Cover
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Story
225
Years and Counting
AMERICA'S REVOLUTION GAVE BIRTH TO THE NEW STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA —
AND NEW BERN'S PALACE WAS ITS HOME
April 7, 2002, marks the
225th anniversary of the first
session of the General
Assembly of the State of
North Carolina, which met at
the Government House— or
"Palace" — in New Bern on
April 7, 1777. Here is the
story of what occurred in the
momentous clays leading up
to that historic first session
where the State of North
Carolina was born ...
By George Ward Shannon Jr.
century of st rung rule by royal
governors dictated by the will of a
distant British king had done lit tie
to steer the colonists living in North
Carolina toward the pursuit of happiness.
On Aug. 24, 177 5, North Carolinians
opposed to the unjust taxation practices
perpetuated by Loyalists asked their
Provincial Congress to appoint a
committee ol delegates to represent their
rights. The committee assembled at the
“Palace” in New Bern. A new
governmental framework for gaining
American independence was forged as a
result of their meeting.
The pat riots living in North Carolina
now possessed all the characteristics
necessary to join with the common cause
of America. Conquering tyranny and
establishing rheir freedom was their
mission. Rebellious opposiric in soon
evolved into warfare, and overt he next
eight years North Carolina played a major
role in our country’s revolt against
England’s royal government.
This excerpt from the April 7, 1775,
Colonial Records underscores how the
pat riots of the Old North State shared
their enthusiasm for independence:
Last Tuesday, Governor Martin met the
Assembly of North Carolina, at Neu lvrn, and
addressed them in a high-flying, abusive anti-
American speech, in which he spoke hard things
of all the colonies , congresses, committees, and
people on the continent, except those of his own
stamp, and begged of his assembly not to
a/prove of sending delegates to the Congress in
May. To this the Assembly returned a truly
noble answer, and today they have passed the
following resolution: “That the I louse do highly
approve of the proceedings of the Continental
Congress lately held at Philadelphia, and that
they are determined, as members of the
community in general, that they will strictly
adhere to the said resolutions, and will use the
influence they hare to induce the same
observance by every individual of this colony.’’
(— Diary of t he American Rest ilution)
Royal Gov.Josiah Martin’s decree at this
late hour served only ro exacerbate the
problem at hand and helped fuel the desire
fora united resistance. In late May of 1775
a frightened and frustrated Gov. Martin
f led the Palace and retreated to the mout h
of the Cape Fear River and onto the deck
of a British sloops >i war. There he wt nild
pit >t his revenge — a military strategy, which
he believed would result in the restoration
of the royal government.
The Declaration of Independence of July
4 denounced aristocratic rule. Its decree
promoted a democratic government based
upon “life, liberty, and the pursuit of
happiness.” To this end, many North
Carolinians pledged their lives, fortunes,
and sacred honor to the cause of i reedom
from Great Britain.
Col. Richard Caswell, a North Carolina
patriot of great renown, garnered the
suppe >rt of many fellow statesmen Ire his
splendid military victory at the battle ot
Moore’s Creek Bridge. Soon thereafter,
Caswell was asked to preside over North
Carolina’s Provincial Congress.
The task of drawing up the
commonwealth’s constitution fell upon
t he Provincial Congress. The synergy
generated by the spirit of independence felt
in Philadelphia led North Carolina’s
The first session of the General Assembly held at the Palace in 1777 was made up of the following legislators. The speaker of the 1777 Senate was
Samuel Ashe of New Hanover County, and the clerk was James Green Jr. of Craven County. The remaining members of the 1 777 Senate are listed
below in alphabetical order by the counties they represented.
Legislators presentwere David Love (Anson), Thomas Rcspess (Beaufort), John Campbell (Bertie), Thomas Robeson (Bladen), Archibald
Maclaine (Brunswick), Charles McDowell (Burke), Benjamin Seawell (Bute), John Gray (Camden), James Parrot (Carteret), James Saunders
(Caswell), Ambrose Ramsey (Chatham), Dike Sumner (Chowan), James Coor (Craven), David Smith (Cumberland), Samuel Jarvis (Currituck),
Benjamin hxum (Dobbs), James Keenan (Duplin), Elisha Battle (Edgecombe), Mcmucan I lunt(Ciranvillc), Ralph Gorrell (Gilford), John Bradford
(I lalif.ix), Robert Sumner (Hertford), William Russell (Hyde), Needham Bryan (Johnston), William Williams (Martin), John McK. Alexander
(Mecklenburg), Samuel Ashe (New Hanover), Allen Jones (Northhampton), William Cray (Onslow), John Spicer (Onslow), Thomas Hart (Orange),
Joseph Jones (Pasqui .tank), William Skinner (Perquimans), Rolx-rt Salter (Pitr), Griffith Rutherford (Rowan), Robert Lanier (Surry), Charles
McLean (Tryon), Archibald Currie (Tyrrell), James Jones (Wake), Michael Rogers (Wake), and John Carter (Washington).
4 Spring 2002
