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John W. Graham

John Washington Graham (1838–1928), son of Governor William A. Graham, sat on the UNC board of trustees from 1876 until his death, and the trustees named Graham Residence Hall for him in 1928. A Confederate major whose troops took part in the 1864 Plymouth massacre, he championed white supremacy and in 1872 sponsored a bill granting Klansmen amnesty.

Source: UNC Commission on History, Race, and a Way Forward: Graham Residence Hall (2021)

Orange County Indexed has not yet linked an indexed work directly to John W. Graham. The biography and the dated events on this page provide sources about John W. Graham’s life and work.

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Life and Orange County connections

Storylines this person is part of, in date order. Each has its own page.

StorylineKirk-Holden War connections, 1870October 1869–March 1871 · 49 events · Governor Holden named Orange County in his October 1869 warning about Klan violence, Hillsborough men were named in a Klan plot against Senator T. M. Shoffner, and Kirk's militia arrested Josiah Turner Jr. at Hillsborough in August 1870. Orange men Frederick N. Strudwick, William A. Graham and John W. Graham then helped bring, prosecute and decide Holden's impeachment. StorylineGovernor Holden’s impeachment and trial, 1870–1871December 1870–March 1871 · 20 events · Frederick N. Strudwick of Orange moved to impeach Governor William W. Holden on December 9, 1870. Article III charged the August 1870 arrest of Josiah Turner Jr. at Hillsborough; William A. Graham joined the prosecution, Turner and other Orange witnesses testified, and on March 22, 1871 the state Senate convicted Holden, 37 to 12 on that article, and removed him from office on the motion of Senator John W. Graham of Orange. StorylineMacadam for Hillsborough: the township road tax, bonds and paved streets, 1900–19081900–1908 · 10 events · Hillsboro Township taxed itself for roads and became the only Orange township to vote road bonds, and from 1905 Hillsborough's streets were macadamized, surfaced with crushed stone. In 1900 township voters carried a special road tax. In 1905 the township road commissioners set up a rock crusher west of the court house and began a macadam road from Churton and King streets to the depot. In 1907 township voters sought an election on $40,000 in road bonds, and the money built a few miles of macadam road. In 1908 the township road commission organized a chain gang of prisoners, and Street Commissioner T. Norfleet Webb's crew, using convict labor, macadamized Churton Street south to the river bridge for $3,085.47. StorylineOrange County in the First World War, 1917–19191917–1919 · 117 events · Orange County organized for the war in 1917. A county Red Cross chapter under John W. Graham, with branches and auxiliaries in Chapel Hill, Hillsborough, rural communities and Black churches, knitted for soldiers and shipped relief clothing; women's committees sold Liberty bonds; and the university's students drilled and in 1918 came under the Students' Army Training Corps. The county's war record lists 23 Orange County servicemen who died.

Dated events connected with this person, in date order. See these 83 dated events in the chronology →

  1. William A. Graham builds a law office on his new Eno River property, Montrose On buying the property in 1842, William A. Graham built a one-and-a-half-story frame law office there. It survives on the Montrose grounds; his son John W. Graham added a two-room rear ell around 1893. People: William A. Graham, John W. Graham Place: William Alexander Graham Law Office, Montrose, 320 St. Mary's Road, Hillsborough · Also mentions: MontroseSearch the index · NC State Historic Preservation Office: Hillsborough Historic District Additional Documentation, National Register (OR0077ad, 2014), 320 St. Mary's Road, Montrose and William Alexander Graham Law Office
  2. Ten senior orators, John W. Graham and the valedictorian speak on commencement day On commencement day ten seniors spoke in Gerard Hall between pieces by the band, among them J. L. A. Webb with the Latin salutatory, Robert Bingham of Orange on the teacher and Charles A. Mitchell of Chapel Hill on Dr. Kane. In the afternoon Joseph Venable gave a French oration, John W. Graham of Hillsborough spoke on 'Action rules the world', and a senior named Wharton of Guilford gave the valedictory. People: Robert Bingham, John W. Graham Place: Gerard Hall, University, Chapel Hill · Also named: J. L. A. Webb, Charles A. Mitchell, Joseph VenableSearch the index · The Chapel Hill Gazette, June 6, 1857, p. 2
  3. John W. Graham becomes a tutor at the university A year after taking his A.B. in 1857, John W. Graham became a tutor at the University of North Carolina; his biographical sketch has him teaching mathematics from June 1858 to June 1859 and Latin from then to June 1860. He finished a law degree there in 1860. Place: Chapel HillSearch the index · UNC Commission on History, Race, and a Way Forward: Graham Residence Hall (2021) · Also: Internet Archive: R. D. W. Connor, William K. Boyd and J. G. de Roulhac Hamilton, History of North Carolina
  4. The Orange Guards celebrate their fifth anniversary with visiting companies On Monday, October 1, the Orange Guards under Captain Pride Jones marked their fifth anniversary by receiving the Flat River Guards and the Guilford Greys at Hillsborough. With the Salisbury Brass Band the companies paraded, watched the Hillsborough Military Academy cadets drill, where Paul C. Cameron thanked Colonel C. C. Tew for the school, and held a ball at the Masonic Hall before parting on October 2. People: Pride Jones, John W. Graham, Paul C. Cameron, Charles Courtenay Tew Place: Court house and Masonic Hall, Hillsborough · Also mentions: Hillsborough Military AcademySearch the index · Hillsborough Recorder, October 3, 1860, p. 3
  5. The Orange Guards leave Hillsborough for Fort Macon The Orange Guards, Hillsborough's volunteer company, left town for the coast on Saturday, April 20, 1861, the day after other companies passed through on their way to Fort Macon. The roster the company sent home from the fort a week later listed Pride Jones as captain, Joseph C. Webb and John W. Graham as first and second lieutenants, and Dr. William Strudwick as surgeon. People: Pride Jones, John W. Graham Place: Hillsborough (company bound for Fort Macon, Carteret County) · Also named: Joseph C. Webb, William StrudwickHillsborough Recorder, April 24, 1861, p. 2
