Halifax Resolves Anniversary Observed

SUPPLY – Brunswick Town Chapter NSDAR member Yvonne Brown represented the chapter at the observance of the 247 th anniversary of the Halifax Resolves held April 12, 2023 in Halifax, North Carolina.

The ceremony was hosted by the Halifax Resolves Chapter North Carolina Society Sons of the American Revolution. Adopted on April 12, 1776, the resolution, later dubbed The Halifax Resolves, was the first official action in the American colonies calling for independence from Great Britain. The action helped pave the way for the Declaration of Independence which was presented to Congress less than three months later. The creation and ratification of the resolves was the result of a strong movement in the colonies by separatists or American Whigs (later Patriots) who sought to mobilize public support for an all-encompassing declaration of independence. According to Wikipedia, “the primary impediment to an outright declaration of independence from Great Britain was that none of the delegates to the Second Continental Congress were authorized by their home governments to take any action that would lead to such a declaration. Advocates of independence, therefore, sought to revise the instructions to each congressional delegation and remove any restrictions regarding a declaration of independence.” The website further explains that North Carolina’s 83 delegates to the Fourth Provincial Congress of North Carolina unanimously adopted the resolves. That action empowered the state’s three delegates to the Second Continental Congress (Joseph Hewes, William Hooper and John Penn) to join other colonists o declare independence from British rule. The colony of Virginia introduced a resolution of independence to Continental Congress in June. The Second Continental Congress issued the United States Declaration of Independence in July. The anniversary observance, held in the Halifax Historic District, is held annually. Daughters of the American Revolution is a service organization founded in 1890 for women who can prove direct, blood lineage from a Revolutionary War Patriot. The organization promotes patriotism, education, and historic preservation. DAR is a nonprofit, nonpolitical volunteer organization with more than 185,000 members in 3000 chapters across the world. There are more than 100 chapters in North Carolina. The Brunswick Town Chapter has more than 180 members, several of whom descend from Patriots who lived in Brunswick County while fighting for our country’s independence. The chapter’s membership descends more than 700 proven Patriots from the original 13 colonies.