Kent McCoury holds a B.A. in History from Appalachian State University. He has worked for the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources for almost twenty years. For over 10 years, he has been the assistant site manager at Bennett Place State Historic Site in Durham. He has taught at North Carolina State University and has published book reviews for The North Carolina Historical Review.

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Waddell, Alfred Moore (1834-1912)

A reluctant secessionist and Confederate, Alfred Moore Waddell staunchly supported the Democratic Party during the late 1800s.  Although he served as a Congressman throughout the 1870s and edited and owned influential newspapers, he is most known for his role in instigating the Wilmington Race Riot of 1898, a riot that he described as "perhaps the bloodiest race riot in North Carolina history."