Fourth North Carolina Provincial Congress

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]

Fourth North Carolina Provincial Congress (1776)
←3rd Provincial Congress 5th Provincial Congress→
President Samuel Johnston
Overview
Legislative bodyNorth Carolina Provincial Congress
JurisdictionNorth Carolina, United States
Meeting placeHalifax, North Carolina
Term1776
Members153 Delegates (35 counties, 8 Districts)
PresidentSamuel Johnston[1]
Vice-PresidentAllen Jones[2]
SecretaryJames Green Jr.[3][4]
Assistant SecretaryJames Glasgow[4][5]
ClerkJohn Hunt[4]
Sessions
1stApril 4, 1776 – May 14, 1776

Legislation
See also: Halifax Resolves
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
John Baptista Ashe, New Hanover County
Thomas Burke, Orange County
Richard Caswell, Dobbs County
Philemon Hawkins, II, Bute County
Joseph Hewes, Edenton
William Hooper, New Hanover County
Samuel Johnston, Chowan County
Allen Jones, Northampton County
Willie Jones, Halifax County
Abner Nash, New Bern
John Penn, Granville County
Nathaniel Rochester, Orange County
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
AnsonJohn Child
AnsonJohn Crawford
AnsonDaniel Love
AnsonJames Pickett
AnsonSamuel Spencer
BeaufortJohn Cowper
BeaufortRoger Ormond
BeaufortThomas Respess, Jr.
BertieJohn Campbell[13]
BertieJohn Johnston
BertieCharles Jaycocks
BladenThomas Amis[14]
BladenMaturin Colville
BladenJames Council
BladenNathaniel Richardson
BladenThomas Robeson, Jr.[15]
BrunswickUnknown/Vacant
ButeWilliam Alston[16]
ButePhilemon Hawkins[17]
ButeGreen Hill[18]
ButeWilliam Person
ButeThomas Sherrod
CarteretJohn Backhouse[19]
CarteretSolomon Shepard
CarteretWilliam Thompson
ChathamElisha Cain
ChathamJeduthan Harper
ChathamAmbrose Ramsey
ChathamJoseph Rosser
ChathamJohn Thompson
ChowanThomas Benbury
ChowanJohn B. Beasly
ChowanThomas Hunter
ChowanSamuel Johnston[1]
ChowanThomas Jones[20]
CravenJacob Blount[21]
CravenJohn Bryan
CravenWilliam Bryan
CravenJames Coor
CravenLemuel Hatch
CumberlandFarquard/Farquhard Campbell[22]
CumberlandAlexander McAllister
CumberlandAlexander McCoy (McKay)
CumberlandThomas Rutherford[23]
CumberlandDavid Smith
CurrituckSamuel Jarvis
CurrituckGideon Lamb[24]
CurrituckSolomon Perkins[25]
CurrituckJames Ryan
CurrituckJames White[26]
DobbsSimon Bright
DobbsRichard Caswell
DobbsWilliam McKinnie
DobbsGeorge Miller
DobbsAbraham Sheppard
DuplinRichard Clinton
DuplinWilliam Dickson[27]
DuplinThomas Gray
EdgecombeElisha Battle[28]
EdgecombeNathan Boddie
EdgecombeWilliam Haywood[29]
EdgecombeHenry Irwin[30]
EdgecombeDuncan Lemon[31]
GranvilleCharles A. Eaton
GranvilleMemucan Hunt
GranvilleJohn Penn
GranvilleThomas Person
GranvilleJohn Taylor
GuilfordWilliam Dent
GuilfordRalph Gorrell, Jr.[32]
GuilfordRansom Sutherland
HalifaxWillis Alston
HalifaxJohn Bradford
HalifaxJames Hogun
HalifaxDavid Sumner
HalifaxJoseph John Williams
HertfordLaurence/Lawrence Baker[33]
HertfordMatthias Brickell, Jr.
HertfordWilliam Murfree[note 1]
HertfordRobert Sumner
HydeJoseph Hancock
HydeJohn Jordan
HydeRotheas Latham
HydeBenjamin Parmelin
JohnstonNeedham Bryan, Jr.[34]
JohnstonHenry Rains
JohnstonSamuel Smith, Jr.[35]
MartinWhitmell Hill
MartinKenneth McKenzie
MartinEdward Smithwick
MartinThomas Wiggins[36]
MartinWilliam Williams[37]
MecklenburgJohn McKnitt Alexander
MecklenburgRobert Irwin
MecklenburgJohn Phifer
New HanoverJohn Ashe
New HanoverSamuel Ashe
New HanoverJohn DeVane
New HanoverJohn Hollingsworth
New HanoverSampson Mosely
NorthamptonJeptha Atherton
NorthamptonHoward/Howell Edmunds
NorthamptonDrewry Gee
NorthamptonEaton Haynes
NorthamptonAllen Jones[2]
NorthamptonSamuel Lockhart
NorthamptonEaton Haynes
OnslowBenjamin Doty
OnslowJohn King
OnslowGeorge Mitchell
OnslowJohn Norman
OnslowJohn Spicer[38]
OrangeThomas Burke
OrangeJohn Butler[39]
OrangeJohn Kinchen[40]
OrangeNathaniel Rochester
OrangeJames Saunders
PasquotankHenry Abbot[41]
PasquotankThomas Boyd[42]
PasquotankDempsey Burgess
PasquotankWilliam Cumming
PasquotankJoseph Jones
PerquimansCharles Blount
PerquimansMiles Harvey[43]
PerquimansThomas Harvey[44]
PerquimansCharles Moore
PerquimansWilliam Skinner
PittWilliam Robeson
PittEdward Salter
PittJohn Simpson[45]
RowanJohn Johnston
RowanMatthew Locke
RowanGriffith Rutherford
SurryCharles Gordon
SurryJoseph Williams
SurryJoseph Winston
TryonJames Johnston[46]
TryonCharles McLean
Tyrrell Archibald Corry
WakeJohn Hinton[47]
WakeWilliam Hooper
WakeTignal Jones
WakeJoel Lane[48]
WakeJohn Rand
Bath DistrictWilliam Brown[49]
Campbellton Town[note 2]Arthur Council[50]
Edenton DistrictJoseph Hewes
Halifax DistrictWillie Jones[note 3]
Halifax DistrictJohn Webb[note 3]
Hillsborough DistrictWilliam Johnston[51]
New Bern DistrictAbner Nash
Salisbury DistrictDavid Nesbitt
Wilmington DistrictCornelius Harnett

