North Carolina played a critical, often overlooked, role in our nation’s founding. We at the North Carolina History Project have put together this timeline of our state’s contributions to the American Revolution. The following timeline chronologically lays out some of the most important events in North Carolina’s revolutionary history and links out to our more...
To academic historians and amateur (or avocational) historians: We explored the North Carolina Historical Review to find articles about the American Revolution. I hope these summaries (written by a person, not AI) will whet your appetite for the longer versions. (A link to each article on JSTOR is provided for each.) Did North Carolina’s Revolution...
The North Carolina Historical Review includes a rich collection of articles about the American Revolution. This list was compiled by Kathryn McKee and Jane Shaw Stroup.
Pyle’s Defeat occurred in February 1781 near the end of the Revolution. It was a savage blow to British hopes, as Lt. Gen. Charles, Lord Cornwallis attempted to stop the Patriots’ momentum.
The subject of Scottish folklore and myth, Flora MacDonald assisted Prince Charles Stuart in his escape from King George II. In 1774, she moved to North Carolina, where her Loyalist husband and son fought in the Battle of Moores Creek.
The Edenton Tea Party was one of the earliest organized women’s political actions in United States history. On October 25, 1774, Mrs. Penelope Barker organized, at the home of Mrs. Elizabeth King, fifty-one women in Edenton, North Carolina. Together they formed an alliance wholeheartedly supporting the American cause against “taxation without representation.”
Benjamin Smith (1756-1826)
Born into wealth, Benjamin Smith died in poverty. From 1810 to 1811, Smith served as governor of North Carolina. Although a Democratic-Republican, he never abandoned his former Federalist inclinations.
Marache Club
The Marache Club played an influential role in ensuring that Thomas Jefferson won the 1800 presidential election.
Cape Fear Navigation Company
During the early 1800s, the state of North Carolina purchased stock in a few companies. One such company was the Cape Fear Navigation Company. It became the first state-funded internal improvement project to reap dividends. However, critics still argued that the company's finances were mismanaged.
James G. Martin (1935 – )
A former congressman with a Ph.D. in chemistry, James Grubbs Martin came to Raleigh to serve as governor of North Carolina from 1985 to 1993. During his gubernatorial terms, Martin focused on roads, education, and the state led the nation in economic development.
Cross Creek Canal Company
During the early 1800s, the state of North Carolina had only 43 of the 1,343 miles of canals in the United States. The Cross Creek Canal Company, named after the second largest Cape Fear river town, was one company that ensured that goods were transported into and from Fayetteville.
Kenneth R. Williams (1912-1989)
Influential minister and educator and university president in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Kenneth R. Williams won an alderman seat in 1947 and became the first African American to defeat a white opponent in a twentieth-century election in a Southern city
Daniel Russell (1845-1908)
In 1864, a nineteen-year-old Daniel Russell started his political career as a Democratic state legislator. As he grew increasingly frustrated with Southern Democratic leadership, Russell joined the Republican Party. In 1896, he was elected governor in great part because the Populists and Republicans in the state had formed a political alliance called Fusion politics.
Voting Rights Act of 1965
The United States Congress passed the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA 65) to strengthen the Civil Rights acts of 1957, 1960, and 1964 and eliminate voter discrimination at the state and local levels. Forty North Carolina counties came under the provisions of VRA 65.
Tod Robinson Caldwell (1818-1874)
Tod Robinson Caldwell was the first lieutenant governor of North Carolina and the second Republican governor of the state; and he assumed governor's duties after William Woods Holden, the first North Carolina Republican governor, was impeached.
Virginia Dare Wine
North Carolina provided the United States with its most purchased wine during the early 1900s and before Prohibition: Virginia Dare red and white wines. The product’s popularity rested in great part because winemaker Paul Garrett led an innovative and aggressive advertising campaign.
Lucas Vasques de Ayllon (1475-1526)
A lawyer and nobleman from Spain, Lucas Vasques de Ayllon sponsored the first Spanish explorations (three total) of what became North Carolina. He also discovered Chesapeake Bay and established San Miguel de Guandape, a settlement near what would be Jamestown. The wild horses of Shackleford Banks (near Beaufort) are reminders of Ayllon's explorations and failed attempts to settle in the land.
De Soto Expedition
Although scholars disagree regarding the exact path of Hernando De Soto’s expedition in the Southeast, all agree that the Spaniard passed through Piedmont and western North Carolina.