Category Archives: England

Colonel Matthew Locke, an Advocate for Universal Manhood Suffrage

On Friday, May 19, I presented you with the celebration of the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence. On Monday, May 22, I included an article on Captain James Jack, who was not as famous as Paul Revere, but just as heroic. Today, I have another Revolutionary War hero: Colonel Matthew Locke. 
 Colonel Matthew Locke was a Revolutionary War leader, as well as a member of Congress, who just happened to have been born in Northern Ireland. Like many in the present day North Carolina, Locke’s ancestors first settled in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. A few years after his father died, his mother married a man by the name of John Brandon and moved to Anson County, North Carolina. Anson is the next county over from I live outside of Charlotte, and I can tell you there is LOTS of history to found in this area. Later, around 1752, the Brandons moved to Grants Creek, which was part of Mecklenburg County at that time, but is now part of Rowan County, North Carolina. 
Meanwhile, Matthew Locke purchased some 200 acres near his mother and step-father’s residence, where he began a trading business. Matthew and his brother Francis set up a trade line, including skins from the backcountry of Charles Town, South Carolina, and goods produced by the North Carolina Moravian settlements. He and his brother became quite wealthy in this venture. 
[caption id="attachment_34910" align="aligncenter" width="400"] Alamance Battlefield Monument https://www.ncpedia.org/history/colonial/regulator-movement%5B/caption%5D
Locke’s first foray into public life came during the Regulator uprising. The Regulator Movement was a rebellion started by the backcountry (inland regions) residents of North Carolina (basically the western counties – those backing against the mountain range separating them from present day Tennessee – remember, at one time, North Carolina territory went as far west as the current day Nashville, Tennessee). These dissidents believed the royal government mistreated them by falsifying records and imposing excessive fees. The less productive land of the western mountain ranges were taxed at the same rate as the rich coastal plain. These inland residents wished to “regulate” their own affairs. Although the Regulator Movement began with protests, eventually violence was involved. 
Locke became involved when the officers of Rowan County appointed Locke as one of four men to meet with the Regulators’ contingent to attempt to come to some sort of agreement. Through sometimes heated negotiations, Locke’s committee agreed to repay any unlawful fees to those bringing suit. Liking the taste of public office, Locke became a member of the colonial Assembly in 1771, where he served until 1775. 
During the Revolutionary War period, Locke joined the Patriot cause. He was named to Rowan County’s first Committee of Safety. The purpose of the Committees of Safety were to enforce the Continental Association banning all trade with Great Britain. These committees had the endorsement of the Second Provincial Congress of North Carolina and the North Carolina Assembly. They existed in late 1774 and early 1775. These committees oversaw military preparations, the control of the price of select items, especially those needed for war efforts, and the sell of seized imported goods. They also were involved in the return of slaves, punishment for those who went against the Continental Association’s dictates, and even regulated public morals. The Wilmington-New Hanover Committee of Safety managed to run then Governor Josiah Martin out of office, causing him to first seek refuge at Fort Johnston on the Cape Fear River and then on the British warship Cruizer. The Committees of Safety were replaced by the Third Provincial Congress of North Carolina in August 1775. 
Matthew Locke was a delegate to the Third Provincial Congress. He was active in the financing of the case for liberty. He also saw to the militia stationed throughout North Carolina. Locke made the arrangements for governing the colony in Governor Josiah Martin’s abrupt absence until Governor Richard Caswell took over the office. 
[caption id="attachment_34912" align="alignnone" width="900"] Plaque celebrating Halifax Resolves – NC State Capitol Building https://www.rrspin.com/roanoke-rapids-weldon-halifax-county-nc-news/item/11974-sar-to-honor-240th-anniversary-of-halifax-resolves.html%5B/caption%5D
Later, Locke was a member of the Fourth Provincial Congress (April 1776). This time the group met at Halifax. Out of their sometimes heated discussions came the Halifax Resolves, which was the first official action by one of British colonies calling for a break with Great Britain and the independence of all the colonies. 83 delegates to the Provincial Congress ratified the Resolves. They were then sent to the North Carolina delegation for the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia. The Halifax Resolves served as the first call for action against Britain. Virginia followed with their own recommendations to the Continental Congress. These led to Thomas Jefferson’s penning The Declaration of Independence.
Locke then became involved with a group probing the activities of those not supporting a break from Great Britain. Reportedly, Locke led the arrest of John Dunn, the founder of Salisbury, and Benjamin Booth, both of whom were suspected of treason, because early on they had signed a document pledging loyalty to the King. 
Carolina’s first state constitution was drafted. He was in charge of the militia pay of six frontier counties. He procured supplies for the Continental Army. He served in the North Carolina House of Commons on and off from 1777 to 1793. He was known to support universal manhood suffrage, an idea to remove owning property as a right to vote and holding office, in other words, removing the stipulation of ownership of 50 acres of property or the payment of taxes as a prerequisite to vote. He also supported the endowment of Queen’s Museum (later Queen’s College and now Queen’s University) in Charlotte, which is considered the first institution of higher learning in North Carolina. [Just as a side note, my daughter-in-law earned her masters degree at Queens, and my son was an assistant track and cross country coach at the college. It is still a vibrant piece of Charlotte’s history.] In the vote to ratify the U. S. Constitution, Locke took a stand for the new country’s many farmers, who could not afford an expensive, nor oppressive, government. 
In 1793, Locke replace the unpopular Josh Steele, a Federalist, as the congressman for the Salisbury district. He was considered “the honest farmer” and took a leading role in the concept of Jeffersonian democracy in North Carolina. He remained in the NC House of Representatives until 1800, to another Federalist, Archibald Henderson. He died in 1801. 
[caption id="attachment_34913" align="alignnone" width="250"] Gen Matthew Locke BIRTH 1730 Ireland DEATH 7 Sep 1801 (aged 70–71) Mill Bridge, Rowan County, North Carolina, USA BURIAL Thyatira Presbyterian Church Cemetery Mill Bridge, Rowan County, North Carolina, USA ~ https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/8078741/matthew-locke%5B/caption%5D
 
