Email
Print
Grave of Iredell judge found in Lumberton
ADVERTISEMENT
Published: November 15, 2009
James Coleman, a retired public school history teacher and now the principal and history teacher of Antioch Christian Academy in Lumberton, e-mailed the R&L the other day.
Coleman had come across a large tombstone in the Meadowbrook Cemetery in Lumberton while working on a project for his students. He was intrigued by the headstone's size (5 feet tall) and inscription, which he says, "generated more questions than answers."
Here is what Coleman read:
"Beneath this tablet lie deposited the mortal remains of The Honourable Edward Harris, one of the judges of the Supreme Courts of this State, who while engaged at this village in the discharge of the duties of his station was unexpectedly summoned to appear before the Throne of the Almighty Judge of the Living & the Dead. A grateful county will cherish the memory of a firm & able Magistrate. Long will friends and relatives remember his ardour of attachment and fidelity of service and never can his bereaved wife cease to dwell on the mournful yet soothing recollection of his tenderness & worth. He died March 29th 1813 in the 50th year of his age."
They don't write epitaphs like that anymore.
Most headstones today just give the name, birth and death dates and maybe a small epitaph, like "Beloved Mother," "Loving Father" or similar brief expression.
In days past, there was a status thing going on in most cemeteries: The taller the headstone, the more elaborate and lengthy the inscription, the more important, presumably, was the deceased.
Based on this standard, Judge Harris was a person of importance.
Coleman did some research on the Internet and learned Judge Harris hailed from Iredell and wanted to know if we could tell him more.
A look in William C. Powell's "Dictionary of North Carolina Biography" provided more information, as did a monograph by Judge David Furches.
Harris was born in 1763 in the part of Rowan County that became Iredell in 1788. His father, James Harris, had come over from England with two brothers and their father in the early part of the 17th century, arriving in New York. After the father died, the three sons moved to Pennsylvania and settled at Harrisburg. Some historians say they gave the place its name. Later, the three came down the Great Wagon Road and settled in North Carolina, first in the Poplar Tent community in what today is Cabarrus County.
Later, James moved westward and started a farm about six miles west of the Fourth Creek Community (Statesville) in the Loray community.
James Harris was "a strong man, a justice of the peace, a leading citizen in his section in both Church and State and an elder in the Presbyterian church."
His son, Edward, whose grave was found in Lumberton, was educated by the Rev. Dr. James Hall, who was the first minister of the Fourth Creek Congregation, now better known as First Presbyterian Church, Statesville. The Rev. Hall also organized Bethany Presbyterian Church and is buried in the churchyard there.
After finishing his education at the Clio Academy, Edward Harris went to Princeton. Following graduation, he returned to Iredell, where he studied law under William "Billy" Sharpe. Sharpe is remembered for his map of the Fourth Creek Congregation, a gold mine for genealogists and historians.
Young Mr. Harris went to seek his fortune on the coast of North Carolina, and settled in New Bern to practice law. He later was chosen to fill a seat on the bench of the State Superior Court. He represented New Bern and then Craven County in the Legislature and was a trustee of the University of North Carolina. He briefly served on the bench of the United States Court for the Fifth Judicial District.
His first wife was Sarah Roulhac of Orange County. Following her death, he married another Sarah, this one from New Jersey. There were no children by either marriage.
The "engaged in the discharge of the duties of his station ... summoned to appear before the ... Almighty Judge" part of his epitaph means just what it says — Judge Harris died at the bench during a trial.
Whether he was able to defend his life and character and be judged worthy of admission to a Higher Bar, we do not know. But we now know where his mortal remains rest.
Email
Print
ADVERTISEMENT
Advertisement
