Some Early Recollections of Wayne County - 
But More Particularly of Goldsboro

I wish, as a preface to what I have written, to say it is not in any wise a history of Wayne county.  (One ought to be written, but it should be done by one manifestly more competent than I am.)

I have merely tried to relate some of my early or boyhood recollections of people I knew, of incidents that came under my observation or that I heard from older people.  The reader will find it rambling and not closely connected.

When I began writing I had no notes prepared, but have written mostly from memory and when I thought of names or incidents, I wrote them in just where I was at, regardless of whether they dovetailed with preceding or succeeding pages.  I was afraid if I failed to write of them while they were on my mind, I might not think of them again.

I have thought (I may be wrong) that it might be interesting to the old citizens to read of these old times, that it might bring to their memory names and incidents long forgotten, and to the younger generation I thought it would to many of them be news.

The younger generation will learn how Goldsboro started, and how it was grown, (slowly to be sure), but constantly, from a stopping place in the wild woods for a railroad train, to its present city proportions, and its trials, troubles and tribulations; how its people have always been a brave and courageous set, peaceable and law abiding.

These reminiscences will cover a period of about sixty years.  I go back of this for a few incidents mentioned, but in such cases have tried to give my authority for them. The bulk of what I have written is entirely from memory, and I do not claim absolute accuracy as to dates of certain incidents and participants therein, but think I have not gone far wrong.  Of course, over such a long period, one's memory is not always fresh, and, writing from memory, it is possible and probable I may have in some instances got things mixed up a little.  Some of the facts I have taken from the old records of the city through the kindness of Capt. D. J. Broadhurst City Clerk, who allowed me access to them.

Away back in the late forties and fifties there was quite a little village at Everettsville, six miles south of Goldsboro, on the A. C. L. railroad.  My recollection is that there was a dozen or more families there and it was a tony place.  I expect it contained as much wealth as any village of its size in North Carolina in those days.  I can recollect the following families: G. W. Collier, John Everett, D. B. Everett, Wm. Carraway, John Becton, Wm. Hollowell, Curtis Hooks, J. C. Slocumb, and John West.  All men of wealth, they had a flourishing school, but along about '59 or '60, they began to break up and move away, and there is nothing there now to remind one of the place except the deep sand.

And about the same time Everettsville was flourishing, there was quite a large mercantile business carried on at White Hall.  These were about the only two places in the county, outside of the county seat, that were of much prominence, Mt. Olive, and Nahunta, (now Fremont), each a small store or two, but did not do much business.  Just before the war, A.J. Finlayson run a turpentine distillery and store at Scottsville, three miles north of Goldsboro, and Willoughby Gardner had a store and distillery at Saulston.  Council Best, Jack Coley, G. W. Collier, W. K. Lane, John and David Everett were probably the largest farmers and were considered the wealthiest men in the county.

Having no records to refer to, I cannot go back of 1848 in giving the names of Wayne Legislators, but I think I can name them from that date to the breaking out of the war, but cannot give the years in which each served.  They were C. H. Brogden, John V. Sherard, John Exum, Wm. Thompson, Lewis Whitfield, W. T. Dortch, Etheldred Sauls, E. A. Thompson, W. K. Lane and M. K. Crawford.  I think John Exum was elected Senator in '48 and '50, and that he died before taking his seat, in 1850, and Wm. Thompson was elected in his place.  The elections used to be held the first Thursday in August and no registration was necessary.  No primaries nor county conventions were held.  On the 4th of July there was always a big gathering at the county seat, and candidates declared themselves.  It was a free-to-all race, and any one could run who wished to.  Ollin Coor was the first Sheriff I have any recollection of and continued until 1858, having held the place fourteen years.  He was defeated in 1858 and again in 1860 by W. A. Thompson.  The county was largely Democratic.

My earliest recollection of Goldsboro begins about the Spring of 1849.  I attended school that Spring in Goldsboro.  The school house, a one-room building, stood near the rear part of what is now the Elks' club house.  The teacher was John Robinson, father of Judge W. S. O'B. and Col. Jos. E. Robinson.  He had about fifty pupils.  Among them was four grown men; they were James T. Hamilton, D. H. Bridgers, DeWitt and Gabriel Sherard.  All four have died and of the forty pupils, there is, so far as I know of, only four now living; they are Mrs. Maria Frazier, daughter of Mr. Robinson, the teacher, Mrs. Nancy Barnes, Capt. H. H. Coor and myself.

There was another school running at the same time in the old Academy that stood about where St. Paul church now stands, taught by a gentleman named Atwaters.

