Wayne County

by Hill, Michael. No North Carolina governor, with the possible exception of Zebulon B. Vance, has been as venerated and memorialized as Charles Brantley Aycock (1859-1912), with whose term in 1901 the Democratic [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

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

by Troxler, George W. Henry Belk, newspaper editor and civic leader, was born in Monroe, the son of Robert Lee and Lula Rape Belk. Henry Belk was graduated from Monroe High School and received an A.B. degree from Trinity [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Johnson, F. Roy. Tom Blunt (or Blount), a head chief and king of the North Carolina Tuscarora Indians, of obscure parentage, lived in the Upper Towns. During his time these numbered seven and formed one of three [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Underwood, William, Jr. August Heinrich Christian Julius Bonitz, editor and publisher, was born in Zellerfeld, Hanover, Germany, the fourth child of Johann Heinrich Wilhelm Bonitz and Dorothea Louise Schalitz. His father [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Anderson, Eric D. Curtis Hooks Brogden, governor and member of Congress, born on a small farm in Wayne County, was the son of Pierce Brogden and Amy Bread Brogden. As with most North Carolina farm boys of the time, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Flowers, John B., III. Byrd, Samuel ("Sam") Armanie, Jr. by John Baxton Flowers III, 1979 18 Jan. 1908–14 Nov. 1955 Samuel ("Sam") Armanie Byrd, Jr., actor, producer, and playwright, was born in Mount Olive, Wayne [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Eagles, Charles W. Collier Cobb, college teacher and geologist, was born near Goldsboro at Mt. Ashburn plantation in Wayne County. His parents were Needham Bryan and Martha Louisa Cobb. Joseph Cobb, his first paternal [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Woodard, John R., Jr. Needham Bryan Cobb, Baptist minister, educator, historian, and author was born in Jones County, the son of William Donnell Cobb and his wife, Ann Spicer Collier. He received his B.A. degree from The [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. Kathryn Rachel Sarah Rebecca Speight Darden Davis, physician and legislator, who was usually known as Rachel Darden Davis, was born at Seven Springs, Wayne County, the daughter of Herbert W. and [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Woodard, John R., Jr. Amzi Clarence Dixon, Baptist pastor and evangelist for more than fifty years, was born in Shelby, the son of Amanda Elvira McAfee and Thomas Dixon, Jr., a pioneer preacher among the rural people of [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. John G. ("Ghost") Eliot, teacher, was the son of George Eliot of Ellerslie on Lower Little River, Cumberland County. The father was born in Dumfriesshire, Scotland, in 1747, educated at the [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Smith, Claiborne T., Jr. Benjamin Exum, Revolutionary patriot and legislator, was born in Isle of Wight County, Va., the son of John and Elizabeth Exum. In 1750 he moved with his father to Edgecombe County, N.C., but later [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Kuhl, Paul E. William Turner Faircloth, lawyer, Confederate officer, legislator, and judge, was born at the family farm on Otter Creek in Edgecombe County, the son of William and Susan Edwards Faircloth. He was [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Branch, Paul, Jr. Richard Caswell Gatlin, soldier, Confederate officer, and farmer, was born at Kinston, Lenoir County. His father was John S. Gatlin, the son of John Gatlin who was one of the early settlers of [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. Paul Davis Grady, businessman and legislator, was born in Seven Springs, Wayne County, the son of James Calhoun and Ella Smith Outlaw Grady. He attended Tennessee Military Institute and Wake Forest [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Bell, John L., Jr. Hiram Lewis Grant, soldier, legislator, and businessman, was born in Woonsocket, R.I., the son of Lucinda C. Brown of Connecticut and John S. D. Grant, a superintendent of cotton mills. He was [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Hubbard, Thomas. Hadley, Thomas Jefferson, IV by Thomas Hubbard, North Carolina State University, 2013; Revised by SLNC Government and Heritage Library, January 2023 July 9, 1838-August 3, 1917 Thomas [...] (from NCpedia.)

