Topics Related to This Day in North Carolina History

On May 9, 1942, the U.S. Coast Guard sank German U-boat 352 off the Outer Banks.

Thirteen German sailors died and 33 were plucked from the water. They were taken to Fort Bragg and confined as prisoners of war. During the course of the war thousands of POWs—mostly Germans and Italians—were captured and sent to camps in North Carolina.

On May 9, 1777, John Butler was appointed commander of the Hillsborough District militia.

Butler had settled in Orange County in the early 1760s and was elected sheriff in 1770. When the Revolution began, he was appointed to the Hillsborough committee of safety, and later commanded the Orange County militia at Moores Creek Bridge.  In 1776, the government divided the state into six military districts. Butler’s command put him in charge of militia regiments from Caswell, Chatham, Granville, Orange, Randolph and Wake Counties.

On May 7, 1915, the German submarine U-20 fired a single torpedo at the luxury liner RMS Lusitania, striking the hull at 2:10 p.m. Wilmington resident Owen Hill Kenan was onboard, making his way to Deck A when the torpedo hit its target.

On May 7, 1865, Confederate General James Green Martin surrendered the Army of Western North Carolina at Waynesville, nearly a month after Appomattox.

On May 7, 1964, President Lyndon Johnson, accompanied by Governor Terry Sanford, visited the home of tenant farmer William David Marlow near Rocky Mount to promote the President’s “War on Poverty” initiative.

The 15-minute visit was essentially a photo opportunity to launch Johnson’s tour of Appalachia.  There have been questions over the years as to why Rocky Mount was selected, not being particularly close to the mountains, though many have assumed it has something to do with the town’s name.