Chronology

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1. Antebellum and Civil War · 1800–1865

2. about 1839
   Property or economic transaction · Alexander Dickson House, then near NC 86 at Interstate 85 outside Hillsborough (now 150 East King Street) Alexander Dickson becomes owner of the house later called the Alexander Dickson House

   Around 1839 Alexander Dickson acquired the late-Georgian frame farmhouse of about 1790 that stood near the later junction of Interstate 85 and NC 86 outside Hillsborough. Joseph E. Johnston used it as his headquarters in 1865, and it was moved to 150 East King Street in 1983.

3. April 1865
   Violence or armed conflict · Hillsborough Confederate leaders gather at Hillsborough

   Wade Hampton and Joseph E. Johnston used the Dickson farm on the edge of Hillsborough as a temporary headquarters while Johnston negotiated with Sherman, and Confederate officials including Secretary of War John C. Breckinridge came there to work on terms. Johnston and his staff rode from the Dickson place along the old Hillsborough to Durham road to complete the surrender.

4. Early twentieth century · 1900–1944

5. April 26, 1940
   Naming or commemoration · Alexander Dickson House (Johnston headquarters), near the junction of NC 86 and the Durham road, outside Hillsborough Col. John K. Ross-Duggan holds 75th-anniversary exercises at the restored Johnston headquarters house

   Col. John K. Ross-Duggan, who with his wife had restored the Dickson house outside Hillsborough, marked the 75th anniversary of the war's end there with afternoon exercises and a special postal cachet showing the house. A. H. Graham and W. B. Umstead of Durham were to speak.

6. Civil rights era · 1945–1975

7. October 1960
   Closing or ending · Dickson house, NC 86 at Interstate 85, outside Hillsborough The Dickson house near Hillsborough is left empty when its last tenant moves out

   The last tenant left the Dickson house, General Johnston's headquarters in 1865, and the house owned by Mary R. Few stood vacant beside the new Interstate 85 interchange. In March 1961 the News of Orange reported it crumbling while a motel site next door was offered for sale.

8. Recent decades · 1976–2026

9. 1983
   Construction or physical change · 150 East King Street, Hillsborough The Alexander Dickson House is moved into Hillsborough to East King Street

   The late-Georgian house that Alexander Dickson owned from about 1839 was moved from its farm site near Interstate 85 and NC 86 to a lot at East King and South Cameron streets. Restored, it became the Chamber of Commerce and visitors center.

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Compiled and maintained by the Friends of the Orange County Public Library from county records, the sources named on each card, and the index’s event pages. Last updated October 1, 2026.