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Distillers & Merchants
In North Carolina we visited the Registry of Deeds in New Bern. I came away with a small stack of photocopied deeds for land purchased by Bartholomew Howard, his brother John, and their stepfather Parmenas Horton. There were some unchanged (or only slightly changed) landmarks such the mouths of creeks along the Neuse River: Clubfoot,…
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Beaufort’s Old Burying Ground
Yesterday we visited the historic burying ground in Beaufort. There are no Howards here – not that I could tell with all the weather worn stones. There are many other stories of a different way of life, enough that this will be one the longest posts I’ve written. Some of the stories are told in…
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Waterways for Shipping
Yesterday’s time in the New Bern Registry of Deeds office informed us that Horton Howard and his brother inherited land along the Neuse River, with parcels also bounded by the Cahooque Creek, Clubfoot’s Creek and Mitchell Creek. They may have owned all of the land between the Cahooque and Clubfoot’s Creeks, which would have included…
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Pirates, Distillers, & Owners of Land
Yesterday we travelled the entire length of the Outer Banks. We ferried to Ocracoke, and had enough time to walk around and discover Howard Road. Many houses had historic plaques naming the Howards who had formerly lived here. We’ve heard and read that Howards played an important part in early maritime security on Ocracoke, though…
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18th Century NC Plantation Life
North Carolina plantations, at least in the mid to late 1700’s did not approach the grandeur of Tara. They had some fine things – Chinese porcelain, Delft china, Pewter, silver and finely crafted furniture. They and their slaves also had to work hard to create the necessities of life, and the tools at hand did…