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James Jack

First Name: 
James
Last Name: 
Jack
Date of Birth: 
1731
Birthplace: 
Pennsylvania
Date of Death: 
1822
Place of Death: 
Georgia

James Jack (1731-1822) moved with his parents from Pennsylvania to North Carolina in the 1760s, fleeing the dangers of the French and Indian war. His father, Patrick Jack, ran a tavern on West Trade Street.

James aligned himself with the cause of American independence and in 1775 rode from Charlotte, NC, to Philadelphia, PA, carrying the bold Mecklenburg Resolves and, partisans insist, a copy of the "Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence." His mission was to deliver them to the North Carolina delegation to the Second Continental Congress as a spur to their advocacy for the colonies' separation from Great Britain.

In 1819, Jack testified about his role in Mecklenburg's resistance to the Crown. His words were published in The Declaration of Independence by the Citizens of Mecklenburg County . . . with Accompanying Documents  (See page 16.) A statue commemorating his ride was unveiled in Charlotte in 2010. 

Military Details

Military Rank: 
Captain
Military Details: 
Captain in the Mecklenburg Militia, served during the Revolutionary War.
Tags: 
Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence
Mecklenburg People
Source: 

Norris Preyer. "Jack, James" in Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, William S. Powell, ed. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 1988. Vol.3, p.262

The Declaration of Independence by the Citizens of Mecklenburg County on the Twentieth Day of May, 1775,  with Accompanying Documents and the Proceedings of the Cumberland Association. Raleigh, NC: Published by the Governor, 1831. p.16

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