THE HECKLEFIELD FARM
Of the old Hecklefield house on Little River in Perquimans County,
mentioned so often in the Colonial Records as the place of meeting for
the Governor's Council, the General Court, and on one notable occasion,
as the legislative hall of the Grand Assembly of Albemarle, not one
stick or stone is left standing to-day. Only a few bricks where the
great chimney once stood now remain, to suggest to the imagination the
hospitable hearth around whose blazing logs the Governor and his
colleagues, the Chief Justice and his associates, and the Speaker of the
Assembly and his fellow representatives used to gather, when the old
home was the scene of the public meetings of the Albemarle Colony.
The Hecklefield home was located on Durant's Neck on the plantation
adjoining the tract of land purchased by George Durant from Kilcokonen,
the great chief of the Yeopims. Though no one now living remembers the
ancient building, yet the residents of Durant's Neck to-day, many of
whom are the descendants of the early settlers in that region,
confidently point out the site of Captain Hecklefield's house, and with
one accord agree to its location, "about three hundred yards to the
north of the main Durant's Neck road, at the foot of the late Calvin
Humphries' Lane."
An old sycamore tree, whose great girth gives evidence of the centuries
it has seen, stands by the side of the road at the entrance to the lane.
Its mottled trunk and wide spreading branches are one of the landmarks
of the region. And beneath its sheltering boughs, Durant and Catchmaid,
Pricklove and Governor Drummond himself, who, tradition claims, was one
of the residents of Durant's Neck, may often have met to talk over the
affairs of the infant settlement. Governor Hyde and Chief Justice Gale
have doubtless often hailed with relief the glistening white branches
and broad green leaves of the old tree, whose outlines had grown
familiar through many a journey to Hecklefield's home on business of
state.
No description of the house is now extant. But that the building must
have been, for those days, large and commodious, is evident from the
fact that so often beneath its roof the leading men of the colony
gathered to transact affairs of public interest. On no less than twenty
occasions did executive, judicial and legislative officers assemble at
Captain Hecklefield's to perform their various duties. That a private
home was chosen as the scene of these gatherings arose from the fact
that for over forty years after the first recorded settlement in North
Carolina, no town had been founded within her borders. Therefore no
public building of any kind, court-house or capitol, had been erected,
and the Council, the Assembly and the Court were held at the homes of
those planters, whose houses were large enough to accommodate such
assemblies.
Local tradition tells us that the first court ever held in our State was
convened under a great beech still standing on Flatty Creek, an arm of
the broad Pasquotank, in Pasquotank County. But no records of this court
can be found, nor does tradition tell whether the judge and advocates,
plaintiffs and defendants, witnesses and jury assembled beneath the
branches of that ancient tree, still strong and sturdy, came in answer
to the call for the Palatine Court, the General Court, or the more
frequently assembled Precinct Court.
The first Albemarle Assembly in 1665, was also held out in the open, the
verdant foliage of another historic tree for roof, the soft moss for
carpet. But by 1670 the homes of the planters were being built of
sufficient size to accommodate these public meetings; and from that time
until Edenton was founded and became the seat of government, we find
these private homes being used for public gatherings.
Of Captain John Hecklefield himself, though his name appears very
frequently in the Colonial Records from 1702 until 1717, but little is
known. Of his ancestry nothing can be ascertained, nor do we know how or
when he came into Albemarle. It is not even certain that he owned the
home assigned as his, for no record of lands bought by him can be found
in the records of Perquimans County. But that he must have been a man of
high social standing and of great weight in the community is evident
from the fact that he was a deputy of the Lords Proprietors, and thus
became ex officio one of the seven Associate Justices of the General
Court. The fact also that his home was so often selected for the meeting
of the General Court, a body which in colonial days corresponded very
closely to our modern Supreme Court; that the Governor's Council of
which he, as a deputy for one of the Lords, was a member, and, that on
one occasion, the Albemarle Assembly was called to meet at his home,
fixes his standing in the community.
The first mention made of Captain Hecklefield is found in Vol. I of the
Colonial Records, where the following notice is inscribed: "At a General
Court held at ye house of Captain John Hecklefield in Little River, Oct.
27, 1702. Being present the Hon. Samuel Swann, Esq., the Hon. William
Glover, Esq., Jno. Hawkins, Esq."
From that day until 1717, we find many instances of these public
gatherings at Captain Hecklefield's home. The most prominent men in the
Albemarle Colony were often there assembled. To the sessions of the
General Court came Edward Moseley, the Justice of the Court, leader of
the Cary faction in the Glover-Cary disturbance of 1708, Chief
Commissioner for North Carolina when the boundary line between Virginia
and Carolina was established, Speaker of the Assembly for four years,
master of plantations and many slaves, and withal a very courteous
gentleman and learned scholar. Christopher Gale, first judicial officer
in Carolina to receive the commission as Chief Justice, in wig and
silken gown, upheld the majesty of the law at the sessions of the
General Court, assisted by his confreres, John Porter, Thomas Symonds,
and John Blount.
