William Lenoir (general)
Encyclopedia
- For other people of the same name, see William LenoirWilliam LenoirWilliam Lenoir may refer to:*William Lenoir , American Revolutionary War officer and later a general in the North Carolina militia*William Ballard Lenoir , his son, member of Tennessee state house of representatives, 1815–1817...
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William Lenoir (May 8, 1751 – May 6, 1839) was an American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
officer and prominent statesman in late 18th-century and early 19th-century North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
. Both the City of Lenoir, North Carolina
Lenoir, North Carolina
Lenoir is a city in Caldwell County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 18,228 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Caldwell County. Lenoir is located in the Blue Ridge foothills. The city also contains the Brushy Mountains, a spur of the Blue Ridge Mountains...
and Lenoir County, North Carolina
Lenoir County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of 2005, there were 57,961 people, 23,862 households, and 16,178 families residing in the county. The population density was 149.2 people per square mile . There were 27,940 housing units at an average density of 68 per square mile...
are named for him. Additionally, Lenoir City, Tennessee
Lenoir City, Tennessee
Lenoir City is a city in Loudon County, Tennessee, United States. Its population was 8,642 at the 2010 census. It is included in the Knoxville Metropolitan Area....
is jointly named for him and for his son, William Ballard Lenoir
William Ballard Lenoir
Major William Ballard Lenoir was the eldest son of General William Lenoir and his wife, Ann Ballard. Born in North Carolina, the younger Lenoir moved in 1810 with his wife, Elizabeth Avery Lenoir , to a tract of land in Tennessee, near modern-day Lenoir City, Tennessee, which originally had been...
. The USS Lenoir (AKA-74)
USS Lenoir (AKA-74)
USS Lenoir was a named after Lenoir County, North Carolina and the distant City of Lenoir, North Carolina, which are both named for the patriot William Lenoir. Like all AKAs, Lenoir was designed to carry military cargo and landing craft, and to use the latter to land weapons, supplies, and...
was also (indirectly) named for him.
Family and early years
The Lenoir name is of French origin, literally translating to "the black," which was a term that was similar to how we now use "dark" to speak of someone with dark hair and complexion. Lenoirs came to the English colonies in America from BrittanyBrittany
Brittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. Brittany has also been referred to as Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
as a result of 17th century religious troubles. Brittany was just across the English Channel from Southern England. Because it had such a long coastline, it is no surprise how many mariners came from the area. The Lenoir coat-of-arms, "Le Noir de Nantes" is named for Nantes
Nantes
Nantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the 6th largest in France, while its metropolitan area ranks 8th with over 800,000 inhabitants....
, the largest city of Brittany and an important seaport.
William Lenoir was born the youngest of ten in a French Huguenot
Huguenot
The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...
family in Brunswick County, Virginia
Brunswick County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 18,419 people, 6,277 households, and 4,312 families residing in the county. The population density was 32 people per square mile . There were 7,541 housing units at an average density of 13 per square mile...
. His mother was Mourning Crawley, the daughter of a well-to-do Virginia planter. Her grandfather was Robert Crawley who was an early vestryman of the most noted surviving colonial church, Bruton Parish in Williamsburg. Lenoir's father was Thomas Lenoir, who, like his own father, was a mariner in early life before his marriage when he became a tobacco planter for the remainder of his life. The family moved to eastern North Carolina when William was nine years old, which was where his father died in 1765. Of the four daughters, Ann, Betty, Leah, and Mary; Leah lived the longest, marrying John Norwood and dying in North Carolina at age 94. One of the six sons of Thomas and Mourning died unmarried, Robert remained in Virginia, Thomas Jr., Isaac and John settled in South Carolina, and William remained in North Carolina, where he went on to have a distinguished public career and found the Fort Defiance branch of the family.
Lenoir had no formal education, but could read and write Latin, Greek, and French. His first occupation was that of teacher and schoolmaster, before he became a surveyor. While surveying in western North Carolina, Lenoir decided to permanently settle there. He brought with him his wife, Ann Ballard, and a baby daughter, when he arrived in March 1775. The Lenoirs had nine children in all. One, Martha or "Patsy", married Israel Pickens
Israel Pickens
Israel Pickens was an American politician and lawyer, third Governor of the U.S. state of Alabama , member of the North Carolina Senate , and North Carolina Congressman in the United States House of Representatives .Born in Concord, North Carolina, Pickens graduated from Jefferson College Israel...
.
Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
, in particular taking part in the Battle of Kings Mountain
Battle of Kings Mountain
The Battle of Kings Mountain was a decisive battle between the Patriot and Loyalist militias in the Southern campaign of the American Revolutionary War...
as a Captain in the militia under Benjamin Cleveland
Benjamin Cleveland
Benjamin Cleveland was an American pioneer and soldier in North Carolina. He is best remembered for his service as a colonel in the North Carolina militia during the Revolutionary War, and in particular for his role in the American victory at the Battle of Kings Mountain in 1780.-Early...
. He received minor wounds at that battle. Otherwise, his military service consisted mostly of minor skirmishes with Loyalists and Cherokee
Cherokee
The Cherokee are a Native American people historically settled in the Southeastern United States . Linguistically, they are part of the Iroquoian language family...
Indians. He last saw action at Pyle's massacre
Pyle's massacre
Pyle's Massacre, also known as Pyle's Hacking Match or the Battle of Haw River, was fought during the American Revolutionary War in Orange County, North Carolina , on February 24, 1781, between Patriot and Loyalist North Carolina militia troops...
, at which his horse was said to be the only American Patriot casualty. Lenoir subsequently gathered troops together to fight at the Battle of Guilford Court House
Battle of Guilford Court House
The Battle of Guilford Court House was a battle fought on March 15, 1781 in Greensboro, the county seat of Guilford County, North Carolina, during the American Revolutionary War...
, but arrived too late.
After the war, William and his wife, Ann, built their home, called Fort Defiance. Only years after the war did Lenoir achieve the rank of Major General from service in the state militia. Shortly after achieving that rank, he desired to fight in the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
, but was deemed too old to do so. The disappointment of that led Lenoir to resign from the militia. Fort Defiance continues today, restored as a tourist and historical attraction in modern-day Caldwell County, North Carolina
Caldwell County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 77,415 people, 30,768 households, and 22,399 families residing in the county. The population density was 164 people per square mile . There were 33,430 housing units at an average density of 71 per square mile...
.
Politics and public service
Lenoir, an anti-federalist, served for many years as a justice of the peace and Clerk of Court for Wilkes County, North CarolinaWilkes County, North Carolina
Wilkes County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The 2000 U.S. Census listed the county's population at 65,632; the 2010 U.S. Census listed the population at 69,340...
.
He was a founding member (and briefly, the first president) of the Board of Trustees of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States...
, where Lenoir Hall is also named for him.
From 1781 to 1795, Lenoir was also a member of the state Legislature
North Carolina General Assembly
The North Carolina General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of North Carolina. The General Assembly drafts and legislates the state laws of North Carolina, also known as the General Statutes...
representing Wilkes County and served as Speaker of the North Carolina Senate from 1790 to 1795. He was a member of both the state convention of 1788, which rejected the United States Constitution
United States Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It is the framework for the organization of the United States government and for the relationship of the federal government with the states, citizens, and all people within the United States.The first three...
, and the convention of 1789, which ratified it. Lenoir was suspicious of the new constitution and argued that it needed an amendment guaranteeing religious freedom (which it later received).
General Lenoir died on May 6, 1839, two days shy of his eighty-eighth birthday. His epitaph, written by Governor David Swain, read in part, "A genuine Whig whose highest eulogy is the record of his deeds."