North Carolina General Assembly of 1778

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North Carolina General Assembly of 1778

Overview
- The North Carolina General Assembly met in three sessions during 1778–1779 in New Bern, Hillsborough, and Halifax.
- It was the state legislature after independence, made up of two houses: the Senate (41 members) and the House of Commons (88 members). Each of the 39 counties and the Washington District/County sent one senator and two representatives; six districts (boroughs) sent one representative each.
- Richard Caswell was elected governor by the General Assembly.

Sessions
- 1st session: April 14–May 2, 1778, in New Bern.
- 2nd session: August 8–19, 1778, in Hillsborough.
- 3rd session: January 19–February 13, 1779, in Halifax.

Legislation and county changes
- The Assembly created Wilkes County in 1778.
- In its final session (1779) it created Franklin, Gates, Jones, Lincoln, Montgomery, Randolph, Richmond, Rutherford, Warren, and Wayne counties.
- For detailed laws and minutes, see Legislative Documents.

Leadership
- House of Commons:
- Speaker: John Williams served until April 28, 1778; Thomas Benbury was elected to replace him.
- Clerk: John Hunt; Assistant Clerk: Joseph Blithe.
- Senate:
- President pro tempore: Whitmell Hill served until he left for the Continental Congress; Allen Jones was elected to replace him.
- Clerk: John Sitgreaves.

Councilors of State
- The Assembly elected the Council of State on April 18, 1778. Members included county representatives such as Joseph Leech (Craven), Thomas Bonner (Beaufort), William Cray (Onslow), Edward Starkey (Onslow), Robert Bignall (Edgecombe), Richard Henderson (Granville), William Haywood (Edgecombe), William Bryan (Craven), John Simpson (Pitt), and Frederick Jones (New Hanover, elected February 1779), among others.

House of Commons and Senate (composition)
- House of Commons: 88 representatives, with each county sending two representatives and six districts sending one each.
- Senate: 41 members, with each county represented by one senator.

Notable members (examples)
- Some illustrated or mentioned members during the period included figures such as Benjamin Hawkins, Joseph Hewes, Willie Jones, Abner Nash, James Gorham, John Williams, Thomas Benbury, Whitmell Hill, John Sitgreaves, and others representing various counties and districts.

Context
- The 1778 assembly followed the 1777 session and preceded later assemblies in 1779 and beyond.
- The assembly played a key role in reorganizing counties and setting up the early government structure for North Carolina during the revolutionary era.