At the first Council held at Captain Hecklefield's, July 4, 1712, we
find among the dignitaries assembled on that occasion, Edward Hyde,
first Governor of North Carolina, as separate and distinct from South
Carolina, and first cousin of Queen Anne. This lordly gentleman
commanded "most awful respect," and doubtless received it from planter
and farmer. With him came Thomas Pollock, leader of the Glover faction,
owner of 55,000 acres of land, numerous flocks of sheep and herds of
cattle and of many vessels trading with the New England and West Indian
ports, a merchant prince of colonial days, and destined to become twice
acting Governor of North Carolina.
Some years later, at a meeting of the Council in April, 1714, Charles
Eden, lately appointed by the Proprietors to succeed Hyde, who had died
of yellow fever during the trouble with the Tuscaroras, took the oath of
office at Captain Hecklefield's home, and became Governor of North
Carolina. Among the members of the Council present on this occasion were
Colonel Thomas Byrd, Nathan Chevin, and William Reed, all prominent men
in Pasquotank, and the two former, leading churchmen of that county, and
active members of the vestry of St. John's Parish. Tobias Knight was
also there, a wealthy resident of Bath then, though he too had formerly
lived in Pasquotank. Knight was later to win notoriety as a friend and
colleague of Teach, the pirate. And Governor Eden himself was later
accused of collusion with Blackbeard, though no sufficient proof could
be found to bring him to trial.
By what means of locomotion these high dignitaries of the colony found
their way to Durant's Neck, we can only conjecture. Possibly a coach
and four may have borne Governor Eden and Governor Hyde the long journey
from Chowan and Bath to Hecklefield's door. Possibly Judge and advocate,
members of the Assembly and councilors, preferred to make the trip on
horseback, breaking the journey by frequent stops at the homes of the
planters in the districts through which they traveled, meeting along the
road friends and acquaintances bound on the same errand to the same
destination. And as the cavalcade increased in numbers as it drew nearer
the end of the journey, doubtless the hilarity of the travelers
increased; and by the time the old sycamore was sighted, it was a gay,
though weary, procession that turned into the lane and passed beneath
its branches, down to where the old house stood near the banks of the
river.
More probably, however, the members of Council, Court or Assembly, met
at some wharf in their various precincts, and embarking on the swift
sloops of the great planter, made the trip to Durant's Neck by water.
Down the Pamlico, Chowan, Perquimans and Pasquotank the white-sailed
vessels bore their passengers into Albemarle Sound and a short distance
up Little River; then disembarking at the Hecklefield Landing, where the
hospitable host of the occasion was doubtless waiting to receive the
travelers, they made their way with many a friendly interchange of
gossip and jest to the great house, standing back from the river beneath
the arching branches of the sheltering sycamores.
One of the most interesting and important of all the public gatherings
convened at the Hecklefield home was the meeting of the Assembly on
October 11, 1708, to decide which of the two claimants of the office of
President of the Council, or Deputy Governor of North Carolina, should
have just right to that office. The two rival claimants were Thomas
Cary, of the precinct of Pamlico, and William Glover, of Pasquotank. To
understand the situation which necessitated the calling of a special
session of the Assembly to settle the dispute between the two men, it
may be well to review the events leading up to this meeting.
In 1704, when Queen Anne came to the throne of England, Parliament
passed an act requiring all public officers to take an oath of
allegiance to the new sovereign. The Quakers in Carolina, who in the
early days of the colony were more numerous than any other religious
body in Albemarle, had hitherto been exempt from taking an oath when
they qualified for office. Holding religiously by the New Testament
mandate, "Swear not at all," they claimed, and were allowed the
privilege, of making a declaration of like tenor as the oath,
substituting for the words, "I swear" the expression, to them equally
binding, "I affirm."
But when Governor Henderson Walker died, Sir Nathaniel Johnson, then
Governor of North and South Carolina, sent Major Robert Daniel from
South Carolina to take Walker's place as Deputy Governor of the Northern
Colony.
Daniel was an ardent member of the Church of England, and was strongly
desirous of establishing this church in Carolina by law. But he knew
that so long as the Quakers were members of the Assembly, and held high
office in Albemarle, this law could never be passed. Therefore he
determined to demand a strict oath of office from all who were elected
to fill public positions. This determination was carried out. The
Quakers were driven from the Assembly, which body, subservient to the
new Governor, passed the law establishing the Church of England in
Albemarle.
But the Quakers did not submit tamely to this deprivation of their
ancient rights and privileges. Many of the most influential men in the
colony, especially in Pasquotank and Perquimans, were Friends; and they
determined to appeal to the Proprietors to uphold them in their claim to
a share in the government. The Dissenters in the colony joined with them
in their plea, and the result was that Governor Daniel was removed from
office, and Governor Johnson ordered by the Lords to appoint another
deputy for the Northern Colony. Thomas Cary, of South Carolina, received
the appointment and came into Albemarle to take up the reins of
government. But lo, and behold! no sooner was he installed in office
than he, too, like Daniel, made it known that he would allow no one to
hold office who refused to be sworn in, in the manner prescribed by
Parliament.
