Iredell County

by Keever, Homer M. Armfield, Joseph Franklin by Homer M. Keever, 1979 24 Jan. 1862–10 Oct. 1910 Joseph Franklin Armfield, colonel of a regiment of North Carolina troops in the Spanish-American War and later [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Williams, Max R. Alexander Brevard, Revolutionary War officer, planter-enslaver, and iron entrepreneur, was a native of Iredell County but spent most of his adult life in Lincoln County. The first Brevard ancestor in [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Davidson, Chalmers G. John Brevard, II, colonial official and patriot, was the son of John Brevard, first of the Brevards in the colonies. According to his grandson, Alexander, the first John Brevard "is supposed to have [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Williams, Max R. Joseph Brevard, Revolutionary War soldier, jurist, and congressman, was a native of Iredell County and a long-time resident of Camden, Kershaw County, S.C. A younger brother of Alexander Brevard, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Agan, Kelly. Burke, Selma Hortense By Adapted by Kelly Agan, Government & Heritage Library, 2019, from the Blog, "This Day in North Carolina History" (December 31, 2016) 31 Dec. 1900 - 29 Aug. [...] (from North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.)

by Brawley, James S. David Franklin Caldwell, lawyer, legislator, and judge, was born of Scot-Irish ancestry in the eastern section of Iredell County. He was the son of Andrew Caldwell, an early settler of this region [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Kever, Homer M. Joseph Pearson Caldwell, newspaper editor, was born in Statesville just two weeks before the death of his father, the elder Joseph Pearson Caldwell, former state legislator from Iredell County and [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Jones, H. G. George Leonidas Cathey, school teacher and soldier, was born in Danville, Va., the son of William A. and Jennie Lessly Cathey, who took him at an early age to Iredell County, North Carolina, where [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Ham, Marie Sharpe, Blake, Debra A., Morris, C. Edward. Cherry, Mildred Stafford by Marie Sharpe Ham, Debra A. Blake, and C. Edward Morris. Excerpted from North Carolina's First Ladies, 1891-2001, copyright 2001. Reprinted with permission from [...] (from North Carolina's First Ladies: 1891-2001, North Carolina Historical Publications.)

by Raper, Horace W. Henry Clay Cowles, U.S. clerk of court at Salisbury, Charlotte, and Statesville, U.S. commissioner, and leading industrialist and banker, was born in Hamptonville, the son of Josiah and Nancy Carson [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Harris, Tyndall P., Jr. Hayne Davis, lawyer and author, was born in Statesville to E. Hayne Davis, veteran captain of the Confederate Army, and his wife Mary Williams Pearson of Richmond Hill. He was educated at the Bingham [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Wood, Steve. James Wagner Davis, physician, was born in Statesville, the son of Lawson Davis of Wilkes County and Delia Josephine Wagner Davis of Statesville. He studied in the public schools of Statesville until [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Howerton, Timothy L. Richmond Pearson Davis, career military officer and major general of artillery, was born in Statesville, the son of Hayne and Mary Williams Davis. He was graduated from the United States Military [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Keever, Homer M. Charles Force Deems, clergyman, educator, and author, is best known for his connection with the Church of the Strangers in New York City during the late nineteenth century and for his friendship with [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Mitchell, Thornton W. Thomas C. ("Tom Dooley") Dula, Confederate war veteran, convicted murderer, and folk subject, was born in Wilkes County, the son of Mary Dula. On 15 Mar. 1862 he enlisted in the Confederate Army as a [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Hood, Davyd Foard. Foard, John Frederick by Davyd Foard Hood, 1986 12 Apr. 1827–11 May 1909 See also: Foard, Osborne Giles (from the Dictionary of North Carolina Biography) John Frederick Foard, physician, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Foard, John Hanby, Jr. Osborne Giles Foard, planter-enslaver, state legislator, contractor, local official, and religious lay leader, was born in the fork of the Yadkin and South Yadkin rivers in what is now southern Davie [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Crow, Jeffrey J. David Moffatt Furches, lawyer, jurist, and chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court, was