The Road to Halifax: North Carolina’s Path to Independence
As we approach the 250th anniversary of the United States, it is vital to look back and understand the pivotal roles our own communities and local leaders played in the events leading to the Declaration of Independence.
The journey towards independence in our state began in December of 1773 with the formation of the Committee of Correspondence in Wilmington. Chaired by Cornelius Harnett, this nine-member body included influential figures such as William Hooper, Samuel Johnston, and Richard Caswell. The goal of the committee was to inform voters of the shared threats facing the colonies and to bridge the information gap between coastal hubs and the rural backcountry. By distributing handwritten letters and printed pamphlets, the committee ensured that news accurately reflected their perspectives on unfolding events, both in the colony and in New England. Beyond communication, the committee also defied the Crown by supervising the election of North Carolina’s first Provincial Congress.
In the summer of 1774, sixty-nine delegates representing thirty of the colony’s thirty-six counties gathered in New Bern for the First Provincial Congress. This assembly formally approved the calling of a Continental Congress and appointed William Hooper, Joseph Hewes, and Richard Caswell as delegates to the Philadelphia meeting. To protest British actions against Massachusetts, the North Carolina congress also approved a trade boycott against the mother country. While the colonies presented a united front in Philadelphia later that year to petition the King for a redress of grievances, they remained internally divided on their long-term goals. Nevertheless, the members agreed that if the situation did not improve, they would reconvene for a Second Continental Congress.
By April 1775, the atmosphere in New England had reached a breaking point. Boston was under military occupation and a naval blockade. When British troops marched into the countryside to seize colonial munitions, the "shot heard 'round the world" was fired and battles erupted at Lexington and Concord. As these battles raged in the north, marking the beginning of the American Revolution, North Carolina was holding its Second Provincial Congress in New Bern. This act of defiance infuriated Royal Governor Josiah Martin, who dissolved the colonial legislature on April 8.
Following the news of the fighting in New England, Governor Martin fled New Bern to establish a new headquarters near Wilmington. By August, a Third Provincial Congress met with representatives from every county and town. This body officially declared itself the highest governmental authority in the colony, subsequently dividing the state into military districts to raise troops and organize future elections. But North Carolina was not without Loyalist opposition. Those faithful to the King viewed the Patriots as traitors who deserved punishment. Seeking to bolster his forces, Governor Martin dispatched a column of troops into the state's interior to recruit British sympathizers. In response, local Committees of Safety in Wilmington and New Bern mobilized their own militias under the leadership of Alexander Lillington and Richard Caswell.
On February 27, 1776, the two forces collided at Moore’s Creek Bridge, located about 25 miles north of Wilmington. In a swift and decisive engagement, Caswell’s Patriot militia defeated the Loyalist column. With approximately 50 Loyalists killed or wounded and 850 captured, the threat of a British backed uprising in the colony was effectively neutralized for the next four years.
Six weeks after the victory at Moore’s Creek, eighty-three delegates gathered for the Fourth Provincial Congress in Halifax. Emboldened by their recent military success and news of the British retreat from Boston, the assembly adopted a landmark resolution on April 12, 1776, known as the Halifax Resolves. This document authorized the colony’s representatives in Philadelphia to support total independence from Great Britain. It marked the first time any American colony openly called for a permanent break from the mother country, passing with unanimous approval. While Richard Caswell had served as an original member of the Second Continental Congress, the pressing needs of the colony required his leadership at home. Consequently, he was replaced in Philadelphia by John Penn so that Caswell could return to North Carolina to manage the state's delicate financial situation. His local influence and leadership eventually led to him being elected the first Governor of the newly independent state.
By June, Richard Henry Lee of Virginia proposed a formal resolution for independence in Philadelphia, which North Carolina’s delegation, now consisting of William Hooper, Joseph Hewes, and John Penn, heartily supported. A committee was formed to draft a document explaining the reasons for dissolving their allegiance to the Crown. Primarily authored by Thomas Jefferson, the Declaration of Independence was approved by twelve of the thirteen colonies on July 2, 1776, with New York abstaining due to British occupation. The document was announced to the public on July 4, 1776, a date forever enshrined as the birthday of the United States of America.
Visitors today can visit the National Battlefield at Moore’s Creek Bridge in Currie, the Halifax State Historic Site in Halifax, and the Governor Richard Caswell Memorial in Kinston where history was made!
Matthew Young is the site manager for the CSS Neuse Museum & the Govrnor Richard Caswell Memorial in Kinston.
