Such materials, procured at this late day--upon the arrival of our
National Centennial year, are often imperfect and fragmentary in
character--merely scattered facts and incidents gathered here and
there from the traditional recollections of our oldest inhabitants, or
from the musty records of our State and county offices; and yet, it is
believed such facts, when truthfully transmitted to us, are worthy of
preservation and rescue from the gulf of oblivion, which unfortunately
conceals from our view much valuable information.

Being the son of a Revolutionary patriot, and accustomed in his
boyhood to listen with enraptured delight to the narration of
thrilling battle-scenes, daring adventures, narrow escapes and feats
of personal prowess during the Revolution, all tending to make
indelible impressions upon the tablet of memory, the author feels a
willingness to "contribute his mite" to the store of accumulated
materials relating to North Carolina, now waiting to be moulded into
finished, historic shape by some one of her gifted sons.

Several of the sketches herein presented are original, and have never
before been published. Others, somewhat condensed, have been taken
from Wheeler's "Historical Sketches," when falling within the scope of
this work. To the venerable author of that compilation, the author
also acknowledges his indebtedness for valuable information furnished
from time to time from the "Pension Bureau" at Washington City,
relating to the military services of several of our Revolutionary
patriots.

The author and compiler of these sketches only aspires to the position
of a historian in a limited sense. It cannot be denied that the
history of our good old State, modest in her pretensions, but filled
with grand, patriotic associations, has never been fully written.
Acting under this belief, he feels tempted to say, like Ruth following
the reapers in the time of Boaz, he has "gleaned in the field until
even," and having found a few "handfuls" of _neglected_ grain, and
beaten them out, here presents his "ephah of barley"--plain,
substantial food it is true, but yet may be made useful _mentally_ to
the present generation, as it was _physically_ of old, to the
inhabitants of Palestine.

In conclusion, the author cherishes the hope that other sons, and
daughters too, of North Carolina--some of them forming with himself,
_connecting links of the past with the present_--will also become
_gleaners_ in the same