North Carolina

Image: Tennessee State Museum,
Tennessee Historical Society Collection

William Blount was the great-grandson of Thomas Blount, who came from England to Virginiasoon after 1660 and settled on a North Carolina plantation. William, the eldest in a large family,was born in 1749 while his mother was visiting his grandfather's Rosefield estate, on the site ofpresent Windsor near Pamlico Sound. The youth apparently received a good education.

Shortly after the War for Independence began, in 1776, Blount enlisted as a paymaster in theNorth Carolina forces. Two years later, he wed Mary Grainier (Granger); of their six children whoreached adulthood, one son also became prominent in Tennessee politics.

Blount spent most of the remainder of his life in public office. He sat in the lower house of theNorth Carolina legislature (1780-84), including service as speaker, as well as in the upper(1788-90). In addition, he took part in national politics, serving in the Continental Congress in1782-83 and 1786-87.

Appointed as a delegate to the Constitutional Convention at the age of 38, Blount was absent formore than a month because he chose to attend the Continental Congress on behalf of his state. Hesaid almost nothing in the debates and signed the Constitution reluctantly--only, he said, to makeit "the unanimous act of the States in Convention." Nonetheless, he favored his state's ratificationof the completed document.

Blount hoped to be elected to the first U.S. Senate. When he failed to achieve that end, in 1790 hepushed westward beyond the Appalachians, where he held speculative land interests and hadrepresented North Carolina in dealings with the Indians. He settled in what became Tennessee, towhich he devoted the rest of his life. He resided first at Rocky Mount, a cabin near presentJohnson City and in 1792 built a mansion in Knoxville.

Two years earlier, Washington had appointed Blount as Governor for the Territory South of theRiver Ohio (which included Tennessee) and also as Superintendent of Indian Affairs for theSouthern Department, in which positions he increased his popularity with the frontiersmen. In1796 he presided over the constitutional convention that transformed part of the territory into theState of Tennessee. He was elected as one of its first U.S. senators (1796-97).

During this period, Blount's affairs took a sharp turn for the worse. In 1797 his speculations inwestern lands led him into serious financial difficulties. That same year, he also apparentlyconcocted a plan involving use of Indians, frontiersmen, and British naval forces to conquer forBritain the Spanish provinces of Florida and Louisiana. A letter he wrote alluding to the plan fellinto the hands of President Adams, who turned it over to the Senate on July 3, 1797. Five dayslater, that body voted 25 to 1 to expel Blount. The House impeached him, but the Senate droppedthe charges in 1799 on the grounds that no further action could be taken beyond his dismissal.

The episode did not hamper Blount's career in Tennessee. In 1798 he was elected to the senateand rose to the speakership. He died 2 years later at Knoxville in his early fifties. He is buriedthere in the cemetery of the First Presbyterian Church.

Image: Independence National Historical Park

One of the eight delegates born outside of the thirteen colonies, Davie was born in Egremont,Cumberlandshire, England, on June 20, 1756. In 1763 Archibald Davie brought his son William toWaxhaw, SC, where the boy's maternal uncle, William Richardson, a Presbyterian clergyman,adopted him. Davie attended Queen's Museum College in Charlotte, North Carolina, andgraduated from the College of New Jersey (later Princeton) in 1776.

Davie's law studies in Salisbury, NC, were interrupted by military service, but he won his licenseto practice before county courts in 1779 and in the superior courts in 1780. When the War forIndependence broke out, he helped raise a troop of cavalry near Salisbury and eventually achievedthe rank of colonel. While attached to Pulaski's division, Davie was wounded leading a charge atStono, near Charleston, on June 20, 1779. Early in 1780 he raised another troop and operatedmainly in western North Carolina. In January 1781 Davie was appointed commissary-general forthe Carolina campaign. In this capacity he oversaw the collection of arms and supplies to Gen.Nathanael Greene's army and the state militia.

After the war, Davie embarked on his career as a lawyer, traveling the circuit in North Carolina.In 1782 he married Sarah Jones, the daughter of his former commander, Gen. Allen Jones, andsettled in Halifax. His legal knowledge and ability won him great respect, and his presentation ofarguments was admired. Between 1786 and 1798 Davie represented Halifax in the North Carolinalegislature. There he was the principal agent behind that body's actions to revise and codify statelaws, send representatives to the Annapolis and Philadelphia conventions, cede Tennessee to theUnion, and fix disputed state boundaries.

During the Constitutional Convention Davie favored plans for a strong central government. Hewas a member of the committee that considered the question of representation in Congress andswung the North Carolina delegation's vote in favor of the Great Compromise. He favoredelection of senators and presidential electors by the legislature and insisted on counting slaves indetermining representation. Though he left the convention on August 13, before its adjournment,Davie fought hard for the Constitution's ratification and took a prominent part in the NorthCarolina convention.