by York, Maury. Lovit Hines, merchant, the son of James Madison and Nancy Thompson Hines, was born in Wayne County but the next year the family moved to Lenoir Institute, Lenoir County. During the 1870–71 session, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Flowers, John B., III. George Ezekiel Hood, lawyer, legislator, mayor, and congressman, was born in Goldsboro, the son of Edward Bass and Edith Finlayson Bridgers Hood. The Hood family had lived in the area since the [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Gatton, T. Harry. Hood, Gurney Pope by T. Harry Gatton, 1988 26 Nov. 1884–20 Nov. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Willard, George-Anne. James Yadkin Joyner, educator, farmer, and North Carolina superintendent of public instruction, was a member of the generation of gifted educational statesmen who led North Carolina in an educational [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Flowers, John B., III. John Bryan ("Jack") Kennedy, physician, Confederate soldier, planter, and educational leader, was born at The Meadows, four miles west of Goldsboro, the son of John Thomas and Elizabeth Anne Cox [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Flowers, John B., III. John Thomas Kennedy, planter-enslaver, Confederate officer, and public official, was born at his father's Oak Hill plantation in west-central Wayne County, the son of John and Sarah Everett Becton [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Russell, Mattie U. Langston, John Dallas by Mattie U. Russell, 1991 22 Mar. 1881–29 July [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Branch, Paul, Jr. William Gaston Lewis, Confederate soldier, civil engineer, farmer, and merchant, was born in Rocky Mount, the son of Dr. John Wesley and Catherine Anne Battle Lewis, and attended Lovejoy Academy in [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Branch, Paul, Jr. William MacRae, railroad manager, civil engineer, and Confederate general, was born in Wilmington. His family was descended from the clan MacRae from Rosshire on the seacoast of the western Highlands [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Mcfarland, Daniel M. James Iver McKay, attorney and congressman, was born in Bladen County near Elizabethtown, the son of James and Mary Salter McKay. His mother was the daughter of William Salter. Some sources list his [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Flowers, John B., III. McKinne, Richard by John Baxton Flowers III, 1991 1752–27 Jan. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Hatcher, Susan Tucker. John Fulenwider Miller, physician, was born in Rutherford (now Cleveland) County of Scot-Irish descent. His father, William John Twitty Miller, was a prominent physician and planter who served in the [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cecelski, David S. Athenia Moses will soon be honored by the Goldsboro-Wayne County branch of the NAACP for something that she did more than half a century ago. At a banquet on Feb. 11, the NAACP will recognize her and [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Burhoe, Agnes R. Edward Pearson Moses, educator, was born in Knoxville, Tenn., the son of John L. of Exeter, N.H., and Susan Williams Moses of Knoxville. Threatened by Union forces during the Civil War, the family [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Morgan, Thomas S. Annie Land O'Berry, administrator of the North Carolina Emergency Relief Administration, president of the Rural Rehabilitation Corporation, and a leader in women's clubs, civic affairs, and the [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Stevenson, George, Jr. Joseph Parker, general Baptist (now Free Will Baptist) clergyman, founded churches in Halifax, Pitt, Greene, and Lenoir counties. According to tradition, he was a member and probable pastor of the [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Steelman, Lala Carr. Thomas Bradley Parker, agriculturalist, farm leader, and public servant, was born in Goldsboro, the son of William Right and Nancy Parker Parker. He had no formal education beyond the third grade but [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Uzzell, Odell. Perry, Samuel L. by Odell Uzzell, 1994; Revised October 2022. Related Entries: African American; Civil Rights; Transportation; Exodusters b. 1849 Samuel L. Perry, teacher and civil rights [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Johnston, Hugh B., Jr. Benjamin Thomas Person, physician, legislator, and postmaster, was a son of Thomas and Sally Tarver Person of Greene County. Details of his youth and education are unavailable. He enlisted on 17 Mar. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. In September 1849 he was principal of the Elizabeth City Academy, and later his wife joined him as head of the Female Department. In 1850 he opened a night school for young men and apprentices whose [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Jennette, B. Culpepper, Jr. Pool, Stephen Decatur, Jr. by B. Culpepper Jennette, Jr., 1994 11 Nov. 1847–8 Feb. 1892 Stephen Decatur Pool, Jr., Confederate soldier, lawyer, and journalist, was born in Elizabeth City, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Green, C. Sylvester. Edwin Davis Pusey, educator, was born at Princess Anne, Md., the son of Edwin and Katherine Ellen Davis Pusey. Tutored privately as a child, he entered Washington Academy, Princess Anne, in 1880 and [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Smith, Claiborne T., Jr. Frank Murchison Register, physician and public health officer, was born in Cumberland County, one of ten children of Robert and Mary McDuffie Register. Reared in Moore County, he was educated at the [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. William Cary Renfrow, governor of Oklahoma Territory, was born in Smithfield, the son of Perry and Lucinda Hawkins Atkinson Rentfrow [sic ]. After attending local schools young Renfrow volunteered [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Robinson, Blackwell P. Joseph Edward Robinson, lawyer, newspaper editor, and civic leader, was born near White Hall (now Seven Springs) but in Lenoir County, of Irish parentage. He was the son of John, a graduate of the [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Robinson, Blackwell P. Robinson, William Smith O'Brien by Blackwell P. Robinson, 1994 27 Apr. 1852–17 Oct. 1927 William Smith O'Brien Robinson, judge, lawyer, and Republican [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Hill, Steven. Rose, Junius Harris By Steven A. Hill, Copyright 2017. Published with permission. For personal educational use and not for further distribution. 