Book Description

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1902 edition. Excerpt: ... THE HISTORY OF MECKLENBURG COUNTY. Early Settlement. With what complacency we could look back upon the early years of our county, if a memorandum had been kept of the first inhabitants, what they did, how they educated their children, how far apart the neighbors lived, their first temples of worship, how services were conducted, did the aborigines join in the praise to God, the giver of life and every blessing, or did they sullenly look on as if they were infringing upon their inalienable rights, as if they were taking unwarranted liberties that no one had ever dared to do before. The settlement of the State began near the coast and gradually extended west. The eastern section of the State was populated a century before Mecklenburg was named, or steps were taken to lay off meets and bounds to form a county. In that early period there was no occasion for hurry, and everything moved slowly. But few people moved to this section of the State prior to 1740, that is between the Yadkin and Catawba rivers. The boundary of Mecklenburg was marked off in 1762-- that is, the eastern, southern and western borders; the northern or northwestern was not marked off, but was left open to see where it would be settled up, so as to draw the boundary line. In the next twenty years there was a great immigration to this settlement from Maryland and Pennsylvania, and a few from Ireland and Germany. And in 1762 when the boundary lines were run, quite a population occupied the territory that was called Mecklenburg county, and its county seat was called Charlotte in honor of the reigning family. Not until 1742 did the title of immigration turn toward this part of North Carolina, and even at this period it was light to what it was twenty years later. In 1750-56, ..