born in Davie County, the son of Stephen Lewis Furches, a justice of the peace and farmer, and Polly [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Gaither, Kent. Basil Gaither, Rowan County senator, was born in Anne Arundel County, Md., the son of Edward and Eleanor White Gaither, both Maryland natives. He was directly descended from John Gater, a German [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Gatton, T. Harry. Burgess Sidney Gaither, lawyer, solicitor, speaker of the North Carolina Senate, member of the Confederate States Congress, and superintendent of the U.S. Mint at Charlotte, was born on Rocky Creek [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Walser, Richard. James Gay, farmer, soldier, and poet, was born in Ulster, Ireland, of Devon forebears. In lieu of a formal education, he avidly read history and the Scottish poems of Allan Ramsay. At age sixteen he [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Walser, Richard. Daisy "Mabel" Hendley Gold, journalist and writer, was born in Iredell County, the daughter of Alvis Francis and Celeste Rimmer Norris Hendley. By her father's first marriage, she was a half sister [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Branch, Paul, Jr. James Byron Gordon, merchant, farmer, politician, and Confederate soldier, was born at Wilkesboro. His family, of Scottish descent, was founded by John George Gordon who emigrated from Scotland in [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. Charles Sylvester Green, clergyman, newspaper editor, college president, and executive, was born in Greensburg, Ky., the son of Thomas Madison and Rosealthea Buck Green. The family moved to the [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Macnicholas, John. James King Hall, psychiatrist, was born in Iredell County, near Statesville, the son of Dr. Eugenius Alexander and Amanda McCullough Howard Hall. Eugenius Alexander's ancestral line derives from [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Crawford, Jon G. Edward Harris, attorney, judge, and legislator, was born in Iredell County, the son of James and Rebecca Morrison Harris. James Harris, a native of Harrisburg, Pa., moved in 1758 to that part of [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Copeland, J. Isaac. Hill, Henry Harrington by J. Isaac Copeland, 1988 20 Sept. 1894–17 May 1987 Henry Harrington Hill, educator, was born in Statesville, the son of James Henry and Anne Harrington [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Flannagan, Clara H. R. Robert Andrews Hill, jurist, was born in Iredell County, the son of David and Rhoda Andrews Hill. In 1816 his family moved to Tennessee, settling in Williamson County where he managed to acquire a [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Stokes, Durward T. Lawrence Shackleford Holt, textile manufacturer and capitalist, was born in Alamance County at Locust Grove, the home of his parents near the village of Alamance. He was the youngest of ten children [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by McKinney, Gordon B. Alfred Eugene Holton, lawyer and Republican political leader, was one of eight children of Quinton and Harriet Holland Holton. He was born near Jamestown, Guilford County, into a most unusual family [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Doerschuk, M. Elaine. Christopher Houston, farmer, soldier, and town planner, was born in Lancaster County, Pa., the fourth son of Robert Houston, a successful Scottish immigrant wheat farmer, and his wife Martha Worke of [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. Mordecai E. Hyams, botanist and herbalist, was born in Charleston, S.C., a descendant of Solomon Hyams who came to America from Prussia in 1744. Although an obituary notice reports that Hyams [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Lester, Malcolm. Hugh Lawson, pioneer settler of Rowan County and ancestor of statesmen and patriots, was the son of Roger Lawson of Cecil County, Md. Although the elder Lawson was living in Cecil County as early as [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Steelman, Lala Carr. Augustus Leazar, farmer, educator, and public servant, was born on his father's plantation, Leazarwell, in Rowan County. Descended from French Huguenot, German, and Scot-Irish stock, he was the son [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Mcarver, Charles H., Jr. Long, Andrew Theodore by Charles H. Mcarver, Jr., 1991 6 Apr. 1866–21 May 1946 Andrew Theodore Long, naval officer, was one of ten children in the family of Thomas Simpson Long, an Iredell [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Avery, Caroline Long. Benjamin Franklin Long, superior court judge, was born in Alamance County, near Graham, at the home place settled by his great-grandfather, Conrad Long (Lange), who had emigrated from Germany to [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Mcgeachy, Neill R. McClure, Albert Bonner by Neill R. Mcgeachy, 1991 16 June 1905–28 Oct. