FUN: Sophisticated, Educational and Inspirational

While the list of architectural gems is long and impressive, the deeds of Edentonians is even more so.  This little town on the Albemarle Sound produced essential players during the American Revolution. A few, described by historian Troy Kickler, PhD, in his forthcoming book about the Founders from Edenton, based on biographical information  from William S. Powell’s magisterial Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, Vol. 1 – 6 (Chapel Hill, 1979 – 1996), include:

Penelope Barker

Penelope Barker (1728-1796) — The leader of what has become known as the Edenton Tea Party (1774); the first organized political act by women in what became the United States. The event made international news. Penelope married three times. Her first two husbands died, and she inherited their wealth. Her third husband, Thomas Barker, was Treasurer for the Northern District of North Carolina.

Charles Eden (1673-1722) — The last person to hold a landgrave title in the feudal-like proprietorship system in North Carolina was Charles Eden. In 1713, Queen Anne appointed him to be Governor of North Carolina, and his term lasted from 1714 to 1722.  The governor brought order to an unruly colony, yet he allegedly colluded with pirates such as Edward Teach, also known as Blackbeard.

Joseph Hewes

Joseph Hewes (1730-1779) — A resident of Edenton and a signer of the Declaration of Independence, Hewes was a leading merchant in this port town. Although he moved to Edenton without knowing anyone, he soon was respected and influential. He served in the colonial assembly from 1760-1774, and he was a delegate to the Continental Congress (1774-1777). He served in the Fifth Provincial Congress, the congress that drafted the first state constitution. During the Revolutionary War, he served on the Naval Board as its Secretary; all communication went through him. In 1777, fellow North Carolinian and signer of the Declaration of Independence, John Penn, accused Hewes of holding multiple offices and using his position for personal profit. Disappointed and offended, Hewes retired that year. In 1779, he retired from his newly elected position in the Continental Congress. He died two weeks later.

Supreme Court Justice James Iredell, Sr.

James Iredell, Sr. (1751-1799) — The Edenton resident became one the first Justices on the United States Supreme Court (1791-99). Prior to this position, he was a successful attorney who had served as a North Carolina Superior Court judge (1777-78) and State attorney general (1779-81). He played a role for the defense in Bayard v. Singleton (1787), a famous case that introduced the concept of judicial review and had national importance. Iredell was also a skillful orator and persuasive Founding Era pamphleteer.

Samuel Johnston

Samuel Johnston (1733-1816) — The native of Scotland soon became one of North Carolina’s and the nation’s leading politicians during the first days of the United States of America. A successful attorney, he held numerous political offices including a long tenure in the General Assembly (1759-75) and three terms as the state’s governor (1787-89).  He served as president of the Third and Fourth Provincial Congresses. As a delegate to the Continental Congress in 1780, he was elected as president of that body; he declined the offer. In Bayard v. Singleton (1787), he represented a Loyalist who had had property seized by the state government during the Revolutionary War. The Chowan countian was North Carolina’s First Grand Master of the Masons, and he served as a U.S. Senator from 1789 to 1793. He eventually moved to Martin County and worked as a Superior Court judge (1800-1803). He was a Trustee of the University of North Carolina.

Hugh Williamson

Hugh Williamson (1735-1819) — A Renaissance man—a medical doctor, a philosopher, a scientist, and a politician–Williamson may have been one of the greatest thinkers in early America. He graduated from the College of Philadelphia (later named the University of Pennsylvania) and he earned his medical degree in Scotland. He delivered scientific talks to some of England’s most prestigious lyceums and associations and wrote one of the first books on climate change. During the Revolutionary War, he gave North Carolina troops smallpox vaccinations and served as surgeon general of the state. Like many state politicians, he served in the House of Commons (1782) and in the Continental Congress (1782-85). He served as a North Carolina delegate to the Constitutional Conventions and was one of the body’s most outspoken delegates. He emerged as a leading Federalist and worked to curry good favor among other states after North Carolina refused to reject or ratify the Constitution in 1788. Although he later moved from North Carolina, his A History of North Carolina was published in 1812.