Wilmington’s role in the Revolutionary War is illustrated by markers and monuments
Today, the Fourth of July in Wilmington is a holiday with fireworks, barbecues and festivities to celebrate the birth of the country we call home.
In the 1770s and early 1780s, however, the situation was somewhat different, largely because Wilmington, like the rest of the young country, was busy fighting the War of Independence.
Looking around downtown, it’s not hard to find evidence of Wilmington’s role in the Revolution.
The port city’s most famous landmark is probably the Burgwin-Wright House and Gardens. Dating from 1770, it was formerly known as the “Cornwallis House” because British General Charles Cornwallis is said to have been received there during the war when British troops occupied Wilmington.
National Historic Marking Day: These are some of the oldest markers in the Wilmington area
It was once believed to be the general’s headquarters, but recent research shows that the general may have made people believe he spent more time in the house than was actually the case for security reasons.
As Burgwin-Wright House deputy director Hunter Ingram told StarNews in 2023, “The myth that Cornwallis stayed here prevented the house from being demolished.”
Since 1907, an obelisk-like monument has stood at the corner of Fourth and Market Streets, dedicated to Wilmington Revolutionary War hero Cornelius Harnett, who is buried across the street in St. James Cemetery.
A sign across Market Street from the cemetery notes Harnett’s heroic actions, such as when in 1765 he and a group called The Sons of Liberty forced newly appointed British stamp collector William Houston to walk to the nearby “old courthouse,” then near Front and Market Streets, and resign. It was one of the earliest, if not the earliest, protest against the Stamp Act in the colonies.
The marker also marks Harnett’s time as chairman of the New Hanover Committee on Safety, which implemented the policies of the Continental Congress, of which Harnett was also a member.
Around the corner on North Third Street is a marker marking the site of the former home of William Hooper, one of the three North Carolina signers of the Declaration of Independence.
Both Harnett and Hooper were once pure celebrations, but in recent years some historians have offered a more nuanced view of their legacies. As Margaret A. Mulrooney notes in her 2018 book Race, Place and Memory: Deep Currents in Wilmington, North Carolina, Harnett and Hooper were “particularly notable for their efforts to maintain slavery.”
One of the more secluded historical markers that reference Wilmington’s role in the Revolutionary War is located on South Second Street between Nun and Ann Streets. The large stone marker is easy to miss, but tells a fascinating story.
“Here a British garrison of soldiers was stationed … under Major James H. Craig. … Wilmington surrendered to him on January 29, 1781.”
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