1771 Alamance: The First Battle of Our American Revolution
Historians have taught that the American Revolution began with the
"Shot heard around the world" at the Old North Bridge, Concord, New
Hampshire. Although, at Concord on April 19, 1775, the conflict blazed
up into a conflagration, perhaps another shot fired four years earlier
in central North Carolina, was the Spark that ignited our American
Revolution.
Here is the story.
Following the unsuccessful
English settlement at Roanoke Island in the late 1500’s, colonization of
Virginia and South Carolina gained more prominence, and the North
Carolina uplands were settled by a more rugged, more independent-minded
type of individual.
In 1765 the new Royal Governor of the North
Carolina Colony, Lord Tryon, imposed a policy of taxation to build his
opulent palace in New Bern. Over time, colonial leaders from the west
wrote letters to the Gov. and spoke with the royal administrators
requesting moderation of the onerous taxing and highhanded policies of
the Royal Court in Hillsborough.
More @ NC History
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Physician family connection below.
UNC
Invoice from Thomas Leach for medical care
Leach, Thomas May 10,
1772
Volume 22, Page 481
Mr. Danl. Peegram, Junr., to Thomas Leach, Dr.
May 10th, 1772—
To
Vizits at Different Times, Opening Dressing, Med.
and Cureing your knee of a Gun shott Wound Rec’d in his
Majes’y Service in the year 1771, in the Battle
fought at the Grate Allamance, the 16th
day of May, Under the Command of his
Excellen’y the Governor Tryon
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£22
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10
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0
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Bute County, Jan’y 22, 1773.
-PHILEMON HAWKINS, J. P.
Very interesting !
ReplyDeleteCouldn't live without history. :)
DeleteConcord, Massachusetts.
DeleteSorry Brock, wrong state.
Adam
Close enough for government work. :)
DeleteTechnically, we had several events where shots were fired, and people killed. I would suppose the NC had its share. In most cases, the crown prosecuted and hung those they could catch. Lexington was just the largest. Too big and out of control for the Crown to handle. Things never were the same after those two actions. It was Game On.
ReplyDeleteBrock,
ReplyDeleteTwo weeks before, on the evening of May 2, 1771, nine young men from southern Cabarrus County, called the "Cabarrus Black Boys" covered their faces with soot and attacked a wagon train of munitions at Phifers Hill, near Concord, NC. They destroyed three wagon loads of munitions destined for Hillsborough. Suggested reading - Touring North Carolina's Revolutionary War Sites by Daniel W. Barefoot
Thanks.
Delete