The Torrance house and store still stand today as reminders of this family's wealth and prominence. Hugh Torrance married a widow with eight children, and James Torrance (1784-1847) was the only child of that union. The family came to Mecklenburg County from Rowan County in 1788. Soon young James was sent to live with an uncle.
Though his family wanted him to attend the University of North Carolina, William Myers (1818-1901), born in Anson County, chose instead to go Texas and join the army in 1837.
Born in Salisbury, young James Walker Osborne (1811-1869) was sent when his mother died to live with Mecklenburg relatives Robert and Margaret Davidson. He graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1830 before his 19th birthday. He studied law and from 1836-38 served as Mecklenburg County Solicitor.
Zebulon Vance (1830-1895) was a lawyer, state legislator (1854), congressman (1858), U.S. senator (1870, 1878, 1885, 1891) and N.C. governor (1862,1864, 1876). He began his law studies in Tennessee, but came to the University of North Carolina in 1851. It was during this time that his true talent in politics emerged.
Benjamin Dawson Heath was the founding president of Charlotte National Bank. The bank was chartered in 1897. The Charlotte National Bank later merged with Wachovia Bank and Trust Company of Winston-Salem. B.D. Heath was active in local civic and business affairs. In addition to his association with the bank, Heath was a major real estate developer and land owner.
William Allison Owens (ca 1834 - July 19, 1864), the first mayor of Charlotte, was elected in 1861; he was re-elected in 1863. In 1864, at the age of 28, Owens resigned his office to serve in the Civil War. He served in the Bethel Regiment and the 11 and 13th Regiments N.C. troops. He was appointed colonel of his regiment on May 6, 1863. He was killed at Snicker's Ferry, Virginia, July 18, 1864.
Documentation
(1) North Carolina Troops, v.13, p.64., edited by Weymouth Jordan.
A 1967 graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Melvin L. (Mel) Watt (1945-) earned the highest academic average in his class at UNC's Business School. He earned his law degree from Yale University in 1970, and returned to his hometown of Charlotte to practice law.
This educator, author and soldier was part of a prominent South Carolina family that owned land, sawmills, and iron works near in the York area. Daniel Harvey Hill (c.1821-1899) graduated from the U. S. Military Academy at West Point in 1838. He fought in the Mexican War (1846-48). During the Civil War he led troops in battles in Tennessee, northern Virginia, along the North Carolina coast and at the infamous Battle of Antietam, Maryland.
Benjamin Patton was one of the original signers of the Meckenburg Declaration of Independence. Very little is known about Benjamin Patton. He is believed to have moved here from Pennsylvania with other early settlers. Although he first purchased land on 1/24/1762 on Buffalo Creek in Anson County from Governor Arthur Dobbs' royal grant, he later was a citizen of Cabarrus County, Mecklenburg and Cabarrus Counties not having been formed yet.
Jane Smedberg Wilkes (1827-1913) is remembered as the Godmother of Charlotte Hospitals. A native of New York City. Jane Smedberg married Navy Captain John Wilkes in 1854. Captain Wilkes ran Mecklenburg Iron Works. Captain and Mrs. Renwick had nine children, five of whom died at an early age.