Fourth North Carolina Provincial Congress


The Fourth North Carolina Provincial Congress was a meeting of the provincial congress of the de facto provincial government of North Carolina, composed of 153 delegates from 35 counties and nine towns. The congress convened in Halifax on April 4, 1776, and ended on May 14, 1776, during the final year of Josiah Martin's gubernatorial administration. Samuel Johnston was unanimously chosen as president, and Cornelius Harnett was appointed as vice president of the congress.

History

Resolutions

The delegates authorized their representatives to the Second Continental Congress to vote for independence, including Joseph Hewes, William Hooper, and John Penn. The 83 delegates present on April 12, 1776 adopted the Halifax Resolves. On April 13, 1776, the delegates formed a committee to start working on a North Carolina Constitution, which was ratified in December by the Fifth North Carolina Provincial Congress. In April 1776, the congress passed a resolve to move loyalists while allowing them to dispose of their property. Later in May 1776, the congress passed a resolve to confiscate the property of those taking up arms against the United Colonies.

Delegates

The following is a full list of delegates to the fourth congress by constituency.
ConstituencyName
Anson CountyJohn Child
Anson CountyJohn Crawford
Anson CountyDaniel Love
Anson CountyJames Pickett
Anson CountySamuel Spencer
Beaufort CountyJohn Cowper
Beaufort CountyRoger Ormond
Beaufort CountyThomas Respess, jun.
Bertie CountyJohn Campbell
Bertie CountyJohn Johnston
Bertie CountyCharles Jaycocks
Bladen CountyThomas Amis
Bladen CountyMaturin Colville
Bladen CountyJames Council
Bladen CountyNathaniel Richardson
Bladen CountyThomas Robeson, jun.
Brunswick Countynot represented
Bute CountyWilliam Alston
Bute CountyPhilemon Hawkins
Bute CountyGreen Hill
Bute CountyWilliam Person
Bute CountyThomas Sherrod
Carteret CountyJohn Backhouse
Carteret CountySolomon Shepard
Carteret CountyWilliam Thompson
Chatham CountyElisha Cain
Chatham CountyJeduthan Harper
Chatham CountyAmbrose Ramsey
Chatham CountyJoseph Rosser
Chatham CountyJohn Thompson
Chowan CountyThomas Benbury
Chowan CountyJohn B. Beasly
Chowan CountyThomas Hunter
Chowan CountySamuel Johnston
Chowan CountyThomas Jones
Craven CountyJacob Blount
Craven CountyJohn Bryan
Craven CountyWilliam Bryan
Craven CountyJames Coor
Craven CountyLemuel Hatch
Cumberland CountyDavid Smith
Cumberland CountyAlexander McAllister
Cumberland CountyFarquard Campbell
Cumberland CountyThomas Rutherford
Cumberland CountyAlexander McKay
Currituck CountySamuel Jarvis
Currituck CountyGideon Lamb
Currituck CountySolomon Perkins
Currituck CountyJames Ryan
Currituck CountyJames White
Dobbs CountySimon Bright
Dobbs CountyRichard Caswell
Dobbs CountyWilliam McKinnie
Dobbs CountyGeorge Miller
Dobbs CountyAbraham Sheppard
Duplin CountyRichard Clinton
Duplin CountyWilliam Dickson
Duplin CountyThomas Gray
Edgecombe CountyElisha Battle
Edgecombe CountyNathan Boddie
Edgecombe CountyWilliam Haywood
Edgecombe CountyHenry Irwin
Edgecombe CountyDuncan Lemon
Granville CountyCharles A. Eaton
Granville CountyMemucan Hunt
Granville CountyJohn Penn
Granville CountyThomas Person
Granville CountyJohn Taylor
Guilford CountyWilliam Dent
Guilford CountyRalph Gorrell, jun.
Guilford CountyRansom Sutherland
Halifax CountyWillis Alston
Halifax CountyJohn Bradford
Halifax CountyJames Hogun
Halifax CountyDavid Sumner
Halifax CountyJoseph John Williams
Hertford CountyLawrence Baker
Hertford CountyMatthias Brickell, jun.
Hertford CountyWilliam Murfree
Hertford CountyRobert Sumner
Hyde CountyJoseph Hancock
Hyde CountyJohn Jordan
Hyde CountyRotheas Latham
Hyde CountyBenjamin Parmelin
Johnston CountySamuel Smith, jun.
Johnston CountyHenry Rains
Johnston CountyNeedham Bryan, jun.
Martin CountyWhitmell Hill
Martin CountyKenneth McKenzie
Martin CountyEdward Smithwick
Martin CountyThomas Wiggins
Martin CountyWilliam Williams
Mecklenburg CountyJohn McKnitt Alexander
Mecklenburg CountyRobert Irwin
Mecklenburg CountyJohn Phifer
New Hanover CountyJohn Ashe
New Hanover CountySamuel Ashe
New Hanover CountyJohn DeVane
New Hanover CountyJohn Hollingsworth
New Hanover CountySampson Mosely
Northampton CountyJeptha Atherton
Northampton CountyHowell Edmunds
Northampton CountyDrewry Gee
Northampton CountyEaton Haynes
Northampton CountyAllen Jones
Northampton CountySamuel Lockhart
Northampton CountyEaton Haynes
Onslow CountyBenjamin Doty
Onslow CountyJohn King
Onslow CountyGeorge Mitchell
Onslow CountyJohn Norman
Onslow CountyJohn Spicer
Orange CountyThomas Burke
Orange CountyJohn Butler
Orange CountyJohn Kinchen
Orange CountyNathaniel Rochester
Orange CountyJames Saunders
Pasquotank CountyHenry Abbot
Pasquotank CountyThomas Boyd
Pasquotank CountyDempsey Burgess
Pasquotank CountyWilliam Cumming
Pasquotank CountyJoseph Jones
Perquimans CountyCharles Blount
Perquimans CountyMiles Harvey
Perquimans CountyThomas Harvey
Perquimans CountyCharles Moore
Perquimans CountyWilliam Skinner
Pitt CountyWilliam Robeson
Pitt CountyEdward Salter
Pitt CountyJohn Simpson
Rowan CountyJohn Johnston
Rowan CountyMatthew Locke
Rowan CountyGriffith Rutherford
Surry CountyCharles Gordon
Surry CountyJoseph Williams
Surry CountyJoseph Winston
Tryon CountyJames Johnston
Tryon CountyCharles McLean
Tyrrell CountyArchibald Corry
Wake CountyJohn Hinton
Wake CountyWilliam Hooper
Wake CountyTignal Jones
Wake CountyJoel Lane
Wake CountyJohn Rand
Town of BathWilliam Brown
EdentonJoseph Hewes
NewbernAbner Nash
WilmingtonCornelius Harnett
Brunswicknot represented
HalifaxWillie Jones
HalifaxJohn Webb
HillsboroughWilliam Johnston
SalisburyDavid Nesbitt
CampbeltonArthur Council