James Innes ( – 5 September 1759) was an American

military commander The commanding officer (CO) or commander, or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually give ...

and political figure in the

Province of North Carolina The Province of North Carolina, originally known as the Albemarle Settlements, was a proprietary colony and later royal colony of Great Britain that existed in North America from 1712 to 1776.(p. 80) It was one of the five Southern col ...

who led troops both at home and abroad in the service of the

Kingdom of Great Britain Great Britain, also known as the Kingdom of Great Britain, was a sovereign state in Western Europe from 1707 to the end of 1800. The state was created by the 1706 Treaty of Union and ratified by the Acts of Union 1707, which united the Kingd ...

. Innes was given command of a company of North Carolina's provincial soldiers during the

War of Jenkins' Ear The War of Jenkins' Ear was fought by Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and History of Spain (1700–1808), Spain between 1739 and 1748. The majority of the fighting took place in Viceroyalty of New Granada, New Granada and the Caribbean ...

, and served as Commander-in-Chief of all colonial soldiers in the

Ohio River Valley The Ohio River () is a river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing in a southwesterly direction from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to its mouth on the Mississippi River in Cairo, ...

in 1754 during the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War, 1754 to 1763, was a colonial conflict in North America between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of France, France, along with their respective Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...

. After resigning his commission in 1756, Innes retired to his home on the

Cape Fear River The Cape Fear River is a blackwater river in east-central North Carolina. It flows into the Atlantic Ocean near Cape Fear, from which it takes its name. The river is formed at the confluence of the Haw River and the Deep River in the town of ...

. A bequest made by Innes upon his death led to the establishment of Innes Academy in

Wilmington, North Carolina Wilmington is a port city in New Hanover County, North Carolina, United States. With a population of 115,451 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, eighth-most populous city in the st ...

Early life and emigration

Innes was born around 1700 in the

Scottish Highlands The Highlands (; , ) is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Scottish Lowlands, Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Scots language, Lowland Scots language replaced Scottish Gae ...

.Marker D-90: James Innes
, North Carolina Highway Historical Marker Program, N.C. Dept. of Cultural Resources, accessed 8 June 2019 In 1732, Innes purchased on the Cape Fear River in what is now

Bladen County, North Carolina Bladen County ()
, from the North Carolina Collection's website at the

. In or about 1733, he received an additional grant of . Shortly after Innes's arrival in North Carolina, Governor

Gabriel Johnston Gabriel Johnston (1699 – 17 July 1752) was a British colonial official who served as the sixth provincial governor of North Carolina from 1734 until his death in 1752. He was the longest serving governor, holding the office for 18 years ...

appointed him as a justice for

New Hanover County New Hanover County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 225,702. The county seat is Wilmington. Though the second-smallest county in North Carolina by land area, it is one of the m ...

, and tried unsuccessfully to appoint Innes to his council.

Military and political career

War of Jenkins' Ear

In 1739, war broke out between

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

and

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

over the respective powers' colonial possessions and spheres of influence. At the outset of that conflict, the British requested that their colonies supply troops for an expedition to South America. Innes was selected by Governor Johnston to lead a company of 100 men from the Cape Fear region to Cartagena in the Spanish

Viceroyalty of New Granada The Viceroyalty of the New Kingdom of Granada ( ), also called Viceroyalty of New Granada or Viceroyalty of Santa Fe, was the name given on 27 May 1717 to the jurisdiction of the Spanish Empire in northern South America, corresponding to modern ...

, a city which is located in the modern-day country of

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

. The Cape Fear company was to be joined by three other companies raised in the

Albemarle Sound Albemarle Sound () is a large estuary on the coast of North Carolina in the United States located at the confluence of a group of rivers, including the Chowan River, Chowan and Roanoke River, Roanoke. It is separated from the Atlantic Ocean b ...

region. Innes was granted a provincial commission as Captain in the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

on 7 June 1740. Upon arriving in South America, Innes and his men, as well as North Carolina's three Albemarle companies, were placed under the direct command of Colonel William Gooch, a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

and the Governor of Virginia. The fever- and disease-ridden campaign, which culminated in the