The political and military realms were not the only ones in which Davie left his mark. TheUniversity of North Carolina, of which he was the chief founder, stands as an enduring reminderof Davie's interest in education. Davie selected the location, instructors, and a curriculum thatincluded the literary and social sciences as well as mathematics and classics. In 1810 the trusteesconferred upon him the title of "Father of the University" and in the next year granted him thedegree of Doctor of Laws.

Davie became Governor of North Carolina in 1798. His career also turned back briefly to themilitary when President John Adams appointed him a brigadier general in the U.S. Army thatsame year. Davie later served as a peace commissioner to France in 1799.

Davie stood as a candidate for Congress in 1803 but met defeat. In 1805, after the death of hiswife, Davie retired from politics to his plantation, "Tivoli," in Chester County, South Carolina. In1813 he declined an appointment as major-general from President Madison. Davie was 64 yearsold when he died on November 29, 1820, at "Tivoli," and he was buried in the Old WaxhawPresbyterian Churchyard in northern Lancaster County.

Image: Independence National Historical Park

Though he represented North Carolina at the Constitutional Convention, Alexander Martin wasborn in Hunterdon County, NJ, in 1740. His parents, Hugh and Jane Martin, moved first toVirginia, then to Guilford County, NC, when Alexander was very young. Martin attended theCollege of New Jersey (later Princeton), received his degree in 1756, and moved to Salisbury.There he started his career as a merchant but turned to public service as he became justice of thepeace, deputy king's attorney, and, in 1774 and 1775, judge of Salisbury district.

At the September 1770 session of the superior court at Hillsboro, 150 Regulators armed withsticks, switches, and cudgels crowded into the courtroom. They had come to present a petition tothe judge demanding unprejudiced juries and a public accounting of taxes by sheriffs. Violenceerupted, and several, including Alexander Martin, were beaten. In 1771 Martin signed anagreement with the Regulators to refund all fees taken illegally and to arbitrate all differences.

From 1773 to 1774 Martin served in the North Carolina House of Commons and in the secondand third provincial congresses in 1775. In September 1775 he was appointed a lieutenant colonelin the 2d North Carolina Continental Regiment. Martin saw military action in South Carolina andwon promotion to a colonelcy. He joined Washington's army in 1777, but after the Battle ofGermantown he was arrested for cowardice. A court-martial tried and acquitted Martin, but heresigned his commission on November 22, 1777.

Martin's misfortune in the army did not impede his political career. The year after his court-martialhe entered the North Carolina Senate, where he served for 8 years (1778-82, 1785, and 1787-88). For every session except those of 1778-79, Martin served as speaker. From 1780 to 1781 he alsosat on the Board of War and its successor, the Council Extraordinary. In 1781 Martin becameacting governor of the state, and in 1782 through 1785 he was elected in his own right.

After his 1785 term in the North Carolina Senate, Martin represented his state in the ContinentalCongress, but he resigned in 1787. Of the five North Carolina delegates to the ConstitutionalConvention, Martin was the least strongly Federalist. He did not take an active part in theproceedings, and he left Philadelphia in late August 1787, before the Constitution was signed.Martin was considered a good politician but not suited to public debate. A colleague, HughWilliamson, remarked that Martin needed time to recuperate after his great exertions as governor"to enable him again to exert his abilities to the advantage of the nation."

Under the new national government, Martin again served as Governor of North Carolina, from1789 until 1792. After 1790 he moved away from the Federalists to the Republicans. In 1792Martin, elected by the Republican legislature, entered the U.S. Senate. His vote in favor of theAlien and Sedition Acts cost him reelection. Back in North Carolina, Martin returned to the statesenate in 1804 and 1805 to represent Rockingham County. In 1805 he once again served asspeaker. From 1790 until 1807 he was a trustee of the University of North Carolina. Martin nevermarried, and he died on November 2, 1807 at the age of 67 at his plantation, "Danbury," inRockingham County and was buried on the estate.

Image: Independence National Historical Park

Spaight was born at New Bern, NC of distinquished English-Irish parentage in 1758. When hewas orphaned at 8 years of age, his guardians sent him to Ireland, where he obtained an excellenteducation. He apparently graduated from Scotland's Glasgow University before he returned toNorth Carolina in 1778.

At that time, the War for Independence was in full swing, and Spaight's superior attainments soongained him a commission. He became an aide to the state militia commander and in 1780 tookpart in the Battle of Camden, SC. The year before, he had been elected to the lower house of thelegislature.

In 1781 Spaight left the military service to devote full time to his legislative duties. He representedNew Bern and Craven County (1781-83 and 1785-87); in 1785 he became speaker. Betweenterms, he also served in the Continental Congress (1783-85).

In 1787, at the age of 29, Spaight joined the North Carolina delegation to the Philadelphiaconvention. He was not a leader but spoke on several occasions and numbered among those whoattended every session. After the convention, he worked in his home state for acceptance of theConstitution.