Quakers and Dissenters again banded together, this time to have Cary
deposed; and John Porter hastened to England to state their grievances
to the Lords. Porter also petitioned in behalf of the Quakers and their
supporters, that the law requiring the oaths should be set aside; and
also that the colony should be allowed to choose its own Governor from
its own Council.
The Lords again listened favorably to the petitioners, and Porter
returned to Carolina, bringing with him a written agreement to the
petition. Cary, during Porter's absence, had left the colony, and
William Glover, of Pasquotank, was administering the government. On
Porter's return, Glover was allowed to retain the office; but later, to
the surprise and disappointment of Friend and Dissenter, he, too,
decided to refuse to admit to office any who refused to take the hated
oaths.
Cary returned at this juncture and demanded to be reinstated as Deputy
Governor; and Porter and other former supporters of Glover now went to
his side. A new Council was chosen, and Cary made its president, on
condition, as we infer, that he carry out the will of the Proprietors as
expressed in the commission given to Porter.
But Glover was by no means disposed to surrender his office tamely to
Cary, and still claimed the authority with which he had been invested.
Many prominent citizens supported him in his claim, Thomas Pollock, one
of the most influential of the planters, being his warmest adherent. So
now there were two governments in the colony, each claiming to be the
only right and lawful one. Disputes over the matter grew so numerous and
violent that finally the two factions agreed to leave the decision of
the matter to a new Assembly which was elected at this juncture. And
this was the Assembly that convened at Captain Hecklefield's in 1708.
Edward Moseley was elected Speaker; the rival claims of the two
governors duly and hotly debated; and the result was, that Cary's
friends being in the majority, that worthy was declared to be the true
and lawful ruler of the colony. Glover, Pollock and Christopher Gale,
disgusted with the turn affairs had taken, left Carolina and went to
Virginia, where they remained for two years, at the end of which time
Edward Hyde, the Queen's first cousin, was appointed Governor of North
Carolina, and these malcontents returned to their homes in Albemarle.
And how did Madam Hecklefield manage to provide for the numerous guests
who so often met around her fireside? The housewife to-day would rebel
at such frequent invasions of the privacy of her home; and the high
price of living would indeed prohibit such wholesale entertainment of
the public; but in those good old days living was easy. The waters of
Little River and Albemarle Sound teemed with fish; the woods were full
of deer and other wild game; the fields were musical with the clear call
of the quail; slaves were ready to do the bidding of the lady of the
manor; wood was plentiful for the big fire-places, and candles easily
moulded for the lighting of the rooms. No one in those days was used to
the modern luxury of a private room and bath; and the guests doubtless
shared in twos and threes and fours the rooms placed at their disposal.
So, Madam Hecklefield, with a mind at ease from domestic cares, was able
to greet her guests with unruffled brow.
The neighboring planters doubtless came to the rescue, and helped to
provide bed and board for the gentry whom Captain Hecklefield could not
accommodate; and the lesser fry found the humbler settlers on the "Neck"
no less hospitable in opening their doors to them, though very probably
good coin of the realm often settled the debt between guest and host.
After the meeting of the Assembly of 1708, various other public
gatherings took place at the Hecklefield home, until November 22, 1717.
On this occasion the colony was formally notified of the death of Queen
Anne, and George I was proclaimed the "Liege Lord of Carolina."
At this meeting Governor Charles Eden was present, and serving with him
were the Honorable Thomas Byrd, and Nathaniel Chevin, of Pasquotank, and
Christopher Gale and Francis Foster, all deputies of the Proprietors.
This being the first recorded occasion in North Carolina of a
proclamation announcing the death of one sovereign and ascension to the
throne of another, the quaint phraseology of the original document may
be of more interest than a modern version of its contents:
"Whereas we have received Certain Information from Virginia of the
death of our late Sovereign Lady, Queen Anne, of Blessed Memory by
whose death the Imperial Crownes of Greate Brittaine ffrance and
Ireland are Solely and Rightfully Come to the High and Mighty Prince
George Elector of Brunswick Luenburg--
"Wee therefore doe by this our proclamation with one full voice and
Consent of Heart and Tongue Publish and proclaim that the High and
Mighty Prince George Elector of Brunswick Luenburg is now by the
death of our late Sovereigne of happy memory become our Lawful and
rightful Leighe Lord George by the grace of God King of Greate
Brittaine ffrance and Ireland, Defender of the Faith etc., To whom
wee doe all hearty and humble affection. Beseeching Obedience with
long and happy Years to raigne over us. Given etc., the 16th Day of
November, 1714."
This proclamation having been duly read, the Governor and his Council
proceeded to subscribe to the oath of allegiance to the new sovereign,
as did Tobias Knight, collector of customs, from Currituck, and other
public officers present.
This meeting, with one exception, a Council held in 1717, is the last
recorded as occurring at the Hecklefield home. Edenton, founded in 1715,
became the seat of government for a number of years, and meetings
affecting the affairs of the colony were for the most part held there in
the court-house built soon after.
Captain John Hecklefield's house on Little River now disappears from
history; but though no longer the scene of the public activities of
Albemarle, it doubtless kept up for many years its reputation as the
center of all that was best in the social life of the colony.