The North Carolina General Assembly of 1860–1861 met in Raleigh, North Carolina in regular session from November 19, 1860, to February 25, 1861. They met in extra sessions from May 1, 1861, to May 13, 1861, and from August 15, 1861, to September 23, 1861. This General Assembly decided that each county should vote for special delegates who would decide whether North Carolina should secede from the Union. On May 20, 1861, those special delegates convened in Raleigh and voted unanimously that the state would no longer be a part of the United States of America.

Councilors of State The following persons were elected as Councilors of State on December 20, 1860: John W. Cuningham Person W. L. Hilliard Council Wooten, Lenoir County W. A. Ferguson John J. Long David Murphy Jesse F. Graves, Surry County

Legislation The general assembly passed numerous laws in 1860–1861, including the creation of Clay County from Cherokee County; creation of Mitchell County from Burke, Caldwell, McDowell, Watauga, and Yancey Counties; and the creation of Transylvania County from Henderson and Jackson Counties.

The North Carolina Constitution was amended on May 20, 1861, to "dissolve the union between the State of North Carolina and the other states united with her under the compact of government entitled the Constitution of the United States of America."

Members House of Commons

There were, per the North Carolina Constitution amended in 1825, 120 representatives in the House of Commons. Some counties had more representatives based on the county population. William T. Dortch was elected Speaker of the House of Commons. He served until he left to become the North Carolina Senator for the Congress of the Confederate States of America from 1862 to 1865. Nathan Neely Fleming was elected as Speaker after he departed. Edward Cantwell served as clerk. Eighty-two of the representatives were Southern Democrats.

CountyNo of Members in CountyMember's Name (party in 1860)Alamance2Giles Mebane (Whig)Alamance2John TapscottAlexander1John M. CarsonAnson2Edward R. LilesAnson2Leonidas LaFayette Polk (Whig)Ashe1Thomas N. CrumplerResigned his seat to join the Conferate ArmyAshe1James M. GentryBeaufort2William T. MarshBeaufort2Richard Spaight Donnell (Whig)Bertie2Peyton T. HenryBertie2John R. FergusonBladen1Charles T. DavisBrunswick1Thomas D. MearesBuncombe1Augustus Summerfield Merrimon (Southern Democrat)Burke1John H. PearsonCabarrus1William S. HarrisCaldwell1William W. DicksonCamden1Dennis D. FerebeeCarteret1David W. WhitehurstCaswell2John Kerr (Whig)Resigned his seatCaswell2Elijah K. WithersCaswell2Samuel P. HillCatawba1Jonas ClineChatham3Robert N. GreenChatham3William P. TaylorChatham3Turner BynumCherokee1George W. HayesChowan1Richard H. SmallCleveland2Abraham G. WatersCleveland2John R. LoganColumbus 1Nathan L. WilliamsonCraven2Frederick E. AlfredCraven2Charles C. ClarkCumberland3James S. HarringtonCumberland3John C. WilliamsCumberland3Clement G. WrightCurrituck1Burwell M. BaxterDavidson2Edmund B. ClarkDavidson2Lewis HanesDavie1Henry B. HowardDuplin2John D. StanfordDuplin2James G. BranchEdgecombe2Robert R. BridgesEdgecombe2James S. WoodardForsyth2Philip BarrowForsyth2John F. PoindexterFranklin1William F. GreenGaston1James H. WhiteGates1John BootheGranville3James M. BullockGranville3Samuel H. CannadyGranville3William H.P. JenkinsGreene1Arthur D. SpeightGuilford3Julius L. GorrellGuilford3Cyrus P. MendenhallGuilford3Charles E. ShoberHalifax2Archibald H. DavisHalifax2William B. PopeHaywood1Samuel L. LoveHenderson1Joseph P. JordanHertford1Jesse Johnson Yeates (Southern Democrat)Hyde1Tillman FarrowIredell2Asa B.F. GaitherIredell2Absalom Knox SimontonJackson1James R. LoveJackson1Allen FisherJohnston2James MitchinerJohnston2William H. WatsonJones1William P. WardLenoir1John C. WootenLincoln1John F. HokeResigned his seat after being appointed Adjutant General, joined the Confederate Army Lincoln1V. A. McBeeMacon1David W. SilerMacon1Henry G. WoodfinMadison1John A. FaggMartin1Joshua L. EwellMcDowell1Charles H. BurginMecklenburg2Stephen W. DavisMecklenburg2John McK. PottsMontgomery1Edmund G.L. BarringerMoore1Alexander KellyNash1Henry G. WilliamsNew Hanover2Samuel J. PersonNew Hanover2Daniel ShawNorthampton2Matthew Whitaker RansomNorthampton2William W. PeeblesOnslow1James H. FoyOrange2Hugh B. GuthrieOrange2William N. PattersonPasquotank1John T. WilliamsPerquimans1Nathan NewbyPerson1John D. WilkersonPitt2Burton J. AlbrittonPitt2Churchill PerkinsRandolph 2Isaac H. FoustRandolph 2Thomas L. WinslowRichmond1John G. BlueRobeson2Alexander McMillanRobeson2Eli WishartRockingham2Rawley GallowayRockingham2Thomas S. SladeRowan2Newberry F. HallRowan2Nathan Neely FlemingRutherford2Champion T.N. DavisRutherford2Berryman H. PagetSampson2George W. AutreySampson2Nehemiah C. FaisonStanly1Lafayette GreenStokes1Horatio P. KallumSurry1Harrison M. WaughTyrrell1Charles McCleeseUnion1Cyrus Q. LemmondWake3Henry MordecaiWake3Sion H. RogersWake3John P. H. RussWarren 2Joseph B. BatchelorWarren 2William H. ClarkWashington1Charles LathamWatauga1George N. FolkResigned his seat, joined the Confederate ArmyWatauga1Thomas FarthingWayne2William Theophilus Dortch (Speaker, Southern Democrat)Wayne2Marcus K. CrawfordWilkes2Augustus H. MartinWilkes2Phineas T. HortonYadkin1Andrew C. CowlesYancey1Jacob Weaver Bowman