My recollection is that there was only one building on the block on which the Arlington Hotel stands; that was a small dwelling which is still standing on Chestnut street, in the rear of the Arlington.  Near the entrance to the Opera House was a small building used by the late Dr. John W. Davis as an office, and the late Capt. S. D. Phillips occupied a small building as a tailor shop.  W. B. Edmundson, Rufus Edmundson and John A. Green, (all dead), did a mercantile business in a house that stood where the Kennon stands.  This building about 1851 was enlarged and became the famous Griswold Hotel.  It was owned and run by the late James Griswold (called Judge) and after his death was continued as a hotel by his widow Mrs. Susan A. Griswold until 1867.  On West Centre street, on the block from the Goldsboro Drug Co. to Witherington's corner, stood the Borden Hotel, run by Mrs. Maria Borden, mother of our esteemed citizen E. B. Borden, Sr.  This house stood back from the street probably 50 or 60 feet in a grove of large elms; opposite this hotel, was the railroad platform for the getting on and off of passengers from the cars.  The Wilmington & Weldon railroad was the only one here at that time.  The iron was what was known as strap iron, being about three inches wide, and a half inch thick.  Cross ties were laid as now; then long timbers were laid across the ties and this strap iron pinned to this timber.  The speed of the trains were rather slow.  My impression is it took about twelve houses to run from Wilmington to Weldon, a distance of 162 miles.

Besides those already named, I do no recall but two other buildings on the Kennon block.  One was on Walnut street, a dwelling called (I don't know why) the "Hermitage;" the other, a dwelling that stood where the Baptist parsonage now stands, and at the time of which I write was occupied by the late John N. Andrews.

About where Winslow's Book Store is was a wood building in which the late R. J. Gregory and John B. Griswold did business.  During the spring of '49 Wm. Robinson erected a building about where Granger's jewelry store stands.  This building was first occupied by J. P. Sanford as the Wayne Hotel.  On the square opposite the City Hall, about where J. W. Isler's store stands, Exum Perkins run a bar, and close by Silas Webb (Boss) had a shoe shop.  The wood and water station for the railroad was beside the track, immediately opposite the city hall.  The warehouse was opposite the store of W. R. Thompson.

W. B. Edmundson run a turpentine distillery that stood at or near the present residence of Rev. S. H. Isler.  Where the Court House now stands was then a chinquapin grove.

East and West Centre and John and James street were opened and these only from about Spruce to Ash.  John street from Ash to Boundary was nothing but an ordinary country road known as the Stantonsburg road.  If I remember right, there was a saddle and harness shop in a small building that stood where Dr. Cobb's office is.   All that territory lying between William street and the big ditch from Boundary to Ash street, was cleared and in cultivation.  I have seen old man Wright Langston, who owned the property, ploughing in that field.  In coming to school, I used to get through his bars at about the intersection of Daisy and Boundary street, come diagonally across by the residence of Judge Robinson and climb the fence about where S. W. Draper lives, where I would strike the Stantonsburg road, or what is now John street.  There was, I remember, a branch that ran in front of Larry Bass' store and after a big rain I have seen water there two feet deep.  When the city was excavating there to lay sewerage, I saw signs of old shavings and trash that was put to fill in.  Back of the St. Paul parsonage and the residence of L. D. Giddens was a branch in which the boys used to fish.  I have heard that it was pretty good for red fins.

I doubt if there was over fifty or sixty families here at that date.  The house owned by Mrs. Hutton, near the ice factory, was built that spring.  It was built by John Edmundson, (called Bull Head John), grandfather of E. L. and F. B. Edmundson.

That portion of the city north of Ash street was woods.  Where the Knitting Mill stands was a two-story dwelling, occupied by John Britt, an engineer on the W. & W. railroad, and there was another dwelling on the lots that the late Mrs. Richardson owned, and where the stock pen of the Southern railway stands was a dwelling occupied by John Taylor.  About where the old freight depot of the Norfolk & Southern now stands was a dwelling owned by Ira Langston, when the depot was to be built in 1857.  This building was removed to John street, just north of the stemmery, and is still standing.  There was a building or two, perhaps a small storehouse and small dwelling, that stood upon the site where stood the "Great Eastern" that was so long an eye-sore to the citizens of the city.  The Stantonsburg road that came into town down John street until it reached Larry Bass' corner, then turned and ran as Ash street is and crossed the railroad where Ash street does, then deflected to the left, passing through that square diagonally, entering at or near the Bennett's stables and striking James street near the Episcopal church.  There was a small building that stood in Wright Langston's field, just where H. Weil & Bros. erected two dwellings and a few years ago on John street, adjoining the residence of the late Mrs. Margaret Robinson.  This house afterwards was known as the Mike Wood building.  At the time I first knew this house in 1849 it appeared to be an old one.  No one lived in it, and in passing it I occasionally threw a missile through a window.  There was only three or four unbroken glass in the windows and I thought there was no use in these few remaining there.  From the looks of it I would not be surprised if that was the oldest house in the place at that time.

I have heard that Mrs. G. L. Kirby was the first white female child born in Goldsboro, and that the late W. H. Borden was the first white male child born here.

