Governor James Turner
lie was one of the early Governors off North
Carolina, serving three terms, following
which he was elected to the U. S. Senate,
w lier<> he served two terms.
THE name of James Turner is
entirely unfamiliar to present-
day citizens of our state, yet
it was once a name known to every
household, as he was one of the
most notable men of his generation
and rendered the State conspicuous
service both in war and peace. The
names of many men who served
our people either as Governor or
United States Senator have passed
from the public recollection, and
it seems to me that a useful pur¬
pose is served to recall their names
and their public service to the
present generation.
Governor Turner was born in
Virginia in 1766. and when he was
but a lad. his father removed to
this state, settling in what was then
known as Bute County "in which
there were no Tories." This county
was later abolished, and the pres¬
ent counties of Franklin and War¬
ren established, the Turner resi¬
dence being in Warren.
Served in Revolution
As Governor Turner was not
born until 1766. he was but a boy
when the Revolution broke out.
yet such was his courage and his
patriotism, that so soon as he was
large enough to shoulder a musket,
he volunteered as a private soldier,
and served during the latter part
of the war in the army under
General Nathaniel Greene, partici¬
pating in the battle of Guilford
Court House and other engage¬
ments. It is a curious fact that a
fellow private in the same company
was the distinguished Nathaniel
Macon, first statesman of his gener¬
ation. who lived to become the
only North Carolinian to become
Speaker of the National House of
Representatives. Macon was ten¬
dered a position as an officer, but
he declined it and served through¬
out the struggle as a private in the
company of which his brother
John was the Captain. Little is
known of this brother of the fa¬
mous Nathaniel, but he not only
served as an officer during the
Revolution, but when Warren
County was formed and his brother
Nathaniel became its first Senator,
By It. C. LAWRENCE
John became its first Representa¬
tive in the House of Commons: and
when Nathaniel was elected to a
higher office, John succeeded him
as Senator and served many terms
in that body.
Turner did not enter the public
life of the State until 1798 when he
became a member of the Commons
from Warren. Sessions of the legis¬
lature were then held annually;
and Turner served three successive
terms in that body. He was then
elected as a member of the State
Senate and served two terms in
that capacity.
Elected Governor
On November 20, 1802, the
General Assembly elected Col.
John Baptista Ashe as Governor.
Ashe had been a distinguished
officer during the Revolution; a
member of both the Continental
and United States congresses; and
was one of the ablest representa¬
tives of one of the outstanding
families of the State. But just
seven days after his election, and
before he could be inaugurated, he
suddenly died. This rendered an¬
other election necessary, and when
the General Assembly ballolted on
December 4, 1802, the choice
fell upon James Turner. As he was
then in Raleigh as a member of
the Senate, he accepted the posi¬
tion to which he had thus been
elected, advising the legislature
that "my utmost endeavors shall
be exerted to discharge with pro¬
priety and for the interest of our
common country, the duties at¬
tached to the high and important
office they have committed to my
charge.”
At this time the term of office
of the Governor was only one year,
and there was a Constitutional
limitation which prevented the
election of the same person for
more than three years. Governor
Turner was reelected for the full
three year limit, after which he
was succeeded by Dr. Nathaniel
Alexander of Mecklenburg.
While serving as Governor, in
November 1805 Turner was elected
as United States Senator, taking
his seat the following March. He
was reelected for a second term,
but after a service of ten years, ill
health forced him to resign his
seat. His term of office covered an
important period in our history,
as he was a member of the Senate
during the war of 1812, his col¬
league being Governor David Stone
of Bertie. The two Senators differed
sharply in their views. Turner
warmly supported the prosecution
of the war to a successful conclu¬
sion and gave his hearty support to
all measures proposed for that
purpose by President Madison. On
the other hand Governor Stone
was opposed to the war. and his
opposition brought down upon him
a resolution of sharp censure
adopted by the General Assembly
of North Carolina. This caused
Governor Stone to resign his seat
and he retired to private life.
Died in 1824
Governor Turner died in 1824.
trusted and highly respected by
the people of the entire State. One
of his daughters. Rebecca, married
United States Senator and Secre¬
tary of the Navy George E. Badger.
One of his sons, Daniel, was a
graduate of West Point, and officer
in the army during the war of 1812
and thereafter; being later elected
as a member of Congress. After
the expiration of his Congressional
career he became principal of the
Warrenton Female Academy, one
of the outstanding educational
institutions of the State. It is
an interesting fact that the wife
of this son was a daughter of
Francis Scott Key, author of the
"Star Spangled Banner."
It may be said that there was
really nothing spectacular about
Turner’s career, but, on the other
hand, there is no question but that
he rendered his state and nation a
distinct service, and that is my
reason for saying that his memory
should be kept alive among the
great citizens which North Caro¬
lina has produced.