On May 29, 1831, much of Fayetteville burned to the ground.
Starting in a kitchen on the northwest corner of Market Square, the fire’s central starting point was part of the reason it caused so much destruction. Though townspeople began trying to extinguish it around it noon, the fire continued to spread rapidly, destroying many of the nearby structures, including the building where the state had ratified the U.S. Constitution.
On May 29, 1888, the first Belk department store opened under the name the “New York Racket” in Monroe. The store was founded by William Henry Belk, only 25 at the time. Belk used all $750 of his personal life savings, a $500 loan and $3,000 in consigned merchandise to launch the operation.
On May 29, 1664, settlers from Barbados under John Vassall disembarked on the Cape Fear River. They established a settlement on its west bank and north of Town Creek, called Charles Town after King Charles II of England.
On May 28, 1900, a total solar eclipse occurred.
Though the eclipse’s path could be tracked across the Southeast, roughly from New Orleans to Norfolk, scientists determined that Wadesboro, in Anson County, was the best place in North America to view it.
On May 28, 1845, John Reed, the owner of the property where the first documented discovery of gold in the United States took place, died. In 1799, Reed’s son, Conrad, found a 17-pound yellow rock in Little Meadow Creek. Conrad brought it home where it was used as a doorstop for years. The elder Reed made several unsuccessful attempts to discern the rock’s value. In 1802, a merchant in Fayetteville paid the family $3.50 for it. Later Reed discovered that the rock was in fact gold and that the merchant received $3,600 from its sale.
On May 27, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln appointed Edward Stanly appointed military governor of North Carolina.
On May 26, 1864, a deadly torpedo explosion occurred at Batchelor’s Creek, about eight miles west of New Bern. For the Union forces stationed there, the losses were devastating. Initial reports claimed that 40 soldiers were killed in an accident while unloading the last four of 13 torpedoes from a train car. The torpedoes were intended to complete the blockade of the Neuse River.
On May 26, 1884, the Watauga Club was founded.
Comprised of a number of influential young leaders under the age of 30, including William Joseph Peele, Josephus Daniels and Walter Hines Page, the progressive organization championed several causes that its members hoped would set the state on a positive course into the future.