Interviewees:
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Sally Bloom
- Curator of Distance Education, North Carolina Museum of History
By 1776, most of North Carolina's elected officials were Patriots leading the Provincial Council of Safety. The state's three Declaration signers—Joseph Hewes, John Penn, and William Hooper—were all born outside North Carolina but relocated for economic opportunity. All three were enslavers, a stark contradiction given their public commitment to liberty. Cornelius Harnett, though not a signer, was a very consequential Patriot leader. He helped found the Sons of Liberty in North Carolina, helped with the destruction of Fort Johnston, and is believed to have read the Declaration aloud in Halifax on August 1, 1776. Massachusetts Patriot Josiah Quincy called Harnett the "Sam Adams of North Carolina."
