Wilfred D. Turner

Wilfred Dent Turner was born in Iredell County, North Carolina on January 30, 1855. His grandfather, Samuel Turner moved to Iredell County from Port Tobacco, Maryland in 1818. Wilfred's parents were Wilfred Turner (1809-1893) and Dorcas (Tomlinson) Turner (1813-1900). The Turner family was the namesake of both the present day town of Turnersburg and Turnersburg township. Wilfred attended Duke University, Class of 1876, and was a member of the Chi Phi Fraternity. He died on November 8, 1933 and was buried in the Oakwood Cemetery in Statesville, North Carolina.[1][2]

Wilfred was married three times:[1][2]

1. Ida Lanier (1857-1894), married in 1878; four children: Mrs. W. A. Colvert, Laura Lanier Turner, Mrs. James F. Robertson, and Jack Turner.
2. Julie Harllee McCall (1867-1925), married in 1897; children: W. A. Turner and Dent Turner.
3. Sarah F. Goff, married in 1927

A Democrat, Turner was elected to the North Carolina Senate in 1886, 1888 and 1890 from Iredell County. He was President pro tempore of the North Carolina Senate in 1891. Turner also served as the president of the Monbo Cotton Manufacturing Company.[3][4]

Turner was also a delegate to the 1896 Democratic National Convention. He died at the age of 78 in 1933 after a short illness.[5][6]

• Ashe, Samuel A. Ashe (1907). Biographical History of North Carolina, vol. 6.
• Cheney, John L. Jr. (1974). North Carolina Government, 1585–1974.
• Proceedings of the Thirty-sixth Annual Session of the North Carolina Bar Association, vol. 36. 1934.
• Who Was Who in America, vol. 1. 1943.
• "History of the Hitching Post Home". The 1812 Hitching Post. 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2019.
• The Political Graveyard
• NC Manual of 1913