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History Timeline

1776 - Building an Army

May 10, 1776 - The Second Continental Congress sends orders to all 13 colonies, instructing them to form their own local governments and fight off any attempts at control by the British.

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1776-05-10

1788 - Ratification Problems

June 21, 1788 - Delaware, New Jersey and Georgia have already approved, or ratified, the U.S. Constitution. But North Carolina refuses. Even so, the 2/3 majority needed to make it law is reached today when New Hampshire becomes the ninth state to ratify the important document. It will be more than a year later until North Carolina will agree to ratify it as well.

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1815 - Battle of New Orleans

January 8, 1815 - Britain's Sir Edward Pakenham and 5,300 well-trained soldiers attack New Orleans, Louisiana. American General Andrew Jackson is ready with 4,500 frontier sharpshooters. Helping Jackson is French pirate Jean Lafitte, who turned down Britain's offer to join their side. The fighting ends quickly, but British losses are staggering. In the half-hour battle, more than 2,000 British die, including Pakenham. U.S. casualties are light: eight men are dead, 13 are wounded. The spectacular victory makes Andrew Jackson a hero, and brings pride to a young U.S.

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1776 - Declaration: Freedom

July 4, 1776 - The Declaration of Independence is adopted by the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia. It proclaims freedom forever from British rule for all 13 colonies, including North Carolina. But the colonists' struggles are just beginning. Freedom will come at a terrible price as bloody battles will be fought throughout the new United States of America. North Carolina will pay, too, with the lives of its citizens. It will be more than five long years before the fighting ceases.

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1789 - Finally Ratification

November 21, 1789 - Nearly two years after the approval process for individual states began, North Carolina finally ratifies the U.S. Constitution. Proposed changes called amendments have eased North Carolina's doubts. Rhode Island is the only remaining state not to approve, but will do so the following May.

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1802 - The Value of Gold

John Reed asks a Fayetteville jeweler to examine the unusual rock that the Reed family has used as a doorstop for two years. The jeweler extracts enough gold from the stone to form a bar nearly eight inches long. Reed accepts $3.50 for the gold. He goes home, not realizing the gold is worth over $3,000.Miners

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1776 - Establishing Order

December 18, 1776 - Now that the 13 American colonies have as a nation declared their independence from Britain, each individual state must decide what kind of laws it will have. As the fight for freedom continues throughout the colonies, today North Carolina adopts its first set of state laws, called its Constitution.

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1789 - NC Holds Out

March 4, 1789 - Lawmakers gather together for the first meeting of the United States Congress, as provided by the U.S. Constitution. These representatives will discuss the changes that the states have suggested. Still, North Carolina refuses to accept or ratify the Constitution, believing the document gives too much power to a central government.

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1819 - Rosedale Plantation

William Davidson, soon to be elected state senator, moves into an elegant home north of Charlotte, near Sugaw Creek Presbyterian Church. With its formal gardens and ballroom, the home built by Archibald Frew has been called Frew's Folly. The pre-Civil War era plantation house will be preserved in years to come, and will be called Rosedale.

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1776 - The Break

July 2, 1776 - More than a year after citizens of Mecklenburg declare their freedom from British tyranny, the Second Continental Congress approves a resolution that will unite the colonies in their battle for liberty.

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