  6. John W. Graham's volunteer company leaves Hillsborough and elects its officers A volunteer company raised by John W. Graham to spare its men from conscription left the Hillsborough depot for Camp Mangum near Raleigh, and the next day elected John W. Graham captain, D. S. Ray first lieutenant and R. D. Graham third lieutenant. People: John W. Graham Place: Railroad depot, Hillsborough · Also named: D. S. Ray, R. D. GrahamHillsborough Recorder, May 21, 1862, p. 3
  7. The Orange company of the 56th N.C. loses Lieut. David S. Ray at Gum Swamp When Union troops surprised the 56th North Carolina in its breastworks at Gum Swamp below Kinston, the regiment's Orange company, Company D, fought under Lieut. Robert D. Graham while its captain, John W. Graham, was away on duty at Wilmington. First Lieut. David S. Ray was shot in the mouth, captured and died at New Bern, and about sixteen men of the company were captured or missing. People: John W. Graham Place: Gum Swamp, below Kinston (Company D, 56th N.C., an Orange company) · Also named: David S. Ray, Robert D. GrahamHillsborough Recorder, June 3, 1863, p. 2
  8. Hillsborough's W. W. Kirkland is promoted to brigadier general Col. W. W. Kirkland of Hillsborough was promoted to brigadier general, and Capt. John W. Graham of Hillsborough, of the 56th North Carolina, was promoted major of that regiment in place of Major Schenck, who had resigned for ill health. People: John W. Graham Place: Hillsborough · Also named: W. W. KirklandHillsborough Recorder, September 16, 1863, p. 2
  9. John W. Graham serves as Orange County solicitor After the Civil War, John W. Graham of Hillsborough was solicitor for Orange County from 1866 to 1868, before going as a delegate to the 1868 constitutional convention and into the state senate. Place: HillsboroughSearch the index · UNC Libraries, Wilson Special Collections: John W. Graham Muster Rolls, 1862-1863 (#05452), biographical note
  10. A Hillsborough meeting backs the National Union Convention and names district delegates A public meeting at Hillsborough, with James P. Clark in the chair and Dr. Charles J. Freeland as secretary, endorsed the call for a National Union Convention at Philadelphia on August 14, 1866, in support of President Johnson's restoration policy. On resolutions offered by Josiah Turner Jr. it named thirteen men, among them Henry K. Nash, Thomas Webb, John W. Graham, Samuel F. Phillips and Paul C. Cameron, to a district convention at Raleigh, and recommended William A. Graham as a delegate for the state at large. People: Josiah Turner Jr., William A. Graham, Paul C. Cameron, Thomas Webb, John W. Graham, Henry Kollock Nash Place: Hillsborough · Also named: James P. Clark, Charles J. Freeland, Samuel F. PhillipsSearch the index · Hillsborough Recorder, July 25, 1866, p. 2
  11. John W. Graham asks H. B. Guthrie to keep Pattie Ruffin from naming a young friend as her child's father In a letter from Hillsboro, John W. Graham asked Col. H. B. Guthrie of Chapel Hill to stop a magistrate from making Pattie, a pregnant young Black woman living at Dr. Closs's and the daughter of Peter, once enslaved by Judge Ruffin, name the father of her child. Graham wrote that she had been paid not to name the man, a young friend of his; that she could refuse by paying $5 and giving bond; and that he had promised the case would not come to court. The letter is kept with the county's bastardy papers. People: Hugh B. Guthrie, John W. Graham Place: Hillsborough; Chapel HillSearch the index · Mark Chilton, Natural Child: Legitimacy, Sexuality and Shame in the Court Records of Orange County, North Carolina 1777 to 1868 (Wandering through the NC Piedmont)
  12. Orange County court binds out eight Black children as apprentices with the Bureau officer attending Lt. Isaac Porter attended the February 1867 term of the Orange County Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions at Hillsborough, with James C. Turrentine presiding and John W. Graham as county solicitor, and reported that the court made eight indentures of apprenticeship of Black children, all in his view in keeping with the Bureau's circular, and cancelled none. At the May term he reported no indentures made or cancelled. People: James C. Turrentine, John W. Graham Place: Court house, Hillsborough · Also named: Isaac PorterSearch the index · Freedmen's Bureau, North Carolina Field Offices, Hillsboro: Letters and Endorsements Sent and Received, Vol. 128, transcription p. 45
Show all 83 dated events
  1. Orange Conservatives nominate John W. Graham and Edwin M. Holt for the constitutional convention A Conservative meeting at the court house in Hillsborough on November 2, 1867, seated a delegation of Black Conservatives from Durham and named a nominating committee of five white and five Black members from all parts of the county. The committee put forward Maj. John W. Graham and Dr. Edwin M. Holt as the party's candidates for the state convention. People: John W. Graham Place: Court house, Hillsborough · Also named: Edwin M. HoltSearch the index · Hillsborough Recorder, November 6, 1867, p. 2
  2. Josiah Turner Jr. wins Orange's Senate seat but is excluded under the Fourteenth Amendment Turner won election as state senator in 1868 but was not seated, since his disabilities under the Fourteenth Amendment were still in force. John W. Graham was elected instead. People: Josiah Turner Jr., John W. Graham Place: Orange CountySearch the index · Lefler and Wager, Orange County, 1752-1952 (1953), p. 113
  3. Orange delegate John W. Graham writes the convention's minority report on suffrage John W. Graham, Orange County's delegate to the 1868 constitutional convention, wrote the minority report on the suffrage question that he and Plato Durham laid before the convention against the majority's plan. The Recorder reprinted it from the Raleigh Sentinel in April. Place: Constitutional convention, Raleigh (Orange County delegate) · Also named: Plato DurhamSearch the index · Hillsborough Recorder, April 8, 1868, p. 2
  4. Lt. Thomas H. Hay reports on the May term of the Orange County court and its cases against Black defendants Hay attended the term that sat from May 25 to May 30, 1868 under chairman James C. Turrentine with John W. Graham as county solicitor. The court made indentures binding Black children and cancelled the indentures of five. In state cases against Black defendants, petit larceny brought four convictions, three acquittals and one continuance, bastardy two convictions and two continuances, and keeping a disorderly house one conviction. People: James C. Turrentine, John W. Graham Place: Orange County court house, Hillsborough · Also named: Thomas H. HaySearch the index · Freedmen's Bureau, North Carolina Field Offices, Hillsboro: Letters Sent, Vol. 130, July 1867–Dec. 1868, transcription p. 114
