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Please add profiles for those who were born, lived or died in Halifax County, North Carolina.
Official Website
Originally the area was home to Tuscarora Indians and then it was settled in the early 18th century by English colonists migrating south from Virginia and also from New Jersey.
According to Preservation North Carolina, “Halifax County, designated in 1759, is one of the oldest counties in North Carolina with a rich history dating back to the earliest days of European settlement of North America. Over the years, Halifax County has provided North Carolina with more leaders – governors, congressmen, generals – than any other county in the state.”
On January 24, 1759, a group of men from Halifax and Edgecombe counties rode to Francis Corbin's house in Edenton and seized him during the night. The men were upset because Corbin had extorted money from them when collecting rents for Lord Granville who controlled the land on which they lived. Corbin was taken to Enfield, along with a co-conspirator Thomas Bodley – and the men were kept in jail for four days – until they agreed to acknowledge the corruption and set records straight. Enfield was the seat of the judicial district, including Northampton, Granville, and Edgecombe County, before Halifax became the county seat.
Although Corbin was eventually relieved of his duties by Lord Granville, a few months later a court accused the Halifax and Edgecombe men of kidnapping. The kidnappers were imprisoned in the Enfield jail and a second “riot” erupted on May 14, 1759 when a mob broke into the jail and freed the men who had kidnapped Corbin and Bodley. Distrust of the British Crown and the rule of royal governors continued to foment unrest in eastern North Carolina until the colony became the first of its peers to recommend American independence.
On April 12, 1776, the North Carolina Provincial Congress met in Halifax and passed a resolution known as the Halifax Resolves. The first resolution of its kind, the document instructed North Carolina's delegates to the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia to vote for independence from Great Britain. The date of the Halifax Resolves is commemorated on the state's flag. Each year April 12 is celebrated as Halifax Day, with individuals in period costumes demonstrating colonial-era activities and craftsmanship.
Adjacent Counties
- Bertie County
- Northampton County
- Edgecombe County
- Martin County
- Nash County
- Franklin County
- Warren County
Cities & Towns
- Enfield
- Halifax (County Seat)
- Hobgood
- Littleton
- Roanoke Rapids
- Scotland Neck
- Weldon
Other Townships & Communities: Aurelian Springs, Brinkleyville, Butterwood, Charleston, Conoconnara, Essex, Faucett, Halifax, Heathsville, Hollister, Palmyra, Rosenath, South Rosemary and South Weldon
Cemeteries
Links
National Register of Historic Places
Slaveholders 1860 Census Schedule
Free African Americans Slaves named in wills
NC Estate Files - Halifax County
Halifax County Historical Society
Deeds of Halifax County - 1758-1771
History of Halifax County - ECU Digital Collections
