Independence

__﻿Mecklenburg and Halifax Resolves__
Speaker John Harvey of the General Assembly set up a Provincial Congress that would choose representatives to attend Continental Congress, after the General Assembly had refused to. Harvey then set up a Committee of Safety in each county to provide government and keep things in order. The Committees of Safety protested the British, and people suspected of siding with the British make a loyalty oath. Mecklenburg County's Committee took this idea farther than any others dared and declared several statements that are now collectively know as the Mecklenburg Resolves. The resolves basically said that they weren't obeying the king any more, and ultimately started governing themselves. Thus, declaring their own independence on May 20, 1775.

Following in Mecklenburg's steps, were the Halifax Resolves. After a series of British agressions, the Provincial Congress decided that the whole province would declare their freedom. The Halifax Resolves were passed by the Provincial Congress on April 12, 1776. The Resolves conveyed freedom and liberty in equal parts, and inspired other colonies to start the journey for independence as well.

__Declaration of Independence__
North Carolina was the first colony to claim its independence of the original thirteen colonies. In July 1776, William Hooper, Joseph Hewes, and John Penn,(all North Carolinians), signed the Declaration of Independence. The document was read publicly in front of every courthouse in North Carolina, and still stands as one of the most important documents in history.

The American Revolution
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