  5. The court binds Amelia Ann Mays to John W. Graham and Ellen Mays to William A. Graham On motion, the court bound Amelia Ann Mays, twelve, to John W. Graham and Ellen Mays, ten, to William A. Graham, each until 18; their bonds, dated 30 and 20 May 1868, bound both girls to learn spinning. People: John W. Graham Place: Orange County · Also named: Amelia Ann Mays, Ellen Mays, William A. GrahamSearch the index · Mark Chilton, Freedom Bound: Apprenticeship, Racism & Liberation in Orange County, North Carolina 1777 to 1868 (Wandering through the NC Piedmont)
  6. Orange elects John W. Graham to the Senate seat denied Josiah Turner Jr. and votes for Seymour In a quiet election held under Governor Holden's writ to fill the Senate seat from which Josiah Turner Jr. had been excluded under the Fourteenth Amendment, Orange chose the Conservative John W. Graham by about 400 votes, and the Seymour and Blair electors carried the county by about the same margin. A county Conservative convention had nominated Graham on October 17, though a second Conservative candidate refused to withdraw. People: Josiah Turner Jr., William W. Holden Place: Orange CountySearch the index · Hillsborough Recorder, November 4, 1868, p. 2
  7. North Carolina Railroad stockholders hold their annual meeting in the Hillsborough courthouse and elect four directors The company's twenty-first annual meeting convened in the court house at Hillsborough with Maj. John W. Graham in the chair and heard President William A. Smith's report. By stock vote it elected Thomas M. Holt, John I. Shaver, R. B. Haywood and D. A. Davis as directors and set the president's salary at $5,000 a year. People: John W. Graham Place: Orange County Courthouse, Hillsborough · Also named: William A. Smith, Thomas M. HoltSearch the index · North Carolina Rail Road Company, Proceedings and By-Laws of the Stockholders of the North Carolina Rail Road Company at Their Twenty-First Annual Meeting, Held at Hillsboro', July 14th, 1870 (1870), scan p. 7
  8. The officer holding Josiah Turner Jr. at Hillsborough says he will arrest anyone who brings a habeas corpus writ At the Hillsborough depot, Lieutenant J. W. Hunnicutt told Senator John W. Graham that he had arrested Josiah Turner Jr. by Governor Holden's order and that he had a general order, passed down through Colonel Burgen, to arrest anyone who came with writs of habeas corpus, Graham included. Graham gave this account under oath at Holden's impeachment trial on February 16, 1871, adding that Hunnicutt said Burgen had detailed him to take ten men to Hillsborough for the arrest. People: John W. Graham, Josiah Turner Jr. Place: Railroad depot, Hillsborough · Also named: J. W. HunnicuttTrial of William W. Holden, Governor of North Carolina (1871), vol. 1, p. 916
  9. The impeachment court refuses to swear three Black Orange witnesses called on the jail raid On March 16, 1871, the Senate sitting as the impeachment court voted 28 to 18 against letting three Black men from Orange County be sworn so they could be paid for weeks of attendance; Holden's defense had summoned them to testify about the taking of Black prisoners from the Orange County jail. Defense counsel Badger told the court their evidence had been ruled out because the defense could not prove that the roads where the raiders' horse tracks were followed connected with Alamance County. Senator Graham of Orange first moved to pay every summoned witness on both sides, which failed 22 to 24, and then voted against swearing the three. People: John W. Graham Place: Senate chamber, Raleigh (witnesses from Orange County) · Also mentions: Orange County jailSearch the index · Trial of William W. Holden, Governor of North Carolina (1871), vol. 3, p. 2313
  10. Senate convicts Holden on the article charging Turner's arrest in Orange County The state Senate found Governor Holden guilty, 37 to 12, on Article III, which charged him with the unlawful arrest of Josiah Turner Jr. in Orange County on August 5, 1870, and also convicted him on Articles IV through VIII. Senator John W. Graham of Orange then offered the order of judgment removing Holden from office and barring him from state office, which the Senate adopted. People: William W. Holden, Josiah Turner Jr., John W. Graham Place: North Carolina Senate chamber, RaleighInternet Archive: Trial of William W. Holden, Governor of North Carolina, vol. 3 (1871)
  11. Maj. John W. Graham builds a twelve-room house at Montrose on his father's old foundation In 1874 William A. Graham gave the vacant Montrose land to his son Maj. John W. Graham, who built a twelve-room house on the foundation of the first house. It burned in 1893. People: William A. Graham, John W. Graham Place: Montrose, 320 St. Mary's Road, HillsboroughSearch the index · NC State Historic Preservation Office: Hillsborough Historic District Additional Documentation, National Register (OR0077ad, 2014), 320 St. Mary's Road, Montrose
  12. The new trustees sue Solomon Pool and Alexander McIver at Orange Superior Court and win possession of the university in the Supreme Court At the May 1874 term of Orange Superior Court the new board brought one action against Superintendent Alexander McIver, who held the university's seal and books and had agreed to a friendly test suit, and another against Solomon Pool for the buildings. Judge Albion W. Tourgee ruled against the trustees; John W. Graham and James A. Graham of Hillsborough argued for them without fee, as did B. F. Moore and William H. Battle on appeal in June 1874. At its January term 1875 the state Supreme Court decided for the university on every point, and possession passed to Andrew Mickle, the board's agent, with the seal, books and papers going to Treasurer Kemp Battle. People: Solomon Pool, Kemp Plummer Battle, Alexander McIver, John W. Graham, Andrew Mickle, Albion W. Tourgee, Bartholomew F. Moore, James Augustus Graham, William Horn Battle Place: Orange County Superior Court, HillsboroughInternet Archive: Kemp P. Battle, History of the University of North Carolina, vol. 2 (1912), full text
  13. Thomas Ruffin Jr. and John W. Graham form the law firm of Graham & Ruffin In August 1875 Thomas Ruffin Jr. formed a law partnership in Hillsborough with John W. Graham. Apart from his two years on the state Supreme Court, the firm of Graham & Ruffin lasted until his death in 1889. People: Thomas Ruffin Jr., John W. Graham Place: HillsboroughSearch the index · NCpedia: Ruffin, Thomas, Jr.