Notes:

  1. Possibly the father of William Murfree
  2. Campbellton became part of Fayetteville in 1784
  3. 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

References
  1. Bair, Anna Withers (1988). "Samuel Johnston". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  2. Howerton, Timothy L. (1988). "Allen Jones". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  3. Reidinger, Martin (1986). "James Green, Jr". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  4. Lewis, J. D. "4th Provincial Congress". The American Revolution in North Carolina. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
  5. Holloman, Charles R. (1986). "James Glasgow". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 3, 2019.
  6. Butler, Lindley (2006). Powell, William Stevens (ed.). Encyclopedia of North Carolina, Provincial Congresses. University of North Carolina Press. pp. 917–918. ISBN 0807830712.
  7. "State Library of North Carolina. Information page for Tryon Palace". Archived from the original on 2008-05-03.
  8. 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.
  9. Minutes of the Provincial Congress of North Carolina, North Carolina. Provincial Congress, April 04, 1776 - May 14, 1776. 10. pp. 499–590. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  10. Agan, Kelly (2012). "North Carolina Manual: Halifax Resolves". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  11. Marshall, Elain F., ed. (2005). North Carolina Manual of 2005-2006 (PDF). p. 95. Retrieved November 3, 2019.
  12. Norris, David A. (2006). "Borough Towns". NCPEDIA. Retrieved October 22, 2019.
  13. Parramore, Thomas C. (1979). "John Campbell". NCPEDIA. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  14. Starnes, Sam (2013). "Thomas Amis". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  15. Smith, Maud Thomas (1994). "Thomas Robeson, Jr". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  16. Lewis, J.D. "Patriot Leaders in North Carolina, Willis Alston". Carolana.com. Retrieved November 3, 2019.
  17. Maupin, Armistead Jones (1988). "Philemon Hawkins, III". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  18. Malone, E. T. Jr. (1988). "Green Hill, Jr". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  19. Littleton, Tucker (1979). "John Backhouse". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  20. Powell, William S. (1988). "Thomas Jones". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  21. Maupin, Armistead Jones (1979). "Jacob Blount". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  22. Fields, William C. (1979). "Farquhard Campbell". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  23. Lewis, J.D. "Thomas Rutherford". carolana.com. Retrieved November 3, 2019.
  24. Watson, Alan D. (1991). "Gideon Lamb". Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  25. Lewis, J.D. "Colonel Solomon Perkins". Carolana.com. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  26. Powell, William S. (1996). "James White". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  27. Ingram, Charles M. (1986). "William Dickson". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  28. Taylor, R. Hargus (1979). "Elisha Battle". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  29. Watson, Alan D. (1988). "William Haywood". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  30. O'Donnell, John Burke Jr. (1988). "Henry Irwin". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  31. Smith, Claiborne T. Jr. (1991). "Duncan Lamon". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  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.
  34. Lewis, J.D. "Needham Bryan". Carolana.com. Retrieved November 3, 2019.
  35. Lewis, J.D. "Samuel Smith". Carolana.com. Retrieved November 3, 2019.
  36. Lewis, J.D. "Thomas Wiggins". Carolina.com. Retrieved November 3, 2019.
  37. Lewis, J.D. "William Williamson". Carolana.com. Retrieved November 3, 2019.
  38. Smith, William S. Jr. (1994). "John Spicer". Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  39. Butler, Lindley S. (1979). "John Butler". Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  40. Lewis, Henry W. (1988). "John Kinchen". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  41. Cotton, Jerry W. (1979). "Henry Abbot". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  42. Lewis, J.D. "Thomas Boyd". Carolana.com. Retrieved November 3, 2019.
  43. O'Donell, John Burke Jr. (1988). "Miles Harvey". NCPEDIA. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  44. Lewis, J.D. "Thomas Harvey". carolona.com. Retrieved November 3, 2019.
  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.

Further reading
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