John Street, just south of the tobacco stemmery, (the street at that time, as I have stated, being the Stantonsburg road), was so low, wet and miry that it had to be laid down on poles, cordorary fashion; and where Boundary street crosses the big ditch was a pond where I have seen nets set and old man Major I. Pate (now dead), in his canoe fishing them.  Mr. Pate said, though, that he cought more d--- moccasins than fish.

John Edwards and Grif Brocket (both dead) built the first two houses on Boundary street, between the railroad and the big ditch.

About 1856, J. J. Baker and Jack Langston started a foundry just in the rear of the store now occupied by Giles Hinson.  The melting of iron and the moulding of plow and other castings was a curiosity in Goldsboro, and on their moulding days large crowds would gather to see how the work was done.

Among those living here at that time I now recall J. A. Green, J. K. Green, W. B. and Rufus Edmundson, James Griswold, Silas Webb, Exum Perkins, R. J. Gregory, John W. Davis, S. D. Phillips, Wm. Robinson, Ira Langston, John Britt, J. J. Bradbury, J. W. Andrews, Bryan Pennington, John Robinson, and W. B. Fields.

I have heard that among the first residences built here was one by Dr. Samuel A. Andrews, on the corner where Epstein's store is.  Afterwards the house was occupied by the late W. S. G. Andrews, and about 1867 it was remodeled and run as the "Gregory" Hotel.

Concerning the old county seat, "Waynesboro," I cannot give much information.  My recollections of the place are not very distinct.  I can remember going there three or four times only; and I was very small.  I remember that the court house was a wood building on brick pillows perhaps eight feet high.  The jail, also wood, stood in the rear.  There were several stores on the street in front of the court house.  There was a saw mill and turpentine distillery on the bank of the river.  Richard Washington was one of the merchants, and I think a man named Stevenson was another.  C. J. Nelson had a buggy and carriage factory.  There was a church that stood on the east side of where O'Berry's tram road runs.  In 1849 Rev. Ira P. Wyche held a revival in that church that was the biggest meeting ever known in this section up to that time.  Wm. Wellons kept a hotel, and Chappell Churchill also kept one.  I don't suppose the place ever contained more than 400 or 500 inhabitants.  I can remember only a few of the people who lived there.  Among them was Richard Washington, John Wright, C. J. Nelson, F. L. Castex, Wm. Wellons, Chappell Churchill, Ira Langston, Richard Grant, Daniel Cogdell, J. H. Powell, J. H. Everett, Henry Toler and W. R. Hooks.  The town was subject to overflows in freshets.  I have heard that J. E. Kennedy, who lived on the Asylum hill, took a canoe at the foot of the hill on one occasion during a freshet and paddled to the court house steps.  After it was decided to remove the court house to Goldsboro, people began gradually to move out to Goldsboro, and by the time the new court house was completed, the old capital was nearly a thing of the past.

The first court held in Goldsboro was, I think, in August, 1851.

There was another little cross roads village in them days that I had nearly overlooked.  It was Milton, two miles south of Dudley. There was a store or two and a turpentine distillery, and considerable business was done there.  Milton was noted chiefly for whiskey and fighting.  It was a dull day in Milton when Deb Casey and Jim Benton could not get up a fight or two.  I got this bit of the history of the place from Capt. Jack Collier, and I have no doubt it is correct, for the chief of police is supposed to know something about what takes place in his town.

Referring to Waynesboro again: There used to be a small cemetery close by the church.  I don't know whether the bodies buried there were ever removed or not.  If they were not, it seems to me that Major Grant's brick yard must be getting very close to it.

In the county campaign of 1848, the question of removing the county seat was sprung.  Nearly all the people on the south side of Neuse river favored Waynesboro, while those living on the north side were in favor of Goldsboro.  The north siders won out and preparation was made to build a court house.  The brick for this building were made near the intersection of Pine and George streets.

My impression is that about 1850 the first newspaper was started by Wm. Robinson and was called the Goldsboro Patriot.  It was Democratic in politics.  Not a great while after another paper, the Goldsboro Telegraph, was started by George V. Strong and J. B. Whitaker and was Whig in politics.  I think Mr. Robinson sold out the Patriot after a while to Maj. W. B. Gulick, who conducted it under the name of the Republican, and Strong & Whitaker sold the Telegraph to Anthony Separk.

There was a stage line from New Bern to Raleigh, and Waynesboro and afterwards Goldsboro was the Half-Way House.  It took from ten to twelve hours to make the trip to New Bern and nearly the same time to Raleigh.  The route from New Bern came in through Webbtown, and to Raleigh it went out crossing the Little river bridge that stood about midway between the Southern railway bridge and the Asylum bridge, the road skirting the Asylum farm on the river side.  There is plain sign of this old road around the farm now.  Joseph E. Kennedy lived on the Asylum hill and to my childish imagination, it was quite a mountain.