  14. John W. Graham serves on the university board of trustees John W. Graham sat on the University of North Carolina board of trustees from 1876 until his death in 1928, and from 1891 he was an elected member of its executive committee. Place: Chapel HillSearch the index · UNC Commission on History, Race, and a Way Forward: Graham Residence Hall (2021)
  15. Orange County gives the Democrats a sweeping victory in the 1876 election Orange polled more than 4,100 votes, some 800 more than at any earlier election, in a quiet contest that went to the Democratic ticket: Thomas J. Jarvis carried the county for lieutenant governor 2,420 to 1,669, Calvin E. Parish and John K. Hughes won its House seats, and John W. Graham beat Josiah Turner Jr., who had run against the party's nominee with Republican backing, for the state Senate. The county officers, among them Treasurer D. C. Parks and Register John Laws, won with about 2,700 votes each. People: Thomas Jordan Jarvis, Calvin E. Parish, John W. Graham, Josiah Turner Jr., David C. Parks, John Knox Hughes Place: Orange County · Also named: John LawsSearch the index · Hillsborough Recorder, November 15, 1876, p. 3
  16. Orange Superior Court quashes the libel indictment brought for Josiah Turner against the Raleigh News At the spring term of Orange Superior Court under Judge Cox, the indictment against Walter Clark, John D. Cameron and the other owners and editors of the Raleigh Daily News for an alleged libel on Josiah Turner Jr. was quashed on motion of their counsel, John W. Graham and Thomas Ruffin Jr. People: Josiah Turner Jr., Walter Clark, John W. Graham, Thomas Ruffin Jr. Place: Orange County Courthouse, Hillsborough · Also named: John D. CameronSearch the index · Hillsborough Recorder, May 9, 1877, p. 3
  17. Solicitor General Samuel F. Phillips addresses the university alumni The Alumni Association chose Prof. J. DeB. Hooper to preside in place of its late president, Judge Battle, and heard Samuel F. Phillips, Solicitor General of the United States, on the university's past, present and future. Phillips contrasted the presidencies of Joseph Caldwell and David L. Swain and remembered Judge Battle and other alumni. People: Samuel (Samuel Field) Phillips, John DeBerniere Hooper, John W. Graham Place: University, Chapel Hill · Also named: Joseph Caldwell, David L. SwainSearch the index · The Chapel Hill Ledger, June 7, 1879, p. 2
  18. Becky Lyon is acquitted of the Blackwell murders Becky Lyon, a Black woman, was tried at Hillsborough for the murder of Nannie Blackwell and her two children. After Robert Boswell, the main witness against her, said his earlier testimony was false and another witness changed his account, Solicitor Strudwick asked Judge McKoy to direct a verdict of not guilty, and she was discharged. People: John W. Graham Place: Court house, Hillsborough · Also named: Becky Lyon, Robert Boswell, Judge McKoySearch the index · The Chapel Hill Ledger, October 11, 1879, p. 2
  19. Paul Cameron buys university land put up for sale When part of the university's land around Chapel Hill was put up for sale, Spencer, fearing for places like Piney Prospect and the Roaring Fountain, wrote begging Paul C. Cameron to buy it, and Bennehan Cameron and John W. Graham came to bid for him. Cameron later left Spencer a few acres of it in his will. People: Paul C. Cameron, Bennehan Cameron, John W. Graham, Cornelia Phillips Spencer Place: Chapel HillSearch the index · Hope Summerell Chamberlain, Old Days in Chapel Hill (1926), scan p. 275
  20. Hillsborough's commissioners protest the bill to divide Orange County At their regular meeting the Hillsborough town commissioners resolved against Caleb R. Green's bill to cut Durham County out of Orange, protesting that the question had never been put before the people, and named a committee of about a hundred citizens headed by the mayor to go to Raleigh and memorialize the legislature against it. People: Paul C. Cameron, John W. Graham, Henry Kollock Nash Place: Hillsborough · Also named: Caleb R. GreenOrange County Observer (Hillsborough), January 29, 1881, p. 2
  21. An Orange jury convicts Tony Borland of manslaughter after a confused verdict Tony Borland, a Black man tried at Hillsborough on removal from Durham County for killing Ellen Couch in Durham, was at first declared not guilty by the jury foreman on Sunday morning, October 7, 1883, until a poll showed the jury had agreed on manslaughter. Judge James C. MacRae, who rebuked the jury from the bench, sentenced him on October 10 to twenty years in the penitentiary. People: John W. Graham, Thomas Ruffin Jr. Place: Court house, Hillsborough · Also named: Tony Borland, James C. MacRaeSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), October 13, 1883, p. 2
  22. Thomas Ruffin Jr. leaves the Supreme Court and rejoins John W. Graham in law practice After resigning from the North Carolina Supreme Court in September 1883, citing ill health and overwork, Judge Thomas Ruffin Jr. of Hillsborough went back into practice with Major John W. Graham, reviving their old firm of Graham & Ruffin. By early October the firm was defending Tony Borland in Orange Superior Court, and by December it advertised practice in Alamance, Caswell, Durham, Guilford, Rockingham, Person and Orange. People: John W. Graham, Thomas Ruffin Jr. Place: Hillsborough · Also named: Tony BorlandSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), October 6, 1883, p. 3
  23. James Webb Jr. and Brother buy the Churton Street storehouse C. M. Parks had left James Webb Jr. & Bro. bought from Maj. John W. Graham for $4,400 the Churton Street storehouse lately occupied by C. M. Parks, planning to repair it and move their own store into it. The paper took the price as proof that Hillsborough property still held its value. People: James Webb Jr., John W. Graham, Charles M. Parks Place: Churton Street, HillsboroughSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), May 17, 1884, p. 3