Spaight met defeat in bids for the governorship in 1787 and the U.S. Senate 2 years later. Fromthen until 1792, illness forced his retirement from public life, during which time he visited theWest Indies, but he captured the governorship in the latter year (1792-95). In 1793 he served aspresidential elector. Two years later, he wed Mary Leach, who bore three children.

In 1798 Spaight entered the U.S. House of Representatives as a Democratic-Republican andremained in office until 1801. During this time, he advocated repeal of the Alien and Sedition Actsand voted for Jefferson in the contested election of 1800. The next year, Spaight was voted intothe lower house of the North Carolina legislature; the following year, to the upper.

Only 44 years old in 1802, Spaight was struck down in a duel at New Bern with a political rival,Federalist John Stanly. So ended the promising career of one of the state's foremost leaders. Hewas buried in the family sepulcher at Clermont estate, near New Bern.

Image: National Archives, Records of Exposition, Anniversary, and Memorial Commissions
(148-CCD-70a)

The versatile Williamson was born of Scotch-Irish descent at West Nottingham, PA., in 1735. Hewas the eldest son in a large family, whose head was a clothier. Hoping he would become aPresbyterian minister, his parents oriented his education toward that calling. After attendingpreparatory schools at New London Cross Roads, DE, and Newark, DE, he entered the first classof the College of Philadelphia (later part of the University of Pennsylvania) and took his degree in1757.

The next 2 years, at Shippensburg, PA, Williamson spent settling his father's estate. Then trainingin Connecticut for the ministry, he soon became a licensed Presbyterian preacher but was neverordained. Around this time, he also took a position as professor of mathematics at his almamater.

In 1764 Williamson abandoned these pursuits and studied medicine at Edinburgh, London, andUtrecht, eventually obtaining a degree from the University of Utrecht. Returning to Philadelphia,he began to practice but found it to be emotionally exhausting. His pursuit of scientific interestscontinued, and in 1768 he became a member of the American Philosophical Society. The nextyear, he served on a commission that observed the transits of Venus and Mercury. In 1771 hewrote An Essay on Comets, in which he advanced several original ideas. As a result,the University of Leyden awarded him an LL.D. degree.

In 1773, to raise money for an academy in Newark, DE., Williamson made a trip to the WestIndies and then to Europe. Sailing from Boston, he saw the Tea Party and carried news of it toLondon. When the British Privy Council called on him to testify as to what he had seen, hewarned the councilors that the colonies would rebel if the British did not change their policies.While in England, he struck up a close friendship with fellow-scientist Benjamin Franklin, andthey cooperated in electrical experiments. Moreover, Williamson furnished to Franklin the lettersof Massachusetts Royal Governor Thomas Hutchinson to his lieutenant governor that created asensation and tended to further alienate the mother country and colonies.

In 1775 a pamphlet Williamson had written while in England, called The Plea of theColonies, was published. It solicited the support of the English Whigs for the Americancause. When the United States proclaimed their independence the next year, Williamson was inthe Netherlands. He soon sailed back to the United States, settling first in Charleston, SC, andthen in Edenton, NC. There, he prospered in a mercantile business that traded with the FrenchWest Indies and once again took up the practice of medicine.

Williamson applied for a medical post with the patriot forces, but found all such positions filled.The governor of North Carolina, however, soon called on his specialized skills, and he becamesurgeon-general of state troops. After the Battle of Camden, SC, he frequently crossed Britishlines to tend to the wounded. He also prevented sickness among the troops by paying closeattention to food, clothing, shelter, and hygiene.

After the war, Williamson began his political career. In 1782 he was elected to the lower house ofthe state legislature and to the Continental Congress. Three years later, he left Congress andreturned to his legislative seat. In 1786 he was chosen to represent his state at the AnnapolisConvention but arrived too late to take part. The next year, he again served in Congress(1787-89) and was chosen as a delegate to the Constitutional Convention. Attending faithfullyand demonstrating keen debating skill, he served on five committees, notably on the Committeeon Postponed Matters, and played a significant part in the proceedings, particularly the majorcompromise on representation.

After the convention, Williamson worked for ratification of the Constitution in North Carolina. In1788 he was chosen to settle outstanding accounts between the state and the federal government.The next year, he was elected to the first U.S. House of Representatives, where he served twoterms. In 1789 he married Maria Apthorpe, who bore at least two sons.

In 1793 Williamson moved to New York City to facilitate his literary and philanthropic pursuits.Over the years, he published many political, educational, economic, historical, and scientificworks, but the last earned him the most praise. The University of Leyden awarded him anhonorary degree. In addition, he was an original trustee of the University of North Carolina andlater held trusteeships at the College of Physicians and Surgeons and the University of the State ofNew York. He was also a founder of the Literary and Philosophical Society of New York and aprominent member of the New-York Historical Society.

In 1819, at the age of 83, Williamson died in New York City and was buried at TrinityChurch.