Life in Colonial North Carolina (Primary Source Sets)
About These Materials
This collection of primary source sets allows students to select a topic of interest and evaluate themed primary sources from the Colonial Court Records at the State Archives of North Carolina. Within each category, users will find digital images of the primary source records, transcriptions of these records, and questions to prompt reflection and discussion for each category and for individual records. Materials are available from individual links below, or you may download all the materials as a single zip file to work offline.
Content Warning
The Colonial Court Records have been preserved for their historical significance as government records. However, some records in this collection contain content that may be harmful or difficult to view, including language that reflects outdated, biased, offensive views as well as descriptions of conflict and violence.
| Type of Information | Definition |
|---|---|
| Historical Era | Colonial North Carolina (1600-1763) |
| Skills | Transcription, reading comprehension, historical analysis, and information literacy |
| Grade level | High school, advanced placement high school, and college level |
| Standards (as of Fall 2021 | North Carolina Social Studies
|
Primary Source Sets
Slavery and Enslaved Persons
| Title | Document with Transcription | Reflect & Discuss |
|---|---|---|
| Petition of Nathaniel Chevin, 1712 | Document | In this document, Nathaniel Chevin pursues a debt of 29 pounds from William Reed. The court determined that the sale of “Indians” by Reed will satisfy the debt he owes to Chevin. |
| Petition of Mary Cole, Undated | Document | Through which lenses or perspectives do we read Henry’s story? Consider the motivations Mary might have for this testimony. |
| Petition of Thomas Pollock, Undated | Document Last paragraph only | Pollock’s petition displays his anxiety about five escaped enslaved persons, and how they may treat his family. Reflect on this change in the power dynamic. |
| Petition of Thomas Sparrow, 1717 | Document | Notice the use of the words servant and slavery in this record. Were these terms used interchangeably in 1717? What clues indicate whether Phillip was indentured or enslaved? How might you use other documents to answer this question? |
| Petition of William Derry, c. 1740 | Document | Enslaved persons are rarely referred to by their last name in the historical records created by their oppressors. What is significant about the use of William’s last name here? |
| Petition of Samuel Scollay, 1742 | Document | Scipio, when he “ranaway and deserted and absented himself,” was taking back power from his enslaver. Consider other forms of resistance to enslavement. |
Discussion Questions:
- Notice how many of these documents refer to wills. How could individual attempts to list and distribute property disrupt slavery? How could the practice of wills maintain slavery?
- Several of these documents are evidence of resistance to slavery. What actions could the enslaved take to resist their enslavers and/or emancipate themselves?
- How did the enslavers in these documents price freedom? What do the variations in value for each case suggest?
Indentured Servitude
| Title | Document with Transcription | Reflect & Discuss |
|---|---|---|
| Petition of Elizabeth Leverton, undated | Document | Notice the ages of the children being indentured. How might that feel for a child? For their parents? Why might children this young be indentured? |
| Petition of Mary Vallaway, undated | Document | Mary and her son William have different last names, what might this suggest about the circumstances of William’s indenture? Why would Thomas Snoden’s widow’s new husband become master of William Jackson? |
| Petition of Edmund Jening, 1699 | Document | Bruton Parish is located in what is now Williamsburg, Virginia. How do you think this record came to be held in the colony of North Carolina? We don’t have a record of why David Ross escaped his indenture. What might have caused him to run? |
| Complaint Against Josuah Spivee, 1721 | Document | What do you think happened here? Was Thomsan Williams kidnapped, or did she run away with Josuah Spivee? |
| Petition of Amy Demsy, c. 1744 | Document | Spinster: an unmarried woman who is at an age where it seems unlikely she will be married in the future. Amy’s age is somewhere between 21 and 31. Consider what her status as a spinster can tell us about gender dynamics of the time period. |
Discussion Questions:
- Contrast the conditions for indentured servants that these documents reflect to what you know about slavery. How might circumstances be different for each of the servants in these records if enslaved?