Augustus King and Wm. Sampson were two of the stage drivers.  I think I have heard that the stage fare was 12 1-2 cents per mile.

I occasionally came to town with my father in those days on Saturday and I saw a good many of the most prominent men of the county who would come in on Saturday to get their mail.  Among them I remember John W. Sasser, Daniel Gurley, G. W. Collier, W. K. Lane, Aaron F. Moses, Council Best, Lewis Sasser, Rufus Cox, Theophilus Best, Thomas and Joshua Uzzell, Wm. Carraway, David McKinne, John Becton, Wait Thompson, Richard Hinson (court crier); Ollin Coor, (sheriff); Guard Thompson (coroner); Willoughby Gardner, John Exum, Wm. Hooks, Benj. Aycock, Bright Thompson, Needham Worrell, Aaron Parks, Giles Smith, Wm. Rouse, Wm. Hollowell, Lewis Cogdell, N.B. Stevens, Dred Sauls, Jack Coley, Wm. Lewis, John V. Sherard, Curtis Hooks, C.H. Brogden, Everett Smith, Zadee and George Thompson, W. D. Cobb, Ransome Rose, John Cameron, Brian Pate, Lazarus Pearson, Joseph Ingram, James Handley, Hardy and Thos. Yelverton, Rigdon Dees, Erastus Ham, Sam Smith, Thomas and Wm. Pearson, P. L. Peacock, Ollin Sasser, -----------Barnes, Wm. B. Smith (Black Bill), Joseph Edwards, Kitchen Smith, W. H. Ward, J. F. Kornegay, J. T. and J. E. Kennedy, Silas Webb, Shade Pate, Owen Peel, John and David Everett, Drew Barnes, Simeon Hooks, Godfrey Stancil, Lewis Whitfield, Edmund Coor, and John and Jesse Hollowell.

The first meeting of the Board of Town Commissioners of which I find any record was held the 8th day of June, 1847, at the store of John A. Green & Co.  There was present J. A. Green, Wm. B. Edmundson, Silas Web and S. D. Phillips.  Wm. B. Edmundson was chosen Intendant of Police.  This office, I presume, was the same as Mayor now is.  Another meeting was held on the 29th, at which the tax levy for the year was made.  It was thirty cents on each one hundred dollars of real estate and seventy-five cents on each poll.

At a meeting held Sept. 9th, Lemuel H. Whitfield tendered his resignation as a commissioner, he having removed from town.  James Griswold was elected to succeed Mr. Whitfield.

At a meeting held Nov. 17th, W. F. Brown and John Pike were given leave to retail liquor in the town upon the payment to the town treasurer the sum of $2 each.

At an election held on the first Saturday in February, 1848, S. D. Philips, Silas Webb, J. A. Green, Wm. Robinson and John V. Williams were elected Commissioners for the ensuing year.  A meeting was held on Feb. 7th, at which the newly elected members qualified and elected Wm. F. Brown constable, Dr. John W. Davis, treasurer, and J. A. Green, clerk.

At the next meeting D. R. Kennedy and A. J. Finlayson were recommended to the county court for retail liquor licenses.  Finlayson afterwards became a Methodist preacher.  The tax rate for that year was thirty cents on real estate and ninety cents on each poll.

An election under an amended charter was held on the first Saturday in December, 1850, when J. B. Griswold, W. T. Dortch, Thomas Ruffin, J. W. Ezzell, and Fred I. Cox were elected Commissioners and J. B. Griswold made Intendant of Police.

Up to this date, all the meetings of the Board had been held at the store of J. A. Green & Co.  They now began holding them at the office of the County Court Clerk.  The tax rate was raised this year to forty cents on real estate and one dollar and a quarter on the poll.

At a meeting held on Sept. 12, 1851, J. J. Foulks, J. W. Ezzell and R. W. Hamlet were appointed patrols for the town, to continue in office until Nov. 30th, and the orders was that they should patrol the town at least once a week and that their pay should be one dollar each per week.  James W. Doyal was recommended for liquor license.

At the election held Dec. 1, 1851, F. L. Bond, Rufus Edmundson, S. D. Phillips, Jesse Pipkin and J. B. Griswold were elected.

Contract was ordered made with Ira Langston for cutting out the street known as Boundary street, from the railroad east.  Jno. A. Green was ordered to find out the number of white male residents of Goldsboro between the ages of 18 and 45 years and divide them into companies of three to act as patrols for the town, each company to serve one week until all had served around.  A captain was appointed for each squad.

