A City Is Planned— A State House Built
\ resolution made al the North Car¬
olina Constitutional Convention
оГ
178H
paved the way lor the erealion of a new
city. Knowing well the problems of having
the Assembly convene in various towns and
transporting slate records front place to
place, the convention authorized the legis¬
lature to select a site in central Wake
County its the fixed seal of government.
In 17‘)| the General .Assembly meeting
in New Bern decreed that the proposed city
should be not less than 400 acres and laid
off in one-acre lots. It also specified the
width ol the streets and that a portion ol the
land be set aside “for puhliek purposes.”
A nine-member commission, with one rep¬
resentative for each judicial district, was
appointed to select and purchase the neecs¬
sary land. A live-member group was select"
ed to supervise the building of a State House.
In April, 1792, alter reviewing several
sites, the commissioners purchased a 1,000-
acre tract I rum Joel l.ane, an early settler
ol Wake County. Next, they employed Wil¬
liam ( hristinas, a senator from franklin
Count) and surveyor ol W arrciilon, to map
out the city.
following the Assembly's instructions,
tile as yet unnamed city planned by Christ¬
mas featured a large central square from
which branched in dillercnt directions lour
wide lanes. Nearly six acres in size and
described as “a beaulilul eminence which
commands a view ol the town and a line
prospect ol the .surrounding country," Cnion
Square was the site reserved for the Stale
House, four smaller squares of open space
wore reserved lor the public. I hose squares
were named for three governors and the at¬
torney general: Caswell, Nash. Burke, and
Moore. The one in the northeast corner was
recommended as "a proper situation lor the
Governor s House.”
The four main streets were 99 feet in
width: all others were 66 loot. 01 the
Iweutv-five streets, the eight closest to the
the center were named lor court districts:
llalilax, New Hern, Fayetteville, Hills¬
borough, I'.denton, Wilmington, Morgan, and
Salisbury'; nine bore the names of the com¬
missioners: Jones, Hargett, Marlin, Blount,
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Raleigh Town Plan
4