Senate

Henry Toole Clark was elected Speaker or President of the Senate. As such, he was first in line of succession to the Governor since there was no Lieutenant Governor until 1868. When Governor John Willis Ellis died of tuberculosis on July 7, 1861, Senator Clark took over as Governor and remained in that position until September 8, 1862. He was thrust into this leadership position just as the U.S. Civil War started. Thirty-two of the Senators were Southern Democrats.

The clerk of the Senate was J.W. Alspaugh. Senator William Holland Thomas was an adopted chief of the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Nation and represented their interests as he served in the Senate from 1849 to 1861.

Senators William Waightstill Avery and John Motley Morehead served as delegates from North Carolina to the Provisional Congress of the Confederate States of America in the third through fifth sessions in 1861 and 1862.

The following table lists the Senators from the 50 Districts in North Carolina.

DistrictCounties representedSenator (party)Home County1Pasquotank & PerquimansJames M. WhedbeePerquimans2Camden & CurrituckBenjamin T. SimmonsCurrituck3Chowan & GatesMills H. EureGates4Hyde & TyrrellJones SpencerTyrrell5NorthamptonJoseph M.S. RogersNorthampton6HertfordJoseph B. SlaughterHertford7BertieDavid Outlaw (Whig)Bertie8Martin & WashingtonJesse R. StubbsMartin9HalifaxMatthew Cary WhitakerHalifax10EdgecombeHenry Toole Clark (Southern Democrat, Speaker)Edgecombe11PittElias J. BlountPitt12BeaufortFrederick GristBeaufort13CravenNathan H. StreetCraven14Carteret & JonesM.F. ArendellCarteret15Greene & LenoirJames P. SpeightGreene16New HanoverEli W. HallNew Hanover17DuplinJames DicksonDuplin18OnslowLott W. HumphreyOnslow19Bladen, Brunswick, & ColumbusJohn D. TaylorBrunswick20CumberlandDuncan ShawCumberland21SampsonThomas I. FaisonSampson22WayneWilliam K. LaneWayne23JohnstonJ.W.B. WatsonJohnston24WakeMoses A. BledsoeWake25NashA.G. TaylorNash26FranklinWashington HarrisFranklin27WarrenThomas J. PritchardWarren28GranvilleC.H.K. TaylorGranville29PersonC.S. WinsteadPerson30OrangeJosiah TurnerOrange31Alamance & RandolphJonathan Worth (Southern Democrat)Randolph32ChathamW.S. HarrisChatham33Montgomery & MooreWillis D. DowdMoore34Richmond, & RobesonAlfred Dockery (Know Nothing)Richmond35Anson & UnionSamuel H. WalkupUnion36GuilfordJohn Motley Morehead (Whig)Guilford37CaswellBedford Brown (Southern Democrat)Caswell38RockinghamFrancis L. SimpsonRockingham39MecklenburgJohn WalkerMecklenburg40Cabarrus & StanlyVictor C. BarringerCabarrus41Davie & RowanJames Graham RamsayRowan42DavidsonJohn W. ThomasDavidson43Forsyth & StokesJohn A. WaughForsyth44Ashe, Surry, Watauga, & YadkinJoseph H. DobsonSurry45Alexander, Iredell, WilkesLeander Q. SharpeIredell46Burke, Caldwell, & McDowellWilliam Waightstill Avery (Southern Democrat)Burke47Catawba, Gaston, & LincolnJ. StoweLincoln48Cleveland & RutherfordA.W. BurtonCleveland49Buncombe, Henderson, Madison, & YanceyMarcus ErwinBuncombe50Cherokee, Haywood, Jackson, & MaconWilliam Holland ThomasJackson

See also List of North Carolina state legislatures

References