North Carolina in the American Revolution

It’s one thing to read about North Carolina’s role in the American Revolution, but it’s quite another to see artifacts directly linked to North Carolinians, both patriots and loyalists, who struggled for or against independence from Great Britain. Visitors to the N.C. Museum of History will have this opportunity in the traveling exhibit North Carolina in the American Revolution, which opened June 9 in Raleigh. Admission is free.

The exhibit, organized by the Society of the Cincinnati in Washington, D.C., focuses on North Carolina’s contributions to the American Revolution and highlights the distinct path the state took during the war. North Carolina’s involvement includes events such as the Edenton Tea Party, one of the earliest actions by American women in support of the Revolution; the Halifax Resolves, the first official recommendation for independence from Great Britain by an American colony; and the Battle of Moores Creek Bridge, one of the war’s first battles. North Carolina in the American Revolution tells these stories through 49 artifacts, such as weapons, rare maps, manuscripts and works of art. The exhibit will run until June 1, 2008.

Penelope Barker owned this tea caddy, ca. 1774. On Oct. 25, 1774, she presided over 51 women who signed the Edenton Resolves, adopted at the “Edenton Tea Party.”

Documents in North Carolina in the American Revolution include a rare and colorful map of the colony on the eve of the war, entitled “A Compleat Map of North-Carolina from an actual Survey” by John Abraham Collet (1770). Of significance is a five-pound counterfeit note printed in 1775 by North Carolina loyalists, who were supported by the British in their efforts to undermine the patriot economy.

North Carolina loyalists printed this counterfeit note, ca. late 1775, to undermine the patriot economy. It pictures Tryon Palace in the lower left corner. Photo: The Society of the Cincinnati

North Carolina in the American Revolution features weapons carried by the patriot, loyalist and British soldiers who fought in North Carolina. On view is a sword used by Gen. James Moore, who commanded the First North Carolina Regiment and directed the patriots’ strategy in the Battle of Moores Creek Bridge. Additional artifacts include handwritten comments by Gen. Nathanael Greene about the Battle of Guilford Courthouse, and a powder horn owned by Joel Lane, a delegate to the Provincial Congress.

Eighty Scots using traditional broadswords fell victim to the patriots’ trickery at Moores Creek Bridge on Feb. 27, 1776. This broadsword is dated 1740-1760. Photo: N.C. Museum of History

Take advantage of the extraordinary opportunity to see these objects and more that bring to life the stories of the American Revolution in North Carolina. The exhibit is presented in part with support from the North Carolina Society of the Cincinnati. For more information about the museum, call 919-807-7900.

The Society of the Cincinnati

The Society of the Cincinnati was founded at the close of the Revolutionary War by officers of the Continental army and navy to preserve the ideals and fellowship for which they had fought. George Washington was instrumental in the society’s founding and served as its first president general. Now in its third century, the society has been perpetuated by descendants of these Revolutionary War soldiers as a nonprofit historical and educational organization that promotes public interest in the American Revolution through its library and museum collections, exhibitions, programs, research and publications, and other activities. The Society of the Cincinnati’s headquarters is located in Washington, D.C., at Anderson House, a National Historic Landmark.


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