FRAUD ALERT
Be aware of multiple fraudulent text scams requesting payment for NCDMV fees, fines or tolls. NCDMV will NEVER request payment by text. Please report it as spam and delete. Learn More
Topics Related to Halifax County
The "Halifax Resolves," first formal sanction of American Independence, adopted in this town, April 12, 1776.
On November 21, 1757, the town of Halifax was established by the colonial legislature, which was meeting in New Bern. The act called for the establishment of a town on the lands of James Leslie on the Roanoke River. The new town was named Halifax, in honor of George Montagu, the second Earl of Halifax.
On June 23, 1954, 150 people met to organize a non-profit association to save, restore and preserve historic sites in Halifax. The group came to operate under the title of the Historical Halifax Restoration Association.
On April 12, 1776, 83 delegates to North Carolina’s Fourth Provincial Congress, meeting in Halifax, passed a unanimous resolution now known as the Halifax Resolves. The resolves advocated severing North Carolina’s ties with England and indicated support for independence for all American colonies.North Carolina became the first colony to officially commit such intentions to paper, striking the first blow for an independent America.
On January 22, 1919, a fire consumed a majority of the buildings on the campus of Littleton College in Halifax County. No lives were lost, but the devastation was so complete–damages exceeding $50,000–that the owner could not raise the money to rebuild and the school closed.
On January 14, 1771, Joseph Montfort was appointed Grand Master of the Freemasons of America by the Duke of Beaufort, Grand Master of England.Montfort was born in England in 1724. Little is known about his early life. After settling in Halifax sometime in the middle of the 18th century, he quickly became active in civic affairs, representing Halifax in the colonial assembly from 1766 to 1774 and eventually serving as a treasurer of the colony.
On January 9, 1779, James Hogun of Halifax County was chosen as a brigadier general for the North Carolina Continental Line. Hogun, a native of Ireland, settled near Hobgood around 1751. He was appointed the first major of the Halifax militia in 1776. Later that year he was promoted to colonel of the Seventh North Carolina Continental Regiment. He led the Seventh to serve under George Washington at the Battles of Brandywine and Germantown in 1777.