  24. Hillsborough men incorporate the Orange County Tobacco Association to buy and sell leaf tobacco Fifteen men, among them the merchants Charles M. Parks, David C. Parks and Harry L. Parish, John W. Graham and E. H. Pogue, filed articles with the Orange County Superior Court clerk incorporating the association, with $2,000 in capital in fifty-dollar shares. The same week the paper reported a heavy break at the opening sale of Hillsborough's tobacco warehouse. People: Charles M. Parks, David C. Parks, Harry L. Parish, Edward Atkins Rosemond, Thomas Ruffin, John W. Graham, James A. Cheek, Augustus Washington Graham, E. H. Pogue Place: HillsboroughSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), January 9, 1886, p. 3 ("Notice of Incorporation")
  25. Orange voters elect the Democratic county ticket but send Republicans to the legislature In the November 2 election Orange chose the Democratic county ticket except for sheriff, where the Republican-backed John K. Hughes beat William Strain by more than 1,100 votes. James A. Cheek and Oakley won the Orange-Durham House seats, Republicans James B. Mason and Harrison the Senate seats, and Isaac R. Strayhorn the solicitorship, while John W. Graham carried Orange by 238 votes but lost the Fourth District congressional race to John Nichols. People: James B. Mason, John W. Graham, Isaac R. Strayhorn, James A. Cheek, John Knox Hughes Place: Orange County · Also named: William Strain, John NicholsSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), November 6, 1886, p. 3
  26. A jury acquits Ann Eliza Lawrence and John Crawford of poisoning her husband At the fall term of Orange Superior Court, a jury out one hour found Ann Eliza Lawrence and John Crawford not guilty of poisoning Mrs. Lawrence's husband, a case held over from the August term. John W. Graham, James B. Mason and A. W. Graham defended them before Judge Henry G. Connor. People: Henry Groves Connor, John W. Graham, James B. Mason, Augustus Washington Graham Place: Court house, Hillsborough · Also named: Ann Eliza Lawrence, John CrawfordSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), November 20, 1886, p. 3
  27. Three Black men are convicted of manslaughter in the killing of student Jacob Freeze Pat Brewer, Jesse Harris and Frank Kirby, Black men indicted for the 1886 killing of university student Jacob A. Freeze, were tried at Hillsborough before Judge Fred Phillips from March 30 to April 2. A jury of nine white and three Black men convicted them of manslaughter; Brewer was sentenced to ten years and Harris and Kirby to five years each in the penitentiary, and they appealed. People: John W. Graham, James B. Mason, Frederick N. Strudwick, Isaac R. Strayhorn, Augustus Washington Graham Place: Court house, Hillsborough · Also named: Pat Brewer, Jesse Harris, Frank Kirby, Fred Phillips, Jacob A. FreezeSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), April 9, 1887, p. 3
  28. Hillsborough holds the first Orange County cattle show The Orange Cattle Club held its first cattle show in the court house yard, with about a hundred head in the parade, addresses by John W. Graham and Giles Mebane and butter premiums to Mrs. C. M. Parks, Mrs. John Berry and Miss Margaret Norwood; ten Black citizens, among them Abel Payne, Richard Berry and Jerry Cain, showed cows. People: John W. Graham, Calvin E. Parish, James Nichols, Charles M. Parks Place: Court house yard, Hillsborough · Also named: Giles Mebane, Abel Payne, Richard Berry, Jerry CainSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), June 8, 1889, p. 3
  29. Orange County's Confederate veterans organize a county association Between two and three hundred Confederate veterans met at the court house on the Fourth of July and organized an Orange County veterans' association, electing John W. Graham president, D. H. Hamilton vice-president and John P. Lockhart secretary. People: John W. Graham Place: Court house, Hillsborough · Also named: D. H. Hamilton, John P. LockhartSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), July 6, 1889, p. 3
  30. The Corner store of H. N. Brown Jr. & Bro. fails and assigns to a trustee The general merchants H. N. Brown Jr. & Bro., whose store was known as The Corner, and a second firm of H. N. Brown Jr. made an assignment to H. N. Brown Sr. as trustee, who offered the stock for sale. Maj. John W. Graham advised on winding up both firms, a few weeks after the store had marked its second anniversary. People: John W. Graham Place: The Corner, Hillsborough · Also named: Henry N. Brown Jr., H. N. Brown Sr., H. N. Brown Jr.Search the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), June 14, 1890, p. 3
  31. Paul C. Cameron's will is read and his executors qualify Cameron's handwritten will, found in his travelling valise, divided an estate the paper thought worth over a million dollars, ordered lands including the old Military Academy grounds sold, and left the house and lands east of Hillsborough to his widow and then to Mildred Cameron. Anne Cameron, Bennehan Cameron, John W. Graham and R. B. Peebles qualified as executors. People: Bennehan Cameron, John W. Graham, Paul C. Cameron Place: Hillsborough · Also named: Anne Cameron, R. B. PeeblesSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), January 17, 1891, p. 3
  32. Hillsborough's town board votes 4 to 3 against a liquor license for John U. Smith Smith of Raleigh brought petitions from many citizens asking to retail liquor in the town, and Major John W. Graham and C. E. Parish spoke for him. James Webb Jr. moved to grant the license, but the board refused by four votes to three. People: John W. Graham, Calvin E. Parish, James Webb Jr. Place: Mayor's office, Hillsborough · Also named: John U. SmithSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), May 23, 1891, p. 3
  33. County commissioners license John U. Smith to retail liquor in Hillsborough although the town board did not back him The county commissioners granted Smith a license to retail liquor in the town. They ruled that the revenue act of the last legislature gave them the right even though the town commissioners had not recommended him. Counsel appeared for Smith and C. D. Turner for the town. People: John W. Graham, Calvin E. Parish, Isaac R. Strayhorn, Chester D. Turner Place: Court house, Hillsborough · Also named: John U. SmithSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), June 6, 1891, p. 3