Battle of Cartagena de Indias The Battle of Cartagena de Indias () took place during the 1739 to 1748 War of Jenkins' Ear between Spanish Empire, Spain and Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain. The result of long-standing commercial tensions, the war was primarily fough ...

in the Spring of 1741, was disastrous for the British. At Cartagena, delays by the British fleet in landing troops to assault a key Spanish fortification, combined with the fact that the ladders used by British scaling parties were shorter than the walls they were intended for, caused the militia and regular soldiers to suffer a 50 percent casualty rate prior to the assault being called off. The Cartagena campaign left only 25 survivors under Innes's command. The North Carolina contingent returned home in January 1743. Innes was placed in command of the New Hanover militia after his return. In 1748, after the war between the British and Spanish had expanded into a wider war against the French known in the colonies as

King George's War King George's War (1744–1748) is the name given to the military operations in North America that formed part of the War of the Austrian Succession (1740–1748). It was the third of the four French and Indian Wars. It took place primarily in ...

, a Spanish fleet attacked

Brunswick Town, North Carolina Brunswick Town was a prominent town in Province of North Carolina, colonial North Carolina. It was the first successful European colonization of the Americas, European settlement in the Cape Fear (region), Cape Fear region, a major colonial por ...

, and Innes assisted the local militia under Captain William Dry in repulsing the raiding force.

Inter-war career

Between the War of Jenkins' Ear and the

, Innes served as a commissioner for

John Carteret, 2nd Earl Granville John Carteret, 2nd Earl Granville, 7th Seigneur of Sark (; 22 April 16902 January 1763), commonly known by his earlier title Lord Carteret, was a British statesman and Lord President of the Council from 1751 to 1763 and worked closely with the ...

, charged with the sale of that proprietor's lands in the

Granville District The Granville District (or Granville's district) was an approximately 60-mile wide strip of land in the North Carolina colony adjoining the boundary with the Province of Virginia, lying between north latitudes 35° 34' and 36° 30'. From 1663 unti ...

. Active in the colonial government, Innes was a baron of the Court of Exchequer in Wilmington. There he was associated with Francis Corbin and the Salisbury Land Office (as a land grant agent). After 1750, Innes served on the Governor's Council under both Gabriel Johnston and

Arthur Dobbs Arthur Dobbs (2 April 1689 – 28 March 1765) was a British Army officer and colonial administrator who served as the governor of North Carolina from 1754 to 1764. Early life and career Arthur Dobbs was born in Girvan, Ayrshire where his mot ...

until his death in 1759.

French and Indian War

After the conclusion of King George's War in 1748, tension increased on the frontier between the French-held North American territory and the British colonies on the coast. With the possibility of the outbreak of war in 1754, Innes, as an experienced soldier, was nominated as the commander of North Carolina militia, which was to be sent to aid

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

at the request of Governor

Robert Dinwiddie Robert Dinwiddie (1692 – 27 July 1770) was a Scottish colonial administrator who served as the lieutenant governor of Virginia from 1751 to 1758. Since the governors of Virginia remained in Great Britain, he served as the ''de facto'' head o ...

. The government of Virginia in particular feared French incursions, as it claimed much of the territory in the

. Dinwiddie, a fellow Scot, had become friends with Innes, and considered naming him as Commander-in-Chief of the provincial forces, but instead chose to name Virginian

Joshua Fry Colonel Joshua Fry (1699–1754) was an English-born American adventurer who became a professor, then real estate investor and local official in the colony of Virginia. Although he served several terms in the House of Burgesses, he may be best kn ...

. Fry's death on 15 May 1754 left the position vacant, and Innes was appointed on 4 June 1754, although

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

had been Fry's second-in-command. Washington was given command of the

Virginia Regiment The Virginia Regiment was an infantry unit of the Virginia Provincial Forces raised in 1754 by the Virginia General Assembly and Governor Robert Dinwiddie for service in the French and Indian War. The sole provincial unit raised by the British ...

upon Fry's death, and he led that unit into the Ohio River Valley on Dinwiddie's orders before Innes was appointed his superior. On 28 May 1754, Washington's unit, along with native

Mingo The Mingo people are an Iroquoian group of Native Americans, primarily Seneca and Cayuga, who migrated west from New York to the Ohio Country in the mid-18th century, and their descendants. Some Susquehannock survivors also joined them, a ...

allies, surprised a French unit, killing

Joseph Coulon de Jumonville Joseph Coulon de Villiers, Sieur de Jumonville (September 8, 1718 – May 28, 1754) was a French Canadian military officer. His last rank was second ensign (''enseigne en second''). Jumonville's defeat and killing at the Battle of Jumonville Glen ...