- Why might these documents show only mothers petitioning on behalf of their children and not any fathers?
Individual Rights and Accusations
| Title | Document with Transcription | Reflect & Discuss |
|---|---|---|
| Defamation Complaint Against Mary Jennings, 1691 | Document | William Wilkison’s disagreement is with Mary, but both Mary and her husband William Jennings are included in this complaint. Why? Consider why the name of Nehemiah Blackston’s servant is not mentioned. |
| Petition of Ann Steward, 1692 | Document | Though Ann is facing a hardship, she is able to petition the colonial court. Why is that? How might her experience be different compared to other women in the colony at the same time? |
| Insult of King William by John Philpott, 1694 | Document | This charge predates the first amendment of the U.S. Constitution. How might stories like John Philpott’s have influenced freedom of speech in the new United States? |
| Deposition of Thomas Boucher (Witchcraft Accusation), 1703 | Document Page 1, Page 2, and Page 3 | The charge is brought against John Evans’s wife, Susannah, though her first name is not mentioned in this deposition. Consider why John Evans would be named, but not his wife, though the charge is against her. The words “witch” or “witchcraft” are also omitted from Thomas Boucher’s deposition, but related records make it clear this is an accusation of witchcraft. Why do you think they aren’t included here? |
| Information of John Blacknall, 1725, AND Information of William Whitfield, c. 1720 (Interracial Marriage) | Document 1 AND Document 2 | Consider why the Assembly might make interracial marriages illegal. Who receives the penalty money in cases of interracial marriage? How might that affect how neighbors act toward one another? |
Discussion Questions:
- Consider that most of the documents in this selection involve women. What can you infer about their role in society from this group of documents?
- These documents are records of individuals being taken to court and individual complaints against others they believed to be misbehaving. Could such behaviors warrant a court’s attention today?
Interactions Between Colonists and Native Americans
| Title | Document with Transcription | Transcription |
|---|---|---|
| Articles of Agreement, 1699 | Document | There are multiple versions of this document online, which may help in deciphering the missing portions of text from this damaged copy. How might you find a full transcription from a reliable source? |
| Petition of Thomas Garrett, 1706 | Document | Who granted Lewis Williames this land? How might you find out more about his land grant? |
| Town Petition for Aid Against Potential Attack, 1716 | Document | Consider how, in petitioning the colonial court, the English colonists used a legal system foreign to the Matchapengo, whose land they were inhabiting, to request assistance against the Native American tribe. |
| Testimony and Verdict in John Cope Case, 1722 | Document 1 and Document 2 | Thomas Pollock, Sr., served as acting governor of the colony of North Carolina during this trial. How might his status have influenced the trial? |
| Petition of Chowan Indians, undated | Document | Why are members of the Chowan/Chowanoac nation unhappy with the current arrangement? Why do the petitioners say they are confident the Council acted in good faith? |
| Deposition of Richard Nixson, 1722 | Document | It is rare to see a statement (or paraphrase) from an indigenous person in these records. Reflect on the significance of this statement, Englishmen here always scold.” How might it shed light on the relationships between Sighacka and the English colonists? |
| Complaint Against John Allen, 1769 | Document | How can the indigenous people live among English colonists when those colonists encroach upon their ancestral lands, even after the British legal system imposed upon them is supposed to protect them? What options do the Tuscarora have for protecting their land? |
Discussion Questions:
- This selection of seven records spans seventy years. Can you identify any patterns of change over time for interactions between the colonists and native communities? What clues to pre-colonial life might the earlier documents provide?
- Several of these documents show different behaviors among English colonists toward the indigenous communities. Why might some be more sympathetic?