  34. Orange County Democrats hold their county convention and name a ticket Meeting at the court house, the convention chose C. W. Johnston of Chapel Hill township as chairman and Joseph A. Harris as secretary. It nominated Hughes for sheriff, John Laws for register of deeds, D. M. Laws for treasurer, Dr. D. C. Parris for coroner and George W. Tate for surveyor, named James Norwood for the House, and recommended Thomas M. Cheek for the district's Senate seat. A resolution also asked the governor to appoint Maj. John W. Graham to the Supreme Court seat left empty by the death of Justice Davis. People: John W. Graham, Joseph A. Harris, D. C. Parris, George W. Tate, Dudley M. Laws Place: Court house, Hillsborough · Also named: Thomas M. Cheek, James Norwood, John Hughes, John Laws, C. W. JohnstonSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), August 20, 1892, p. 2
  35. Democrats of the 18th Senatorial District meet at Hillsborough and nominate two candidates for the State Senate Delegates from Alamance, Caswell, Durham and Orange met in Hillsborough. H. A. Reams of Durham presided and Joseph A. Harris of the Observer was secretary. Thomas M. Cheek of Orange and a Burch of Alamance were nominated by acclamation, and Maj. John W. Graham and Reams made speeches. People: Joseph A. Harris, John W. Graham Place: Hillsborough · Also named: H. A. Reams, Thomas M. CheekSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), September 17, 1892, p. 2
  36. Paul C. Graham joins his father's law firm at Hillsborough Admitted to the bar in September 1892, Paul Cameron Graham returned to Hillsborough and went into partnership with his father, John W. Graham, in the firm of Graham & Graham. He moved to Oxford in January 1895 and to Durham in January 1897. People: John W. Graham Place: Hillsborough · Also named: Paul Cameron GrahamSearch the index · Internet Archive: R. D. W. Connor, William K. Boyd and J. G. de Roulhac Hamilton, History of North Carolina (1919), vol. 5, p. 110
  37. Hillsborough merchants Ellen, Koplon & Brother assign their business to a trustee The Hillsborough dry goods and grocery firm of Ellen, Koplon & Brother made an assignment for its creditors to trustee T. A. Faucette, and the sheriff took possession of the store and its stock. Faucette then advertised the goods for sale at cost. People: John W. Graham Place: Ellen, Koplon & Brother store, Hillsborough · Also named: T. A. FaucetteSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), July 1, 1893, p. 3
  38. The Orange County bar meets to honor the late Isaac R. Strayhorn Lawyers at the August term of Superior Court met at the court house in Hillsborough and adopted resolutions in memory of Isaac R. Strayhorn, praising his service as a soldier, as state senator for the district and as solicitor, and asked that the tribute be entered in the court's minutes. People: Calvin E. Parish, John W. Graham, James B. Mason, Isaac R. Strayhorn Place: Court house, HillsboroughSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), August 19, 1893, p. 2
  39. Fire destroys Major John W. Graham's house at Montrose Major John W. Graham's house east of Hillsborough burned to the ground on the night of October 19, with almost nothing saved and no insurance on a loss of about $15,000. It was the second Graham house lost to fire on the Montrose site, after the governor's house in 1862; the family moved into the old law office until the present house was built. People: John W. Graham Place: Montrose, 320 Saint Mary's Road, HillsboroughSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), October 28, 1893, p. 3 · Also: National Register nomination: Montrose, Orange County (2001)
  40. Fire destroys E. A. Rosemond's warehouse and livery stable and a Churton Street store in Hillsborough A Saturday night fire destroyed E. A. Rosemond's wooden warehouse and livery stable, with buggies, feed, guano and salt, and the two-story wooden building on Churton Street occupied by the merchants Newman & Smith. Bucket lines and a brick wall stopped it from spreading through the business district, while neighbors carried out a law library, the post office, a barber shop and store stocks. People: John W. Graham, John Christmas, Edward Atkins Rosemond Place: Churton Street business block, Hillsborough · Also mentions: Churton StreetSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), February 3, 1894, p. 2
  41. Orange County Democrats meet in convention and endorse A. W. Graham for Congress Democrats from every Orange township met at the court house in Hillsborough with Major John W. Graham presiding, chose delegates to the state, judicial and congressional conventions, and instructed them to vote for Augustus W. Graham of Oxford for Congress. The county executive committee then re-elected Samuel M. Gattis its chairman. People: John W. Graham, Samuel Mallett Gattis, Augustus Washington Graham Place: Court house, HillsboroughSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), July 28, 1894, p. 2
  42. The Orange County bar meets to honor the late Thomas Webb During a recess of superior court, lawyers and citizens met under C. E. Parish and adopted resolutions on Thomas Webb, who had died since the spring term after years of paralysis. They recalled his service as clerk and master in equity, as cashier of the savings institution, and as president of the North Carolina Railroad Company during part of the Civil War and for a year after it. People: Thomas Webb, Calvin E. Parish, John W. Graham, John Manning, James B. Mason, Augustus Washington Graham Place: Court house, HillsboroughSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), August 18, 1894, p. 2
  43. The Orange bar meets to honor the late Calvin E. Parish The lawyers of the Orange bar met at the court house during superior court, with Maj. John W. Graham presiding, and adopted resolutions for Calvin E. Parish, who had died on November 20 in his 67th year. The tribute recalled his forty years in Hillsborough as postmaster before and during the war, several terms as mayor, and service in the state Senate (1874, 1880) and House (1876). People: Calvin E. Parish, John W. Graham, Frank Nash, Chester D. Turner Place: Court house, Hillsborough · Also named: Paul C. GrahamSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), March 30, 1899, p. 2