On January 29 Mr. Green reported that there were seventy five white males in town between 18 and 45 years of age and gave the names as follows:

Matthew Albritton, W. S. G. Andrews, C. H. Brogden, W. R. Bridgers, J. S. Bradbury, W. E. Bryant, H. R. Cheek, F. I. Cox, Wm. Crumpler, G. A. Dudley, J. W. Davis, C. F. Dewey, J. W. Doyal, J. R. Dukes, W. T. Dortch, J. W. Ezzell, J. J. Foulks, R. J. Gregory, R. W. Hamlet, Josiah Howell, J. J. Hooks, Thos. Hargrave, Hymrick Johnson, D. H. Musgrave, R. E. Williams, C. J. Nelson, James McFarland, D. A. Powell, James Privett, Joseph Roberts, Thos. Ruffin, Wm. Sampson, N. B. Stanley, G. V. Strong, Bryant Thompson, John Taylor, J. B. Whitaker, Thos. Waters, Robt. Wright, Wm. Robinson, Noah Turnage, E. A. Thompson, Jas. Brown, John Randolph, E. B. Borden, Jas. High, W. G. Carter, D. G. Lougee, N. S. Richardson, Matt Radford, Alfred Boyett, R. Hines, --------- Mitchell, _____ Seymour, Henry Strouse, Blount King, David Miller, Lenoir Pate, Wm. Talbert, Jas. McPherson, Matt Everett, Jno. Scarboro, Jno. Taylor, Jr., ----- Scott, Thos. Marshall, Wyatt Turnage, Thos. Persons, W. H. Jones, Jas. Surmons, W. F. Brown, Joe E. Neal, Kedar Raiford, Alex Keaton, James King.

It was ordered that Patrol Companies be formed as follows:

W. S. G. Andrew, Captain - J. R. Dukes and Wyatt Turnage.

W. R. Bridgers, Captain - Thos. Hargrave and N. B. Stanley.

W. T. Dortch, Captain - N. S. Richardson and Robt. Wright.

J. J. Foulks, Captain - Thos. Persons and D. H. Musgrave.

J. J. Hooks, Captain - Blount King and D. G. Lougee.

C. J. Nelson, Captain - Peter Epps and Thos. Marshall.

Thos. Ruffin, Captain - R. W. Hamlet and Jno. Person.

G. V. Strong, Captain - D. A. Powell and H. R. Cheek.

J. B. Whitaker, Captain - J. J. Bradbury and J. W. Ezzell.

E. A. Thompson, Captain - W. H. Jones and Jno. Taylor, Jr.

E. B. Borden, Captain - F. I. Cox and Thos. Waters.

C. H. Brogden, Captain - W. E. Bogart and J. McFarland.

J. W. Doyal, Captain - Noah Turnage, G. A. Dudley.

Josiah Howell, Captain - W. F. Brown and Wm. Sampson.

Henry Strouse, Captain - Jos. Roberts and J. E. Neal.

J. W. Davis, Captain - W. G. Carter and Alfred Boyett.

C. F. Dewey, Captain - Thos. Ruffin and James Privett.

M. Albritton, Captain - Lenoir Pate and John Scarboro.

Jno. Taylor, Sr., Captain -   ----- Seymour and Matt Everett.

R. J. Gregory, Captain - Hymrick Johnson and R. C. Mitchell.

The Captains, if they failed to serve, were fined one dollar, and the privates fifty cents for the like failure.

At the election held in Dec. 1852, the following Commissioners were elected:  E. A. Thompson, S. D. Phillips, D. A. Powell, W. S. Bonner and C. J. Nelson, and they took the oath of office before W. B. Edmundson and Dr. S. A. Andrews, Justices of the Peace.

At a meeting of the Commissioners held Dec. 28th, it was ordered by them that the citizens of the town be requested to meet at the courthouse on the next Tuesday evening to advise with the commissioners upon the best plan for patrolling the town the ensuing year.

At the meeting of the commissioners held January 4th, 1853, Col. Nelson was authorized to lay off the grave yard purchased from W. B. Edmundson and to leave alleys eight feet wide and to return a plot of the same to the Board of the work done.  This graveyard mentioned here is the old part of Willow Dale Cemetery.  An order was passed at a meeting held on Feb. 8th, 1853, authorizing Ollin C. Sasser to take up a collection for paying a patrol for the town.

The real estate and poll tax for 1853 was: On property listed $555.27; double tax on property unlisted $107.42.

On August 24th the town clerk was ordered to advertise to sell about ten cords of pine wood at Griswold and Cobb's store on the following Saturday at 4 o'clock; terms made known on day of sale.  At the next meeting, held Sept. 15th, it was ordered that twenty eight dollars for wood sold by the town to D. A. Powell be turned into the town treasury.  This shows that pine wood brought pretty good prices here over fifty years ago.

At the election held in Dec. 1853, J. B. Whitaker, W. T. Dortch, Rufus Edmundson, J. B. Griswold and J. H. Powell were elected Commissioners.

