John Hood: Carolina Congressmen Tell Off Constituents
RALEIGH — Ever written your congressman? I have. I always get a prompt and cordial, if bland, reply. Back in 1988, I actually spent a few weeks as a Capitol Hill intern reading and drafting responses to constituent correspondence. I’ve never written more boring prose (although longtime readers of mine might well disagree).
Then as now, I’d have been shocked to see a letter from congressional representative to constituent that was anything other than respectful, helpful, even cloying. But 250 years ago this week, North Carolina’s delegates to the Continental Congress — Richard Caswell, William Hooper, and Joseph Hewes — jointly sent an acerbic letter from Philadelphia to county leaders back home.
After calling the oppressed citizens of Boston and fallen Patriots at Lexington and Concord the first victims of “ministerial tyranny,” the three delegates praised the New England and mid-Atlantic colonies for their swift and sweeping preparations for war against British forces. “North Carolina alone remains an inactive spectator of this general defensive armament,” complained Caswell, Hooper, and Hewes in their letter, which was dated June 19, 1775. “Supine and careless, she seems to forget even the duty she owes to her own local circumstances and situation.”
Was their accusation fair? Many recipients of the letter would have answered “no.” Nearly a month earlier, outraged leaders in the frontier county of Mecklenburg had declared as “wholly suspended” the laws and constitutions of the colonies and as “null and void” all commissions of royal governors and other public offices. They’d already directed militiamen to secure “proper arms and accoutrements” and authorized the purchase of gunpowder, flints, and lead for bullets.
Whether a formal Declaration of Independence or simply a demonstration of steely resolve, the Mecklenburg missive of May 20, 1775 certainly deserved the semiquincentennial celebrations staged in and around Charlotte last month. But the revolutionary fervor of 250 years ago was hardly confined to a single community.
n May 31, 1775, the New Bern Committee of Safety issued its own set of resolves endorsing armed resistance to British troops. On June 19 — the same day the congressional delegates sent their letter from Philadelphia — a group of New Hanover County leaders including Cornelius Harnett, Alexander Lillington, and James Moore met in Wilmington and approved a resolution citing the battles of Lexington and Concord to argue that “under our present distressed circumstances, we shall be justified, before God and man, in resisting force by force.” They also began stockpiling guns and powder.
Later that month, some 50 residents of Cumberland County convened at a tavern in Cross Creek (now Fayetteville) to discuss the same matter. After receiving a copy of the statement just issued from Wilmington, they substituted “Cumberland” for “New Hanover” in the text and adopted it themselves as the Liberty Point Resolves. And on July 1, 1775 — likely still too early to have received the congressional letter mailed from Philadelphia — leaders of Pitt County, meeting in Martinborough (now Greenville), adopted their own version of the same resolution.
Now, just to be clear, these statements targeted Britain’s governors, military commanders, and Parliament. They didn’t renounce the crown itself. In fact, Pitt County’s leaders pledged “all due allegiance to his majesty King George the Third” and to “endeavor to continue the succession of his crown in the illustrious house of Hanover” while also pledging to “assert their rights as men” against the “wicked” Parliament.
A young Edenton lawyer, James Iredell, reflected a common sentiment in a June 28 letter to his friend Joseph Hewes in Philadelphia. America’s leaders must prepare a robust defense, agreed the future justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, but should also “open a way of reconciliation, which it will be highly dishonorable on the part of Great Britain not to meet.” Otherwise, Iredell foresaw “nothing but the most dreadful and miserable scenes.”
Congress did try, issuing the Olive Branch Petition in early July. It proved all for naught. War came — and North Carolinians did, indeed, do their part to win it.
John Hood is a John Locke Foundation board member. His books Mountain Folk, Forest Folk, and Water Folk combine epic fantasy with American history (FolkloreCycle.com).
Are you tired of being bombarded by paywalls and pop-up ads when trying to read the news? Do you believe that access to reliable political news should be free and accessible to everyone? Then we urge you to support NC Political News, a weekly electronic political news outlet.
NC Political News is committed to providing high-quality, unbiased political reporting with columnists from all political sides. Unlike other news outlets, NC Political News is free to read and supported by businesses who purchase ad space on our website and in our newsletter, which goes out Monday through Friday at 7:00 am. This means that readers like you can access the news without being asked to pay a cent or dealing with frustrating advertisements.
However, to continue providing this valuable service, NC Political News needs your support. If you believe in the importance of accessible, free news, we urge you to click the image below. Any amount of support is appreciated.
Together, we can keep the news free and help ensure our state stays informed and connected.