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Keever, Homer M. John Harvey McElwee, industrialist and father of the Statesville tobacco industry, was born in York County, S.C., the son of Jonathan Newman and Martha Orr McElwee. He attended the rural schools of [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. Neill Roderick McGeachy, clergyman, church historian, and author, was born in Lenoir, the son of the Reverend Daniel Patrick and Lila Peck English McGeachy. Educated at Greenbrier Military School in [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Knox, Katherine Noe. Quincy Sharpe Mills, editor, author, and World War I officer, was born in Statesville, the only child of Thomas Millard and Nannie Sharpe Mills. His father was a merchant and his mother a teacher. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Jernigan, Allen. Mitchell, Anderson by Allen Jernigan, 1991 13 June 1800–24 Dec. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. Moore, William John by William S. Powell, 1991 4 Apr. 1837–post-1901 See also:  African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church (from the Encyclopedia of North Carolina); African Methodist [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Keever, Homer M. John James Mott, "Iron Duke" of the Republican party in North Carolina during the last half of the nineteenth century, physician, and hydroelectrical pioneer, was born in Hillsborough, where his [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Sims, E. Thomas. John Nisbet, general merchant, Patriot, and state legislator, was born in New Jersey, one of six children of John and Sarah Nisbet. In 1750 his parents moved from New Jersey to that part of Rowan [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Adams, D. W. Adlai Osborne, lawyer and political and educational leader, was the son of Alexander Osborne, of New Jersey, a prominent frontiersman of Rowan County, N.C., and a member of the 1761 colonial [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Caldwell, Marie Osborne. Alexander Osborne, frontiersman, was born in New Jersey but spent his early years in Lancaster, Pa. He moved to North Carolina about 1749 and settled on the headwaters of Rocky River in Anson (now [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Queen, Louise L. Alva Washington Plyler, Methodist minister and editor, was born in Iredell County, the son of Robert Conrad and Mary L. Kimball Plyler and the identical twin of Marion Timothy Plyler. He married [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Rorrer, Clifford Kinney. Charlie Clay Poole, pioneer country music recording artist, banjoist, singer, and entertainer, was born in Randolph County, the son of Philip, whose father was an Irish immigrant, and Betty Johnson [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Weaver, John B. Purviance, David by John B. Weaver, 1994 14 Nov. 1766–19 Aug. 1847 David Purviance, minister, legislator, and church leader, was born in Iredell County, the son of John and Jane [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Yearns, W. Buck. James Graham Ramsay, physician and Confederate congressman, was born on his father's small plantation in Iredell County. Both parents, David and Margaret Graham Ramsay, were of Scot-Irish descent. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Russell, Mattie U. Watson Smith Rankin, physician and foundation executive, was born on a farm near Mooresville. He was the son of John Alexander and Minnie Isabella McCorkle Rankin, who had at least five sons and [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. John Robert Ray, labor organizer, printer, and newspaperman, a native of North Carolina, was probably born in Raleigh. Since his mother, Mrs. Rachel T. Ray, was identified in Raleigh city directories [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. Thomas Fielding Scott, Episcopal bishop, was born in the community of Scotts in west central Iredell County, the son of James and Rebekkah Worke Scott. Sometime in his youth he was a blacksmith and [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Miller, Randall M. Isaiah Sellers, Mississippi River pilot, was born in Iredell County but for unknown reasons departed for the West as a young man. Sometime during the early 1820s he reached the Mississippi River, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cashion, Jerry C. Sharpe, William (Lawyer Billy) by Jerry C. Cashion, 1994; Revised by Jared