Economy and Trade Goods
| Title | Document with Transcription | Reflect & Discuss |
|---|---|---|
| Customs Declaration, 1697 | Document | What was a sloop? How did it differ from other types of ships common in this period? The colonies and Great Britain depended on international trade. How did North Carolina fit into the global economy? |
| Whaling License, 1725 | Document | Reflect on this permit “to fish for Whale or other Royall fish on the seay Coast of this Government.” Who has the right to provide that access? Who might not be granted access? |
| Manifest of Goods, 1735 | Document 1 and Document 2 | What was a schooner? How did it differ from other types of ships in the period? England’s royal navy required vast amounts of pitch, tar, and turpentine. What do these exports have in common? |
| Smuggling Charge, 1735 | Document | The British Empire had a system of Admiralty Courts, which oversaw maritime-related cases specifically. Trials were decided by a judge, not a jury. How could the lack of a jury have influenced verdicts? |
Discussion Questions:
- Consider that all economic activities in these documents focus on maritime trade. Which ports are important? What types of ships do the documents reflect?
- What kinds of trade goods are leaving the North Carolina colony; what kinds are coming in? How are buyers and sellers measuring different products?
- British regulation of its colonies’ exports increased from the 17th to the 18th centuries, and the enforcement of levies and duties limited the colonists’ maritime commerce. How might those regulations have affected colonists’ daily life and livelihoods?
Background: Colonial Government in North Carolina
Adapted from NCpedia.
The first permanent English settlers in North Carolina emigrated from the tidewater area of southeastern Virginia. The first of these settlers moved into the area of the Albemarle Sound in northeast North Carolina around 1650. In 1663, Charles II granted a land charter to eight English noblemen, called Lords Proprietors, who had helped him regain the throne of England. The territory—though many indigenous communities already called it home—was to be called Carolina in honor of Charles I.
Between 1663 and 1729, North Carolina was under the control of the Lords Proprietors and their descendants. The small group commissioned colonial officials and authorized the governor and his council to grant lands in the name of the Lords Proprietor.
In 1729, seven of the Lords Proprietors sold their interests in North Carolina to the king and North Carolina became a royal colony. The eighth proprietor, Lord Granville, retained economic interest and continued granting land in the northern part of North Carolina. The king’s officials supervised all political and administrative functions in the colony until 1775.
Colonial government in North Carolina changed little between the proprietary and royal periods, the only major difference being who appointed colonial officials. There were two primary units of government—the governor and his council and a colonial assembly with representatives elected by the qualified voters of the county. Colonial courts, unlike today’s courts, rarely involved themselves in formulating governmental policy. All colonial officials were appointed by the Lords Proprietors until 1729 and by the king afterwards. Members of the colonial assembly were elected from the various precincts (which became known as counties after 1735) and from certain towns which had been granted representation.
Suggested Classroom Activities
Classroom Activity
For this activity, curated records have been organized into thematic categories that provide clues about life in the North Carolina colony. Students may work individually or work in small groups. They may review all the records for one category or specific records from multiple categories.
For each record, complete the following steps:
- Observe the document. What is it? When was it made? By whom?
- Transcribe the text. Use these tips for transcribing historical documents. (Educator’s note: the length and legibility of each record varies. Some students will be able to transcribe a record quickly, but others will not be able to transcribe everything. Determine how much time you will allot to this part of the exercise in advance. Discuss what challenges and surprises students found as they began this transcription activity. Then offer the transcriptions provided here so that students can complete the rest of the exercise.)
- Compare your transcription to the one provided.
- Analyze the text. Use the discussion questions provided in each transcription to prompt your analysis. What conclusions can you interpret from the document? What clues might you draw about the people involved? What additional questions does it raise? What biases or silences in the record do you observe? If you wanted to continue to research one of the individuals named in the documents, how would you use this document as a steppingstone for more information?
Follow-Up Activity
Have students become historians. Based on the records they transcribed and analyzed, ask students to write a short narrative to describe the document(s) and the stories of the people named within them. They should use information gleaned from the primary source sets, along with secondary sources to develop historical context, to paint a picture of what life was like in colonial North Carolina. Students should cite their sources.