  44. John W. Graham builds the present house at Montrose After his 1893 fire, John W. Graham lived in the enlarged law office until 1899, when he let the contract for a new residence on his lot east of town: the two-story frame house that is the core of the present Montrose, the third house on the site. Work began in June and was to be finished by October. People: John W. Graham Place: Montrose, 320 St. Mary's Road, HillsboroughSearch the index · NC State Historic Preservation Office: Hillsborough Historic District Additional Documentation, National Register (OR0077ad, 2014), 320 St. Mary's Road, Montrose · Also: Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), April 20, 1899, p. 3; Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), June 22, 1899, p. 3
  45. Hillsboro Township names separate committees for the town district's white and Black schools Meeting at the court house, the Hillsboro Township school committee appointed committeemen for each school district in the township and, because of the large number of children, named separate committees for the white and the Black schools of Hillsboro District No. 15. Major John W. Graham, James A. Cheek and C. R. Lassiter took the white school; Thomas H. Webb, N. W. Brown and Dr. J. S. Spurgeon took the Black school. People: John W. Graham, N. W. Brown, John Sanford Spurgeon, James A. Cheek Place: Court house, Hillsborough · Also named: C. R. Lassiter, Thomas H. WebbSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), August 3, 1899, p. 2
  46. Democratic county convention nominates S. W. Andrews for sheriff The Orange County Democratic convention, with John W. Graham as chairman, took eleven ballots to choose S. W. Andrews for sheriff over six rivals. It nominated Ira E. D. Andrews for the House, John Laws for register of deeds, Calvin R. Parish for treasurer, Dr. A. C. Jordan for coroner, James O. Webb for surveyor, and John F. McAdams and Joseph W. Pickett among the commissioners. People: John W. Graham, John F. McAdams, Samuel Weldon Andrews Place: Court house, Hillsborough · Also named: Ira E. D. Andrews, John Laws, Calvin R. Parish, Joseph W. Pickett, A. C. Jordan, James O. WebbSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), August 4, 1904, p. 3
  47. Hillsborough buries Capt. Robert D. Graham beside his mother Capt. Robert Davidson Graham, a Hillsborough-born son of William A. Graham who had commanded a company of the 56th North Carolina and later served as secretary of the Civil Service Commission, died after a fall from a building in Washington on June 27. His body was brought to Maj. John W. Graham's house, and after a service at the Baptist church led by Charles E. Maddry he was buried in the Presbyterian churchyard beside his mother. People: John W. Graham, Charles Edward Maddry, William A. Graham Place: Presbyterian churchyard, Hillsborough · Also named: Robert Davidson GrahamSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), July 6, 1905, p. 3
  48. Superior court convicts J. Knapp Horner of killing Deputy Sheriff Nichols At the summer term of Orange Superior Court before Judge George W. Ward, a jury found J. Knapp Horner guilty of second-degree murder on August 11 for killing Deputy Sheriff D. J. Nichols, and he was sentenced to 12 years in the state penitentiary. Horner, a Confederate veteran of about 59, appealed, and the state Supreme Court affirmed the sentence in November. People: John W. Graham, Victor Silas Bryant Place: Court house, Hillsborough · Also named: J. Knapp Horner, D. J. Nichols, George W. WardSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), August 17, 1905, p. 3
  49. Durham wins an injunction against the Eno Cotton Mills for fouling the Eno The City of Durham, which drew its drinking water from the Eno, obtained a temporary order in early February barring the Eno Cotton Mills at Hillsboro from running sewage and filth into the river. After arguments at Durham on February 10, Judge G. S. Ferguson continued the injunction to a final hearing but suspended it until April 20 so the mill could put in a purifying system approved by the State Board of Health. People: John W. Graham, Frank Nash, Samuel Mallett Gattis Place: Eno Cotton Mill, West Hillsborough · Also named: G. S. Ferguson · Also mentions: Eno Cotton MillsOrange County Observer (Hillsborough), February 22, 1906, p. 3
  50. Orange Democrats renominate the county officers and endorse John W. Graham for the Senate The Democratic county convention at the court house, with S. M. Gattis in the chair, ratified the August 11 primaries, which had renominated every sitting county officer: D. H. Hamilton for clerk of court over Charles Strayhorn, S. W. Andrews for sheriff, John Laws for register of deeds, Calvin R. Parish for treasurer and Sterling Browning, John F. McAdams and Joseph W. Pickett for commissioners, with Isaac W. Pritchard for the House. The convention endorsed Maj. John W. Graham for the state Senate. People: Samuel Mallett Gattis, John W. Graham, Samuel Weldon Andrews, John F. McAdams, Isaac W. Pritchard Place: Court house, Hillsborough · Also named: D. H. Hamilton, Charles Strayhorn, John Laws, Calvin R. Parish, Sterling Browning, Joseph W. PickettSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), August 23, 1906, p. 2
  51. Nineteenth District Democrats nominate John W. Graham and Cary H. King for the Senate at Hillsboro The Democratic convention of the 19th Senatorial District (Alamance, Caswell, Durham and Orange) met in the Hillsboro court house with D. C. Parks as permanent chairman and Shepperd Strudwick as secretary, and unanimously nominated Cary H. King of Caswell and Maj. John W. Graham of Orange for the state Senate. Caswell sent no delegates. People: David C. Parks, Shepperd Strudwick (1868-1961), John W. Graham Place: Court house, Hillsborough · Also named: Cary H. KingSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), September 13, 1906, p. 3
