Ratifying the Constitution in North Carolina

BY BENJAMIN SANDERFORD

The atmosphere was tense in the meeting room at Hillsborough on July 21, 1788, as William Bridgers, Joseph Boon, William Farmer, John Bryan and Everet Pearce took their seats. They had arrived from Johnston County to meet with delegates from all over North Carolina to discuss the proposed ratification of a new constitution for the United States signed in Philadelphia the year before.

The supporters of ratification, the Federalists, led by James Iredell, Sr., William R. Davie and Richard Caswell, among others, argued that the Articles of Confederation, the original body of national law, were too weak. They claimed that the U.S. Constitution was needed for effective government.

The representatives from Johnston County listened skeptically. They were inclined to agree with Willie Jones, Samuel Spencer, Timothy Bloodworth and other Anti-Federalists who voiced concern that a stronger government would threaten individual liberty.

Despite this fundamental disagreement, the delegates came as colleagues, not enemies. The only sparring was verbal, not physical, as the two sides competed to make their cases most convincing. As the convention drew to a close, it was clear there was an impasse.

Therefore, on Aug. 4 the delegates voted 184 to 83 to delay the final decision on ratification. They also sent to other states proposed constitutional amendments explicitly guaranteeing individual rights. In the meantime, North Carolina would be outside the United States. As such, the state government sent Hugh Williamson as ambassador.

Given that the Federalist Williamson had participated in the 1787 Constitutional Convention, it seems that North Carolina leaders wanted cordial relations with the U.S. government. He was certainly successful in his negotiations.

North Carolina ships were allowed to enter U.S. ports free of charge in exchange for the state government handing over profits from tariff revenue to federal authorities. This and other arrangements would only last until North Carolinians had decided whether they wanted the Constitution or not. The debate continued, but the Anti-Federalist position gradually eroded.

The creation of the Bill of Rights on Sept. 25, 1789, by the 1st U.S. Congress directly countered claims that the Constitution would not adequately safeguard an individual’s freedom of expression and right to fair judicial treatment. The bill, the first 10 amendments to the Constitution, was not yet ratified, but there was little doubt it would be.

Almost as important was the election back in November 1788 of George Washington as president. The former commander-in-chief of the Continental Army was overwhelmingly popular in North Carolina and elsewhere. His presence reassured many skeptics.

Finally, there was the practical matter that nearly every other state had ratified the Constitution, including Virginia and South Carolina. An independent North Carolina would inevitably become isolated, a dangerous situation should the British Empire return.

Thus, when the time came to elect delegates for the second ratification convention, most voters chose Federalists to represent them. Of the AntiFederalist Johnstonians who attended the Hillsborough Convention, only Bridgers was sent to Fayetteville in November 1789. He was joined by Hardy Bryan, William Hackney, Matthias Handy and Samuel Smith Jr., whose relatives had founded Smithfield.

The outcome of the Fayetteville Convention was never in doubt. In fact, Jones, the Anti-Federalist figurehead, refused to attend. Only three Johnston County delegates were present to witness the Federalist victory. Hackney had asked to be excused, and Bridgers was also absent. Curiously, he had not been present during the final vote at Hillsborough either.

Nevertheless, Smith, Handy and Hardy Bryan all voted with the Federalists 194 to 77 on Nov. 21 to join the United States of America. The fate of Johnston County and all of North Carolina was now bound to the constitutional experiment.

Benjamin Sanderford, a resident of Clayton, studied social science at UNC Greensboro. He can be reached at benwsanderford@gmail.com