GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 2013

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HOUSE RESOLUTION DRHR70197-LG-59A  (02/26)

Sponsors:	Representatives Earle, W. Brawley, Cotham, and Jeter (Primary Sponsors).
Referred to:

A house RESOLUTION honoring the founders of mecklenburg county while observing the county's two hundred FIFTIETH anniversary.

Whereas, in December 1762, Mecklenburg County was formed from a western section of Anson County and named in honor of King George III's wife, Charlotte Sophia of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Germany; and

Whereas, before a courthouse was built at Trade and Tryon streets, court in Mecklenburg County was first conducted on February 26, 1763, at the cabin of Thomas Spratt, which was located near what is now Caswell and Randolph roads; and

Whereas, in 1767, Lord Augustus Selwyn agreed to sell 360 acres of land, known today as "Uptown Charlotte," to Abraham Alexander, Thomas Polk, and John Frohock, for the price of 90 British pounds; and

Whereas, in 1768, Abraham Alexander and Thomas Polk were put in charge of the establishing "Charlotte Town" as the Mecklenburg County seat, an emerging center of political power in Colonial America and in the early years of the United States; and

Whereas, the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence, the first declaration of independence made in the Thirteen Colonies during the American Revolution, was adopted on May 20, 1775, in Mecklenburg County, as honored on the Great Seal and Flag of the State of North Carolina; and

Whereas, on May 31, 1775, the 27 signers of the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence met again to draft the Mecklenburg Resolves, which were new laws to govern the now independent citizens of Mecklenburg County; the signers included patriots representing the families of Alexander, Brevard, Harris, and Polk, among others; and

Whereas, the North Carolina State Constitution, approved in 1868, gave the citizens of a county the authority to elect the officials who govern them, called a Board of County Commissioners; and

Whereas, the Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners has honored the rich history of a county by designating February 26, 2013, as the 250th anniversary of the founding of Mecklenburg County; and

Whereas, the Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners celebrates, honors, and recognizes this anniversary by designating calendar year 2013 as the year of the Mecklenburg County Sestercentennial Celebration; Now, therefore,

Be it resolved by the House of Representatives:

SECTION 1.  The House of Representatives honors the founders of Mecklenburg County and joins the residents of Mecklenburg County in celebrating the County's Sestercentennial.

SECTION 2.  The Principal Clerk shall transmit a certified copy of this resolution to the Chair of the Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners.

SECTION 3.  This resolution is effective upon adoption.