At a meeting held Jan. 7th, 1854, the town quarantined against Duplin County, as the small pox was reported as prevailing near White Hall, and the people of Wayne County were recommended to submit themselves as speedily as possible to vaccination.

On Feb. 3rd, 1854, the North Carolina Railroad Company was granted a right of way to construct their track on West Centre street.  At this meeting O. C. Sasser, Richard Woodard and Tobias Snipes were employed as patrols for the town from that date until Dec. 10th following.  Among the taxes laid that year I find one of five dollars on each "Shuffle Board."  Some older resident will have to give the answer as to what kind of a "contraption" this was, if we are to get any light on the subject.  I confess it's a new one on me.  The valuation of real estate returned this year was $135,667, tax $542.86:  86 white and 86 black polls, $215.00; with $21,600 real estate not listed.

The first ordinance against hogs running at large on the streets was passed Oct. 13th, 1854.

On Nov. 7th, W. C. Bryan, a surveyor, was employed to mark out George street and all cross streets from James to George and the town constable ordered to drive down lightwood posts at the corner of each street.

At the election held Dec. 2nd, 1854, J. B. Whitaker, J. B. Griswold, B. H. Stammore, S. D. Phillips, and J. J. Bradbury were elected commissioners:  Luke Huggins appointed to patrol the town, with two assistants.  Dec. 26th:  At this meeting an invitation was read signed by H. L. Roberds, Wm. Murphy, John I. Shaver, J. M. Coffin, A. M. Nesbitt, Arch S. Brown, James E. Kerr, C. S. Brown, A. M. Buiss and Wm. Overman, citizens of Rowan county to the Intendant and Commissioners of Goldsboro to attend a railroad celebration to be given at Salisbury on Jan. 4, 1855, the North Carolina Railroad being completed to that town.

The valuation of real estate reported for this year was $290,950.  This was an increase of over 100 per cent in the last year.  White polls 81: black polls 150.

At the December election J. B. Griswold, J. B. Whitaker, Josiah Fields, H. R. Nixon and J. J. Bradbury were elected Commissioners.

May 10th, 1856, right of way was granted the Atlantic & North Carolina Railroad to construct their road on East Centre street, from Boundary street and that sufficient space be granted them on West Centre street to erect their warehouse, also the right of way across Beach street.

The real estate as returned by the assessors April 13th for the year 1857 was $267,275 and unlisted $13,627.  The commissioners elected for this year was J. B. Whitaker, J. B. Griswold, Nathan Adams, J. C. Borden and J. A. Washington.  J. K. Green was elected clerk and treasurer, and Arthur Stansell, constable.  The Board ordered that a horse rack be put up on East Centre street.

Sometime during this summer there occurred a difficulty that came near being a very serious affair.  There was some business case between Dr. John W. Davis and Falk Odenheimer, a Jew merchant, and the trial was being held in the office of Richard Washington and during the trial Windal T. Robinson, a nephew of Dr. Davis, struck Odenheimer on the head with a spade, or shovel, breaking his skull, and in the fracas Charley Spaght, a step-son of Odenheimer shot Dr. Davis seriously.  There was great excitement among the citizens. Davis was a great favorite and the cry soon started to hang Odenheimer and he had to be carried to jail for safety, and even then it was threatened by Davis' friends to take him from jail and hang him, and I was told not long ago by Wm. Bonitz that he was confident that but for the interference of T. T. Hollowell, Odenheimer would have been hung.  Mr. Bonitz said that Mr. Hollowell had to use considerable force to stop the mob, who were bent on vengeance.  Nearly every Jew in town left, because it was not safe for them to remain, the feeling against them was so strong.  Odenheimer was critically hurt but did recover.  Davis also recovered and the feeling against the Jews gradually died out and those who had run off returned.  A very laughable story concerning this case was told on N. B. Stanley, who was constable.  At the trial he had a black pony that was partially blind, and he was hitched close to the back door of the office in which the trial was being held and when Spaght fired the first shot at Davis, Stanley ran out at the back door, and as he ran by the pony kicked him, and at that moment Spaght fired the second shot and Stanley mistook the kick for a pistol ball and he hollered loudly for some one to get a doctor, that he was shot.

In those days, at every court there was a dozen or more tobacco peddlers, in long, covered wagons, who plied their trade on the court yard and at night they would drive to the corner of John and Ash streets.  There was a pine thicket at that point and all these wagons would camp there, tying their horses to the feed box attached to the hind part of their wagons.  They would cook their grub over the camp fire and after supper would play cards, fiddle and pick the banjo, and some of the finest music I ever heard from these two instruments I have heard on that corner.  W. T. Blackwell (Buck), who later became known the world over as the owner of the "Durham Bull" brand of smoking tobacco, used to be one of these tobacco peddlers.  But an ordinance of the town passed Nov. 7th, 1857, provided that no wagoner should encamp inside the corporation and the wagoners then made their camping ground on the roadside near Jumping Run, on the Hooks' bridge road.

