All tagged bucklesberry
Hickory Grove was established by 1841 as a Free Will Baptist (F.W.B.) church. By 1872, it was a Baptist work aligned with the Union Baptist Association (U.B.A.). A church vote in October 1884 resulted in separation from the U.B.A. Seven months later, the congregation voted to affiliate with the Methodist Protestant Church (M.P.C.) Conference.
The first year of Hickory Grove's transition to a new denominational home in 1885 was not without interruption. Fewer than thirty days after the Church voted to align with the Methodist Protestant Church (M.P.C.) Conference, former Baptist pastor Rev. Bushrod Washington (B. W.) Nash, no doubt unhappy, was reportedly back in the pulpit by the end of April 1885. Whether he was invited to preach or requested the meeting is unknown:
A significant turning point in the life of Hickory Grove Church was the December 1884 pastoral call to Rev. William Ellis Swain of the Methodist Protestant Church (M.P.C.) Conference. In his 1929 book that traced the history of the M.P.C. Conference, Dr. Olin B. Michael, Th.D. affirmed, "The Hickory Grove people had come to us [the M.P.C. Conference], under W. E. Swain's pastorate."
A recent study identified 131 patents and surveys archived at NClandgrants.com for tracts of land geographically located in the greater Bucklesberry area of Lenoir County. Dated 1729 to 1759, these records named 92 settlers that represented 64 surnames, proving the settlement of Bucklesberry began long before 1825, the year it was previously purported to have been opened up for colonization.
According to a 1924 news story published in The News and Observer of Raleigh, Bucklesberry was purportedly opened to colonization in the early nineteenth century. This article claimed settlement commenced in 1825 by brothers John Sutton (ca. 1779-1848) and Hardy Sutton (1803-1861).
Settlers did not all migrate into the backcountry of Bucklesberry at the same time, nor did they arrive in large mass. Rather, the various dates of 131 land records ranging from 1729 to 1759 suggest that the 92 named settlers trickled in individually, some possibly in small groups.
Ancestors of present-day Sutton and Herring descendants of Lenoir County were among the first settlers of greater Bucklesberry in the early to mid-1700s. Joined by many others, an extensive online search (primarily at NClandgrants.com) identified 131 archived deeds and surveys dated 1729 to 1759 for tracts of land in or near Bucklesberry.
Hailing from Bertie County, N.C., the Herrings were among the first early settlers and landowners of Bucklesberry. Brothers Abraham, John, Sr., and Samuel Herring were issued land patents and surveys from 1738 to 1747 that totaled 1,525 acres.
The proven patriarch of generations of present-day Suttons in Lenoir County was John Sutton (1720/30-bef. 1773). An early settler of Bucklesberry, he arrived around 1745-1750. Not the only settler, though, nor the first, evidence suggests that ancestors of the Herring family line of Lenoir County preceded John Sutton's arrival.
An article published in The News and Observer in 1924 reported that Bucklesberry was opened to colonization in 1825. This claim has been debunked, based on two land documents stored at the State Archives of North Carolina. Having recently come to light, one is a land patent dated 1738 that explicitly named Bucklesberry.
Challenges and risks awaited early eighteenth century settlers who arrived in the unsettled Bucklesberry Pocosin of then old Craven County. According to historian and author Dr. Lindley S. Butler, PhD, "The backcountry was the last area of the State to be settled and, consequently, the most volatile region of North Carolina society for many years."
An abundance of land awaited the earliest settlers who arrived in the unsettled backcountry of Bucklesberry in the early to mid-1700s. Defined by Historian and author Dr. Lindley S. Butler, PhD, backcountry was a "term used during the early settlement and colonial periods for the vast interior of North Carolina, located away from the coastline and including both the modern day Piedmont and Mountain regions."
A 1924 article in The News and Observer claimed that colonization in Bucklesberry began in 1825. This article was followed three years later by a 1927 publication from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Authors R. C. Jurney and W. A. Davis reported the results of a Lenoir County soil sample survey, which suggested, to the contrary, that colonization ensued much earlier.
The actual point in time that Bucklesberry was opened to colonization has been bandied about for generations. Although an exact year is virtually impossible to ascertain, a November 6, 1924 news story nonetheless reported that colonization in Bucklesberry began in 1825. Reprinted here, the article appeared in the State's then-leading newspaper, The News and Observer of Raleigh:
Largely unsettled swamp land in the beginning, Bucklesberry of Lenoir County is known today for its nutrient-rich soil that yields some of the finest crops in the Southeast. In fact, early land patents identified the area as "Bucklesberry Pocosin" (i.e., swamp or wetlands).
The Bucklesberry farm community does not hold a registered trademark on its name, unusual as it is. And it certainly is not the first to have this name. Not so unique, there are a number of places in North Carolina and across the pond (England) with variations of the same name, including "Buckleberry," "Bucklebury," "Bucklersbury," "Bucklesbury," and "Bucklesberie."
Arguably the oldest named farm community in Lenoir County, NC, Bucklesberry is nestled along the north side of the Neuse River, a few miles south of the town of La Grange. Its geographic location has remained the same over time, but its boundaries have modified and county affiliation has varied as North Carolina's counties were formed and renamed during the last half of the eighteenth century.
Daylight savings time is here, and with it, a controversial proposal from a local mayor.
Neuse News award-winning columnist Jon Dawson and his family had a memorable Independence Day.
It's been scientifically proven that Bucklesberry corn is more addictive than any narcotic or aerosol cheese product on the market.
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