Following Locke’s death, an obituary in the Raleigh Register edited by Joseph Gales, a staunch Jeffersonian, bemoaned the passing and called him a “friend and fixed Republican” who had “served his state admirably in Congress.” He was buried in Thyatira Presbyterian Church cemetery in Rowan County. Continue reading

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Gibbeting, A Grotesque and Very Slow Means of Death

A gibbet is an instrument used as part of a public execution. Gibbeting refers to the gallows-type structure used in the execution. A dead or dying body would be hung on public display to deter other potential criminals from committing similar crimes. A gibbet could also be used as the means of execution, essentially leaving the condemned person in a small cage, with no means of escape, to die from exposure to the elements or from thirst and starvation.  Continue reading

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Marriage by Proxy, Possible or Myth? + The Release of “Amending the Shades of Pemberley” + a Giveaway

When the Hardwick Act for the Prevention of Clandestine Marriages went into effect in March of 1754, the rules for marrying in England changed dramatically. Prior to that time, all the couple had to do was to pronounce their vows before a clergyman of the Church of England. Heck, it did not even have to be one’s local clergyman or even one’s local church. In fact, the Fleet Street prison saw quite a few marriages in those days Continue reading

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Abolitionism in the UK and the Rerelease of “Darcy’s Temptation” + a Giveaway

In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, a movement took root to end the practice of slavery in the United Kingdom, as well as the British empire, including putting an end to the Atlantic slave trade. Western Europe and … Continue reading

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The “Churching” of Women After Childbirth

 Although it has largely fallen out of favor with Western religion, the concept of “churching” in the Church of England can be traced well into the 20th Century. (Margaret Houlbrooke. Rite out of Time: a Study of the Ancient Rite of … Continue reading

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The Cotton or Cottonian Library

A bust of Robert Cotton by Louis-François Roubiliac ~ Public Domain ~ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sir_Robert_Cotton,_1st_Baronet,_of_Connington#/media/File:Robert_Bruce_Cotton_bust_BM_1924_0412_1.jpg Keeping with Wednesday’s post on Circulating Libraries, I thought I might mention a library some, especially in the U.S. have not considered. The Cotton Library was founded by … Continue reading

Posted in Age of Chaucer, architecture, books, British history, Chaucer, Church of England, England, Georgian England, Georgian Era, Great Britain, history, literature, medieval, publishing, real life tales, Regency era, religion, research, war | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The Cotton or Cottonian Library

Courtesy Title or Not

Courtesy titles are the bane of all writers dealing with the aristocracy. First and foremost, if you are one of those who cannot keep it straight, I would suggest this link https://www.chinet.com/~laura/html/titles05.html as it contains a good summary, along with … Continue reading

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William Strickland, the Man Who Introduced Turkeys to England

Tomorrow in the U.S., we will be all about the turkey and fixings and football and preparing for Black Friday sales, but in the U.K., turkeys are a more traditional dish for Christmas. Why might you ask? We can blame … Continue reading

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James Lackington: The Man Who Revolutionized Book Stores

In a time when we bemoan the loss of Borders, Waldenbooks, and fear the demise of Barnes & Noble and Books-a-Million, it is hard for us to imagine what it must have been like for those who entered “The Dome … Continue reading

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Dressmakers and Fashion and What Jane Austen Said of Both

A woman’s dressmaker, or “mantua maker,” as they were often known during the late Georgian era, were essentially paid to know what was the latest fashion trends. Most of us who are obsessed with the era, know something of fashion … Continue reading

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