At the December election held this year there was twenty-one candidates voted for, but J. B. Whitaker, J. B. Griswold, S. D. Phillips, Hosea Williams and J. H. Powell were elected.  Blount King was appointed town Sergeant.  They had changed the name from patrol. The  Sergeant was required to ring the courthouse bell every night at 9 o'clock.

At a meeting of the Commissioners held Feb. 13th, a motion was made to put liquor license at $100, but was tabled.  Mr. J. H. Powell then moved that only two places be licensed.  The vote stood: Ayes, Williams and Powell; noes, Phillips and Griswold.  The mayor in giving casting vote, voted No.  An anonymous communication was presented purporting to be from the ladies of the town against recommendations for license.  The same was read and Mr. Powell moved that it be spread on the minutes, but the motion did not receive a second.

Valuation for real estate for 1858, $293,375.

The Board appropriated four dollars to buy powder to fire a national salute on July 4th.

The county court granted the town permission to use the county jail as a guard house.

The pay of the Intendant of Police (Mayor) for the past year was forty-five dollars, and that of Clerk thirty dollars.

Isham R. Dyer, B. F. Arrington, J. B. Whitaker, G. W. Strong and Kedar Raiford were elected as Commissioners for 1859, Mr. Dyer elected Intendant of Police.

The Citizen Patrol that had been in vogue for several years, was abandoned by the new regime, and A. H. Humphrey was given the position of Town Patrol and to keep the streets in order, he to furnish the labor and tools at the price of six hundred and fifty dollars.  It is supposed that Mr. Humphrey soon discovered he had made a bad bargain, as he resigned after a few days.

A place was selected and bids asked for, for erecting a market house.

In the assessment of real estate this year I notice that the lot on which the Kennon now stands, on which, at that time was the Griswold Hotel, a building of 76 rooms was valued at $12,500.  There were only 316 lots in the town.

Tax for this year was fifty cents on real estate and one dollar and fifty cents on each poll.

The charter of the town was amended by the Legislature this year and the corporate limits extended three hundred feet beyond Elm, William, Boundary and George street for 1860.

J. B. Whitaker, Sam J. Lucas, D. C. Carrington, J. G. Parker and I. R. Dyer were elected Commissioners.  The price of retail liquor license was fixed at one hundred dollars.  S. J. Lucas and D. C. Carrington were appointed to enquire as to the cost of hooks, ladders and other instruments necessary to fight fire, and the Intendant was authorized to sink several wells in the town for supplying water for fire purposes.

Fifteen dollars was appropriated to pay for three kegs powder with which to celebrate the Fourth of July, 1860: and one hundred dollars to defray expenses of a Military Ball on the 11th inst., in compliment to the officers of the Military Convention.  Who in Goldsboro now remembers that ball?

Goldsboro's first Fair was held this fall.  It was not very successful, in fact none it has ever held has been, but there was cause for the failure of the one held this year.  It was Presidential election year, and to the far-seeing the election of Abraham Lincoln seemed a certainty, and it was believed that war would follow.  The people were paying more attention to the war outlook than to country fairs.

For 1861 J. B. Whitaker, I. R. Dyer, J. F. Divine, Nathan Adams and David C. Carrington were elected.  At the meeting held Dec. 7th, 1860, the Commissioners borrowed from the bank five hundred dollars.  This is the first account that I have found of the town borrowing any money during the nearly twenty years of its life.  Nathan Adams resigned at the first meeting and was elected town constable, and John Wright was elected as a commissioner in place of Mr. Adams.

Since beginning the writing of this and ruminating on the past, many other names of old citizens of the town and county occur to me, namely: Martin Sauls, James Hooks, Henry Martin, John G. and Doll Barnes, Anderson Deans, Morris Howell, J. A. Howell, C. G. and Needham Perkins, A. J. Finlayson, Probate Scott, Sam Pate, Henry Bell Gardner, Dick Newsome, Wm. Rose, Fred I. Cox, Jethro and Joseph Murphy, John Toler, Alba and Ashly Whitley, Joseph Hatch, C. F. R. Kornegay, John A. Kornegay, W. F. Pollock, Wait Martin, J. R. Parker, John and Joel Loftin, Robert Peel, W. A. Williams, D. L. Burbank, Charles Parmalee, J. J. Baker, Thomas R. Smith, T. A. Granger, Wiley and Wm. Crumpler, Benj. Strickland, Raiford Hooks, Haywood Ham, James and Thos. Edwards, Adams Langston, Hardy and W. G. Summerlin, F. I. Castex, Dickinson Dail, John Hill, J. J. Ivey, M. K. Crawford, F. C. Patrick, Redding Richardson, Ransom Garriss, Edwin Game, W. H. Andrews, Wm. and Nathan Edgerton, J. E. Whitfield, Exum Howell, Bennett Combs, Daniel Lancaster, C. J. McCullen, Sebron Wolfe, James McDuffie, Simon Herring, Jesse Bizzell, Uriah Langston, Joseph Smith, J. P. Jordan, Needham Smith, T. M. Rodgers, Nathan Boyett, Ben Futrell, Richard Manly, John Cox, Hiram Grantham.

