The Rowan County Committee of Safety was one of the 18 Committees of Safety in North Carolina authorized by the

Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislative bodies, with some executive function, for thirteen of Britain's colonies in North America, and the newly declared United States just before, during, and after the American Revolutionary War. ...

and endorsed by the

Second North Carolina Provincial Congress The Second North Carolina Provincial Congress was the second extra-legal unicameral body of the North Carolina Provincial Congress that met beginning in 1774. They were modeled after the colonial lower house (House of Commons). These congresses ...

. It was established in

Rowan County, North Carolina Rowan County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of North Carolina that was formed in 1753, as part of the British Province of North Carolina. It was originally a vast territory with unlimited western boundaries, but its size w ...

in 1774. Meeting minutes from 1774 to 1776 have survived and are available through a digital collection. The Rowan County Committee of Safety was instrumental in banning trade with Britain and preparing for the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

. One of its major achievements was the

Rowan Resolves Rowan Resolves is the short name for a colonial era document called ''Resolutions by inhabitants of Rowan County concerning resistance to Parliamentary taxation and the Provincial Congress of North Carolina.'' It was signed in Salisbury, Rowan Coun ...

., original publications from 1775 to 1776, The University Library of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill sponsors Documenting the American South, and the texts and materials come primarily from its southern holdings. The UNC University Library is committed to the long-term availability of these collections and their online records. An editorial board guides development of this digital library.

Formation of Committees of Safety

The demand for independence came from local grassroots organizations called " Committees of Safety". The First

had urged their creation in 1774. By 1775, they had become counter-governments that gradually replaced royal authority and took control of local governments. They regulated the economy, politics, morality, and militia of their individual communities. After December 1776 they came under the control of a more powerful central authority, the North Carolina Council of Safety.

Members and records

The following persons constituted the original Committee: James McCay, Andrew Neal, George Cathy, Alexander Dobbin, Francis McKon,

Matthew Locke Matthew Locke may refer to: * Matthew Locke (administrator) (fl. 1660–1683), English Secretary at War from 1666 to 1683 * Matthew Locke (composer) (c. 1621–1677), English Baroque composer and music theorist * Matthew Locke (soldier) (1974–2 ...

, Maxwell Chambers, Henry Harmon, Abraham Denton,

William Lee Davidson William Lee Davidson (1746–1781) was an officer in the North Carolina militia and Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He was born in Pennsylvania and moved with his family to Rowan County, North Carolina in 1750. He was kil ...

, Samuel Young, John Brevard, William Kennon, George Henry Barger, Robert Bell, John Bickerstaff, John Couden, John Lewis Beard, John Nisbet, Charles McDowell, Robert Blackburn, Christopher Beckman, William Sharp, John Johnson, Morgan Bryan. Additional members included: Colonel Hugh Montgomery. The surviving records show that the committee met on the following dates: * September 23, 1774 * November 2, 1774 - November 3, 1774 * June 1, 1775 * July 8, 1775 * July 15, 1775 * August 1, 1775 * September 20, 1775 - September 25, 1775 * October 17, 1775 - October 18, 1775 * November 7, 1775 - November 9, 1775 * November 10, 1775 - November 11, 1775 * February 6, 1776 - February 8, 1776 * May 7, 1776 - May 8, 1776 * August 7, 1776 * August 22, 1776 Other surviving records include: * Instructions to the Salisbury Jail keeper concerning the imprisonment of John Auston (July 13, 1776) * Address from the Rowan County Committee of Safety to the county militias (June 1775) The instruction to the Salisbury jail keeper were from

Griffith Rutherford Griffith Rutherford (c. 1721 – August 10, 1805) was an American military officer in the Revolutionary War, a political leader in North Carolina, and an important figure in the early history of the Southwest Territory and the state of Ten ...

and instructed the jailer: "John Auston, late of Tryon County, is charged of being an Enemy To Ammerican Liberty, & also Refuses to take the oath Proscribed by the Counsel of Safety of this Provance. These are therefore to Command You to Take the said Auston Into youre Possession, & him safely keep in youre Gole Till Furder Orders (sic)." Griffith Rutherford was commander of the

Rowan County Regiment The Rowan County Regiment was originally established in about August 1, 1775 as a local militia in Rowan County in the Province of North-Carolina. When the North Carolina Provincial Congress authorized thirty-five existing county militias to be o ...

and

Salisbury District Brigade The Salisbury District Brigade was an administrative division of the North Carolina militia during the American Revolutionary War (1776–1783). This unit was established by the Fourth North Carolina Provincial Congress on May 4, 1776, and disban ...

of the North Carolina Militia. Officers of the committee included: * Chairman, William Kennon * Chairman, Samuel Young * Chairman, Moses Winslow * Secretary, William Sharpe * Clerk,

Adlai Osborne Adlai Osborne (June 4, 1744 – December 14, 1814) was a lawyer, public official, plantation owner, and educational leader from Rowan County, North Carolina (became Iredell County in 1788). During the American Revolution, he served on the Rowan ...

* Clerk, James Macay * Clerk, James Brandon The Committees of Safety were authorized by the North Carolina Provincial Congress to appoint officers of the militia and minutemen when officers needed replacing.

First census

In 1775, the

ordered that a census of North Carolina be taken. However, the only surviving complete records are those from Pitt County. The Rowan County Committee of Safety reported a summary of the census of Rowan County that was presented in their October 1775 minutes. The Companies referred to in this census were most likely captains in the

of the North Carolina militia, which had just been established in August 1775. ''Pursuant to Resolve of last Congress the Number of Souls in Rowan County appears as followeth—''(sic, directly from minutes)

Committees in other counties

There were 32 counties in North Carolina by 1774. Eighteen of the counties had Committees of Safety, according to NCPedia. There are records of Committees of Safety in the following counties: # Anson County # Bladen County # Brunswick County # Chowan County, Edenton District # Craven County (New Bern District) # Duplin County # Granville County # Halifax County # Johnston County # Mecklenburg County # Northampton # Orange County # Pitt County (Martinboro) # Rowan County (Salisbury District) # Surry County # Tryon County # Wilimington District, Wilmington, Wilmington-New Hannover County

References

{{Reflist North Carolina in the American Revolution