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surrounding counties pieced together data trying to determine who the first real
settlers were in Onslow County.

That research produced only a sketchy history of early Onslow County. It
appears that by 1720 there were a large number of settlers in the New River
region. About a decade later a large colony was established in that area from
neighboring Bertie County.

There was a ferry called Sneads operating, several stores had been established,
and by 1731 the population was about 100 families. These families, living in
Topsail, New River and White Oak petitioned then Royal Governor GEORGE
BURRINGTON to form a precinct and establish a court in the area. On
November 23, 1730 the Governor issued an executive order establishing a
precinct called Onslow out of Carteret and New Hanover Precincts.

Onslow County (or Precinct) began to function just as any other county.

Officials were named and in January 1731 the Onslow County Court met for the
first time. However, as always, there was some politics that came into play.
Governor BURRINGTON had some political enemies in England and during a
meeting of the Colonial Assembly held at Edenton in 1733 it was decided by the
Assembly that it would simply refuse to allow Onslow County’s representatives
to sit in the Lower House on the grounds BURRINGTON had no legal right to
establish a county without the permission of the Assembly. Onslow’s
representatives returned home following that decision but the county continued
to operate as every other county despite the Assembly’s ruling.

In February 1734 Onslow County was confirmed as a precinct by that same
English Assembly. They made the confirmation retroactive back to 1731. In

other words, the Assembly agreed that everything Onslow County had
accomplished since BURRINGTON’s original executive order was valid.
Politics.

If one tries to look closely at the early history of Onslow County he will also find
there was, and is, a dispute about the exact dates the above mentioned events
actually took place. Some argue the dates may be one year off. In reading
records one will find notations such as Old Style and New Style near the dates
mentioned; Old style being one year earlier than New Style.

Ch. 8 Pg. 2