All of these former citizens of the town and county have passed away and it is only occasionally that we meet one of that day still in the flesh.  Once in a while we run up with an old boy like Tom Kennedy, Bill Parker, Allen Smith, Tom Cox and war Bill Howell.  Bill claims to be over a hundred, but I am inclined to the opinion that he is fudging by eight or ten years.

Col. Nelson always claimed the honor of giving Goldsboro its name.  He said the civil engineer who surveyed the old Wilmington and Raleigh railroad, (Raleigh afterwards changed to Weldon), was named Goldsborough, and used to board with him in Waynesboro, and that after this place was located as a depot he used to speak of it as my depot, and Col. Nelson got to calling it Goldsboro, and from that it finally took the name.  The change and abbreviation in spelling it came about many years afterwards.

One of the queer characters that used to live in Goldsboro for eight or ten years before the war was John Wiggs, called "Doctor" from the fact for quite a while he worked for Dr. Andrews, sweeping his office, hitching his horse, etc.  Dock was no doubt weak in the upper story and without any education.  It was but natural he should be a very ignorant fellow.  He was always around grumbling about not having anything to do, and never anxious to do a job when it was tendered him.  On one occasion he was around the store of Borden & Bridgers, on the corner where the express office is, while on the corner where the Arlington stands was a small building in which Everett Joyner ran a bar.  There was a pile of three or four hundred brick lying at Borden and Bridgers' corner and they told Dock they wanted those brick piled up over at Joyner's corner and that they would give him fifty cents to do the job; that they had no wheelbarrow and that he would have to tote them.  Dock pitched into his job, first going over to Joyner's and getting a drink on credit, promising to pay as soon as he got the brick across; and before getting through the job, he had managed to get two more drinks from Joyner upon the same terms.  In the course of two or three hours he had the brick all piled up on Joyner's corner and went to Borden and Bridgers for his fifty cents.  They told him they had changed their minds about letting the brick remain at the opposite corner and that they wanted him to tote them back and put them in their original position; that they would allow him the same price for bringing them back.  About this time it began to dawn upon Dock what was up; that they had no other object in moving the brick but to make him earn something.  He swore he would never carry those bricks back; that they should not make fun of him that way; and he stuck out for several days before he would do the job and then only after Joyner promised to give him a drink when he was done.

Dock was in my company during the war, dying in Wilmington in '64.  He made a good soldier.

One of my earliest acquaintances in Goldsboro was a negro.  This was about 1848.  He continued to live in Goldsboro until his death, some fifteen or twenty years ago.  This was Bill Burnett.  He was at one time worth considerable property.  He followed the barber business.  His skin was black, it is true, but I believe that Bill Burnett was as honest and upright in his dealings as any man, white or black.  I never heard in all his long life one word against his character.  He was always polite to the white people.  He was for many years the only barber in the town.  Everyone liked and respected him.  He was an old-time free negro.  He had the right of suffrage before 1835.  I don't know whether he ever exercised it or not, but after the war, when the right to vote came to him again, he never registered nor voted.  He told me not long before his death that he had no desire to vote; that it would do him no good, and that he believed the enfranchisement of the colored people of the South immediately upon their emancipation was the most unwise thing that could have been done for them.  He had a brother, Micajah Burnett, who was raised here, but some time about 1850 he became implicated some way with some white men in stealing and running off and selling slaves, and he skipped to New York and never came back.

I remember, away back in the fifties, reading an advertisement that used to appear in the Goldsboro papers.  It was by Wm. S. Bonner, who was a merchant here then.  Mr. Bonner died several years before the war, but his widow, Mrs. Patience Bonner, continued to live here until her death only a few years ago.  I am not sure I can give correctly the verse in his advertisement, but it was something like this:

Wm. S. Bonner keeps near the corner
West Centre and Chestnut Street,
Where he sells cheap his goods
Both to wear and to eat.

The booklet War-Time Reminiscences and Other Selections by J. M. Hollowell was contributed by Alton Parnell and digitized by Rita Korbach.  Printed with permission.

Other topics in this series:

About these writings and J. M. Hollowell - A Character Sketch

Politics 1852 - 1861
Early Residents, Soldiers, Railroad Workers, Early Churches
Early Trade
Webbtown, Graded school, Pates
Coming of the Yankees
War-Time Reminiscences
More War-time Reminiscences: Fort Macon, April 21, 1862
Early History of Goldsboro

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