Dease, Government and Heritage Library, January 2023 13 Dec. 1742–6 July [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Macnicholas, John. Steele, James Columbus by John Macnicholas, 1994 10 July 1839–13 July [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Brown, Louis A. Stevenson, William Francis by Louis A. Brown, 1994 23 Nov. 1861–12 Feb. 1942 William Francis Stevenson, lawyer and congressman, was born at Loray, the son of Elizabeth McFarlan and William [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Keever, Homer M. David Matthew Thompson, educator, better known as D. Matt Thompson, was born near Long's Mill in Randolph County, the son of Samuel and Elizabeth Moser Thompson. He attended the county's public [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Wilson, Clyde. Holland McTyeire Thompson, historian of the New South, was born in Randolph County to D. Matt and Mary Elizabeth Rice Thompson. Reared in Denver, Lincolnton, and Statesville, where his father was for [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Dudley, Harold J. John Thomson, Presbyterian clergyman, teacher, and writer, was born in Northern Ireland and baptized in 1691. On 1 Mar. 1706 he entered the University of Glasgow, Scotland, from which he was [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Hughes, Nathaniel C., Jr. William Feimster Tucker, Confederate brigade commander, teacher, lawyer, and legislator, was born in Iredell County. After study at Emory and Henry College he began teaching in Houston, Miss. In [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. Zebulon Vance Turlington, lawyer, was born in Johnston County, the son of Eli and Sarah Woodall Turlington. After attending Turlington Institute, a noted school operated by his brother in Smithfield, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Holland, Irma Ragan. John Clyde Turner, Baptist minister, scholar, and author, was born in Iredell County, the son of John and Nancy Tuck Turner who were of English descent. He first attended the three-month annual [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Gatton, T. Harry. Wilfred Dent Turner, lawyer, legislator, lieutenant governor, and businessman, was born at Turnersburg, Iredell County, the son of Wilfred and Dorcas Tomlinson Turner. His grandfather, Samuel Turner, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Gatton, T. Harry. Alston Davidson Watts, Democratic political leader, legislator, public official, and newspaper publisher, was born in Shiloh Township, Iredell County, near Statesville, the son of Margaret Morrison [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Hooper, Ernest. Hugh Lawson White, lawyer, banker, judge, legislator, claims commissioner, U.S. senator, and presidential candidate, was born to James and Mary Lawson White in that part of Rowan County that is now [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Patterson, Daniel W. Newman Ivey White, teacher, folklorist, and literary biographer, was born in Statesville, the son of James Houston and Harriet Ivey White and the grandson of Methodist minister George Washington [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Hogg, Kevin. Hoyt Wilhelm was a record-setting major league baseball relief pitcher elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1985, the first relief pitcher so honored. He used his skill and perseverance to carve [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Bair, Anna Withers. Williams, Samuel Clay by Anna Withers Bair, 1996 24 Sept. 1884–25 Feb. 1949 Samuel Clay Williams, lawyer and tobacco magnate, was born in Mooresville, the son of Thomas Jefferson and Willie [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. Hugh Wilson, missionary, was born in the Bethany community of Iredell County, the son of the Reverend Lewis Feuilleteau and Margaret Hall Wilson. His father was a medical doctor. Hugh was graduated [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Mcgeachy, Neill R. Lewis Feuilleteau Wilson, physician and minister, was born on St. Christophers Island in the West Indies. The names of his parents are unknown, but his father was a wealthy English planter who, about [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. Wittkowsky, Samuel by William S. Powell, 1996 29 May 1835–14 Feb. 1911 Samuel Wittkowsky, merchant and building and loan executive, was born in Schwersenk, near Posen, east Prussia (now [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Johnson, Elmer D. Monroe Nathan Work, bibliographer and historian, was born in Iredell County, the son of Alexander and Eliza Hobbs Work, both of whom were enslaved until the end of the Civil War. He was the youngest [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)