph Gorrell, Jr. [32]
Guilford Ransom Sutherland
Halifax Willis Alston
Halifax John Bradford
Halifax James Hogun
Halifax David Sumner
Halifax Joseph John Williams
Hertford Laurence/Lawrence Baker [33]
Hertford Matthias Brickell, Jr.
Hertford William Murfree [note 1]
Hertford Robert Sumner
Hyde Joseph Hancock
Hyde John Jordan
Hyde Rotheas Latham
Hyde Benjamin Parmelin
Johnston Needham Bryan, Jr. [34]
Johnston Henry Rains
Johnston Samuel Smith, Jr. [35]
Martin Whitmell Hill
Martin Kenneth McKenzie
Martin Edward Smithwick
Martin Thomas Wiggins [36]
Martin William Williams [37]
Mecklenburg John McKnitt Alexander
Mecklenburg Robert Irwin
Mecklenburg John Phifer
New Hanover John Ashe
New Hanover Samuel Ashe
New Hanover John DeVane
New Hanover John Hollingsworth
New Hanover Sampson Mosely
Northampton Jeptha Atherton
Northampton Howard/Howell Edmunds
Northampton Drewry Gee
Northampton Eaton Haynes
Northampton Allen Jones [2]
Northampton Samuel Lockhart
Northampton Eaton Haynes
Onslow Benjamin Doty
Onslow John King
Onslow George Mitchell
Onslow John Norman
Onslow John Spicer [38]
Orange Thomas Burke
Orange John Butler [39]
Orange John Kinchen [40]
Orange Nathaniel Rochester
Orange James Saunders
Pasquotank Henry Abbot [41]
Pasquotank Thomas Boyd [42]
Pasquotank Dempsey Burgess
Pasquotank William Cumming
Pasquotank Joseph Jones
Perquimans Charles Blount
Perquimans Miles Harvey [43]
Perquimans Thomas Harvey [44]
Perquimans Charles Moore
Perquimans William Skinner
Pitt William Robeson
Pitt Edward Salter
Pitt John Simpson [45]
Rowan John Johnston
Rowan Matthew Locke
Rowan Griffith Rutherford
Surry Charles Gordon
Surry Joseph Williams
Surry Joseph Winston
Tryon James Johnston [46]
Tryon Charles McLean
Tyrrell  Archibald Corry
Wake John Hinton [47]
Wake William Hooper
Wake Tignal Jones
Wake Joel Lane [48]
Wake John Rand
Bath District William Brown [49]
Campbellton Town [note 2] Arthur Council [50]
Edenton District Joseph Hewes
Halifax District Willie Jones [note 3]
Halifax District John Webb [note 3]
Hillsborough District William Johnston [51]
New Bern District Abner Nash
Salisbury District David Nesbitt
Wilmington District Cornelius Harnett

Notes:

  1. ↑ Possibly the father of William Murfree
  2. ↑ Campbellton became part of Fayetteville in 1784
  3. 1 2 Willie Jones had to leave the congress because he was elected by the Continental Congress to serve as the Superintendent of Indian Affairs. John Webb replaced him.

See also

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References

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  2. 1 2 3 Howerton, Timothy L. (1988). "Allen Jones". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  3. ↑ Reidinger, Martin (1986). "James Green, Jr". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
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  6. 1 2 Butler, Lindley (2006). Powell, William Stevens (ed.). Encyclopedia of North Carolina, Provincial Congresses. University of North Carolina Press. pp. 917–918. ISBN   0807830712.
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  8. 1 2 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.
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  10. ↑ Agan, Kelly (2012). "North Carolina Manual: Halifax Resolves". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
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  32. ↑ Bell, John L. Jr. (1986). "Ralph Gorrell". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019. His grandfather was Ralph Gorrell, Jr. (1735–1816), … Ralph, Jr., was a member of the Halifax Provincial Congresses of April and December 1776,
  33. ↑ Smith, Claiborne T. Jr. (1979). "Laurence Baker". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
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  45. ↑ Maupin, Armistead J. (1994). "John Simpson". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  46. ↑ Asbury, Hayden (2013). "Colonel James Johnston". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  47. ↑ Hodges, Eudora Coleman (1988). "John Hinton" . Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  48. ↑ Reid, Elizabeth Davis (1991). "Joel Lane" . Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  49. ↑ Lewis, J.D. "William Brown". Carolana.com. Retrieved November 3, 2019.
  50. ↑ Rockwell, Paul A. (1979). "Arthur Council" . Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  51. ↑ Powell, William S. (1988). "William Johnston". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.

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