SMITHFIELD – The 250th anniversary of the signing of the Johnston Resolves will be observed in Smithfield on Monday, August 12, at the Johnston County Museum.
Johnston County leaders met at the old courthouse by the river on August 12, 1774, to adopt resolutions asserting their rights as British subjects and to choose delegates to represent Johnston at North Carolina’s first Provincial Congress later in the same month. The Provincial Congress was supposed to take place at Johnston Courthouse but was relocated to New Bern a few days prior.
Two Samuel Smiths (Jr. and Sr.), two Needham Bryans (Jr. and Sr.), Benjamin Williams, Col. William Bryan, John Smith, Henry Rains, and William Ward were the names affixed to the Johnston Resolves.
The event will feature the North Carolina Volunteers Fife and Drum Corps from Camp Flintlock, historical characters in monologue, and refreshments. A fife and drum parade will begin at 1:00 in the Smithfield Town Commons and will end at the Johnston County Museum, where the program will begin at 1:30.
Historical “ghosts” making an appearance will include John Smith (founder of Smithfield), Benjamin Williams (future NC Governor), Mary Powell Artis (free person of color whose husband and brother both died during the Revolutionary War), and Mattie Pou (descendant of the Bryans and Smiths who will recount family stories about visits by British soldiers).
The public is invited to the event. Those who would like to follow the parade on foot are asked to gather at 200 N. Front Street at 12:45 pm.
This event is a collaborative effort of the Johnston County Committee for America250NC, the Johnston County Heritage Commission, and the Smith-Bryan Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution.