7 Jan 1892 - 29 Mar 1972 J.H. Rose was [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Johnston, Hugh B., Jr. Thomas Ruffin, attorney, congressman, and Confederate officer, was born in Greene County not long before his parents, Henry John Gray and Mary (Polly) Tartt Ruffin, moved to their new plantation near [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Woodard, John R., Jr. George Washington Sanderlin, baptist minister and politician, was born in Camden County, the son of Maxcy and Martha Sanderson Sanderlin. He was one of thirteen children. After attending schools in [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Wilson, Paul F. Schloss, Simeon Archibald by Paul F. Wilson, 1994   See also: Opera Houses. 10 Oct. 1865–22 Dec. 1913 Simeon Archibald Schloss, predominant figure in theatrical management in [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Wilson, Joni Elisa. Jesse Slocumb, congressman, was born near the site of the future town of Dudley in southern Wayne County, the son of Ezekiel and Mary (Polly) Hooks Slocumb. He received a modest education locally and [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Massengill, Stephen E. Edward Featherston Small, Confederate soldier, photographer, and salesman, was born near Washington, Beaufort County, the son of Henry H. and Margaret Hill Small. He was a cousin of Congressman John [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Reidinger, Martin. Smith, Ezekiel Ezra by Martin Reidinger, 1994 23 May 1852–6 Dec. 1933 Ezekiel Ezra Smith, educator and diplomat, the son of free Black Americans Alexander and Caroline Smith, was born [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. John Spelman, printer and newspaper editor, was born in England. Nothing appears to be recorded concerning his origin or education, but a number of Spelman men, all from the county of Norfolk, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Smith, Claiborne T., Jr. George Vaughan Strong, judge and legislator, was born near Clinton in Sampson County, the son of Dr. Salmon and Eliza Sampson Strong. The family of Dr. Strong had moved to North Carolina from Bolton, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Glover, Erma Williams. Walter Frank Taylor, lawyer, legislator, and civic leader, the son of Luther and Ettie Crow Taylor, was born on a cotton farm four miles from Faison. When he was fifteen the family moved into town, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. William Taylor, early state official, was born in Southampton County, Va., the son of William and Lucy Vaughan Taylor. On the death of his father in 1772, young Taylor inherited two plantations and [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Sumner, Jim L. Jim Thorpe and Babe Ruth are still considered among the greatest athletes of all time. When the sports television network ESPN compiled its list of top athletes of the twentieth century, it listed [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Neville, John D. Washington, William Henry by John D. Neville, 1996 7 Feb. 1813–12 Aug. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Bodman, Ellen-Fairbanks Diggs. Weil, Gertrude by Ellen-Fairbanks Diggs Bodman, 1996 See also: Weil, Gertrude (State Library of NC) 11 Dec. 1879–30 May 1971 Gertrude Weil, social reformer, humanitarian, and [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Huaman, Jaime. Gertrude Weil 1879 - 1971 by Jaime Huaman Government & Heritage Library, 2010 See also: Weil, Gertrude (UNC Press) Gertrude Weil was a humanitarian and reformer who played a [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Bodman, Ellen-Fairbanks Diggs. Henry Weil, merchant, was born in Oberdorf, Würtemberg, Germany, the fourth child and second son of Jacob Weil (d. 1886), an antique dealer, and his Bavarian-born wife Yetta (d. 1889). Henry and his [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. Herman Weil, manufacturer and philanthropist, was born in Goldsboro, the son of Henry and Mina Rosenthal Weil. In 1901 he was graduated from The University of North Carolina, where he was a trustee [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Bodman, Ellen-Fairbanks Diggs. Leslie Weil, public-spirited merchant, county and state official, and university benefactor, was born in Goldsboro, Wayne County, the older son of Henry and Mina Rosenthal Weil. After attending the [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Bodman, Ellen-Fairbanks Diggs. Lionel Weil, agronomist, conservationist, and merchant, was the son of Solomon and Sarah Einstein Weil of Goldsboro, Wayne County. After attending the Goldsboro public schools, he received a Ph.B. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Bodman, Ellen-Fairbanks Diggs. Weil, Solomon by Ellen-Fairbanks Diggs Bodman, 1996 7 Jan. 1849–27 Sept. 1914 Solomon Weil, merchant and religious leader, was born in Oberdorf, Württemberg, Germany, the youngest son of [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Trawick, Gary E. Whitfield, James Vivian by Gary E. Trawick, 1996 23 July 1894–19 Nov. 1968 James Vivian Whitfield, foreign service officer and legislator, was born in Seven Springs, the son of James A. and [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Wert, Jeffry D. Cadmus Marcellus Wilcox, Confederate soldier, was born in Wayne County, the second of four children of Reuben, a native of Connecticut, and Sarah Garland Wilcox, a noted North Carolina beauty. His [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cecelski, David S. I visited Nancy Grady Wilson at her home in the Wesley Chapel community, in Duplin County, 80 miles southeast of Raleigh. A retired elementary school teacher, she is legendary there for making [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Flowers, John B., III. Yelverton, Emmor Harrison by John Baxton Flowers III, 1996 16 July 1890–8 May 1955 Emmor Harrison Yelverton, diplomat, was born at his father's town house in Goldsboro, Wayne County, the son [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)