, the unit's commander. A large force of French soldiers then advanced to trap Washington, and on 3 July 1754, assaulted him at

Fort Necessity Fort Necessity National Battlefield is a National Battlefield in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, United States, which preserves the site of the Battle of Fort Necessity. The battle, which took place on July 3, 1754, was an early battle of the ...

near what is now

Farmington, Pennsylvania Farmington is an Unincorporated area, unincorporated community and census-designated place in Wharton Township, Fayette County, Pennsylvania, Wharton Township, Fayette County, Pennsylvania. Farmington is located along U.S. Route 40 in Pennsylv ...

, and forced the Virginian's surrender. Dinwiddie blamed Matthew Rowan, the acting Governor of North Carolina, for the defeat, stating that had Innes's men been assembled in a timely fashion, they could have accompanied Washington to the frontier. Nevertheless, this engagement signaled the beginning of colonial combat between the French and English, which by 1755 had erupted into open war. Fort cumberland

Innes's tenure as commander-in-chief had scarcely begun at the onset of the

. Innes was directed to go to Wills Creek in

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

, and to reinforce a fort there, which was to become Fort Cumberland. The North Carolina soldiers that came to Virginia were unruly and difficult to manage, eventually deserting after being informed that their pay was to be reduced, or returning home after Innes himself disbanded the unit due to its instability. To make matters worse, Virginians under Innes's command were ill-disposed towards him, particularly because he was not a Virginian himself. Within five months of Innes's appointment,

Horatio Sharpe Horatio Sharpe (1718 – November 9, 1790) was the 22nd proprietary governor of Maryland from 1753 to 1768 under the restored proprietary government of Maryland. Early life Horatio Sharpe was born in Hull, Yorkshire, England in 1718 to ...

relieved him of his command, and Innes stayed on at Fort Cumberland as its "campmaster general". When General

Edward Braddock Edward Braddock (January 1695 – 13 July 1755) was a British officer and commander-in-chief for the Thirteen Colonies during the start of the French and Indian War (1754–1763), the North American front of what is known in Europe and Canada as ...

arrived with a force of British regulars in 1755, Innes was named Governor of Fort Cumberland. Braddock tasked Innes with commanding a reserve force of troops at the fort during the disastrous

Braddock expedition The Braddock Expedition, also known as Braddock's Campaign or Braddock's Defeat, was a British Empire, British military expedition which attempted to capture Fort Duquesne from the French colonial empire, French in 1755 during the French and Ind ...

, in which Braddock led an army into the Ohio valley where it was ambushed and routed, leaving the general mortally wounded. During that operation, Fort Cumberland was used as a holding area for wounded and sick soldiers. Innes was among the first to hear of Braddock's defeat, and one of the first to inform Dinwiddie, by way of Lord Fairfax, of the catastrophe. By the mid-1756, Innes was permitted to resign his commission and return to North Carolina.

Retirement and death

Innes lived out the remainder of his life as a planter at "Point Pleasant", his plantation in North Carolina. He died on 5 September 1759 and left behind his wife Jean.

Legacy

After his death in 1759, Innes's will left a bequest for an academy, to be called the Innes Academy. The Academy constructed what became the Thalian Hall in

, which exists today. Innes Street, the main east–west thoroughfare in

Salisbury, North Carolina Salisbury ( ) is a city in the Piedmont (United States), Piedmont region of North Carolina, United States; it has been the county seat of Rowan County, North Carolina, Rowan County since 1753 when its territory extended to the Mississippi River. ...

Early life and emigration

Military and political career

War of Jenkins' Ear

Inter-war career

French and Indian War

Retirement and death

Legacy

References

Footnotes

Bibliography

Further reading and primary sources