  52. Democrats carry every county office in Orange Every Democrat on the Orange County ticket won in the general election: W. W. Kitchin carried the county for Congress by 407 votes, John W. Graham beat Bramham for the state Senate by 431 and Isaac W. Pritchard won the House seat by 224, and the three Democratic commissioners, John F. McAdams, Joseph W. Pickett and Sterling Browning, were returned. People: William W. (William Walton) Kitchin, John W. Graham, Samuel Mallett Gattis, John F. McAdams, Isaac W. Pritchard Place: Orange County · Also named: Joseph W. Pickett, Sterling BrowningSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), November 15, 1906, p. 2
  53. Hillsborough Township voters ask for a $40,000 good-roads bond election A meeting of Hillsborough Township voters in the court house unanimously asked State Senator John W. Graham to have the legislature authorize a vote on road bonds for thirty years, to be issued in $10,000 lots over up to four years for building the township's public roads. The meeting also asked that Churton and King streets be taken from the township road commission and put under the town, and named A. J. Ruffin, C. D. Jones and Shepperd Strudwick to handle the sale of the bonds. People: John W. Graham, Allen Jones Ruffin, Clarence Dupre Jones, Shepperd Strudwick (1868-1961) Place: Court house, Hillsborough · Also mentions: Churton and King streetsSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), February 14, 1907, p. 3
  54. Hillsboro citizens meet to organize a library association Townspeople met at the Club House to plan a Library Association, with Maj. John W. Graham in the chair and E. Marvin Lockhart as secretary. A committee was named to raise funds and a second meeting was called for February 2. Writing in the Weekly in 1939, Kathleen Graham dated the association from that February 2 meeting, at which twelve citizens organized it and elected Graham president, Samuel M. Gattis vice-president and Marvin Lockhart secretary-treasurer. People: John W. Graham, Samuel Mallett Gattis Place: Club House, Hillsborough · Also named: E. Marvin Lockhart, Kathleen GrahamOrange County Observer (Hillsborough), January 20, 1910, p. 5 · Also: Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), March 1, 1917, p. 1; Chapel Hill Weekly, June 23, 1939, p. 3
  55. District Democrats nominate John W. Graham and Dr. Hurdle for the state Senate at Hillsboro The Democratic senatorial convention for Alamance, Caswell, Durham and Orange met in the court house at Hillsboro and, since the district's plan gave the two seats to Caswell and Orange that year, unanimously nominated Maj. John W. Graham of Orange and Dr. Hurdle of Caswell. Alan Browning became Orange's member of the district executive committee, and R. O. Everett of Durham was kept as chairman. People: David C. Parks, Joseph A. Harris Place: Court house, Hillsborough · Also named: Alan Browning, R. O. EverettSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), August 25, 1910, p. 5
  56. Hillsboro presses its claim to the Central Highway route The committee named by the Central Highway Commission to pick a route across the state, H. B. Varner, Joseph Hyde Pratt, James A. Wellons and William Dunn, met at Hillsboro with delegations from Durham and Mebane who came in twelve automobiles. John W. Graham presided; W. G. Bramham promised Durham's support if the road came through Hillsboro, Will White said Mebane had just arranged to build a mile of macadam, and a Cheeks Township speaker offered to build the road to the Alamance line if Hillsboro built to the township line. People: Joseph Hyde Pratt, John W. Graham, Julian S. Carr Place: Hillsborough · Also named: H. B. Varner, James A. Wellons, William Dunn, W. G. Bramham, Will WhiteSearch the index · Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), June 22, 1911, p. 5
  57. Three students are convicted in Hillsborough in Isaac William Rand's death At the Orange County Courthouse one of the four defendants was freed after the first testimony, and a jury of Orange County farmers found the other three guilty within a few hours. The judge gave the minimum four months with the option of hiring them out, and their families paid the fees and took them home the same day. People: John W. Graham, Isaac William Rand, Victor Silas Bryant Place: Orange County Courthouse, HillsboroughSearch the index · Howard E. Covington Jr., Fire and Stone: The Making of the University of North Carolina under Presidents Edward Kidder Graham and Harry Woodburn Chase (2018), p. 11
  58. Hillsborough residents meet at the Session House library to organize a Red Cross chapter About thirty people met in the library at the old Session House on June 1, 1917, heard Sarah Cheshire of Raleigh explain Red Cross work with sample bandages, and joined the Red Cross. They chose J. C. Webb temporary chairman, Henrietta P. Collins secretary and Rev. T. M. Grant treasurer, and set a mass meeting for June 4. People: John W. Graham, Henrietta P. Collins, J. Cheshire Webb Place: Session House, Hillsborough · Also named: Thomas M. Grant, Sarah Cheshire, T. M. GrantSearch the index · State Archives of North Carolina, Military Collection, WWI Papers, Box 2, Folder 37: Orange County Red Cross History (typescripts, 1918-1919), scan 1
  59. The Orange County Red Cross chapter organizes permanently under John W. Graham At a court house meeting on July 5, 1917, the chapter read its national authority to organize with jurisdiction over all of Orange County except Chapel Hill and elected Maj. John W. Graham chairman, with Henrietta P. Collins as secretary and Margaret Forrest as treasurer. The Red Cross Central Committee's recognition letter followed on July 17. People: Henrietta P. Collins, John W. Graham Place: Hillsborough · Also named: Margaret ForrestSearch the index · Documenting the American South: A Record of the War Activities in Orange County, North Carolina, 1917-1919, p. 30
  60. The Orange County Red Cross reports 455 members at its first annual meeting At a public meeting in the Hillsborough court house, chairman John W. Graham reported 455 members since June 4, branches at Cedar Grove and New Hope, an auxiliary for Black residents, a case of 1,453 surgical dressings shipped to Atlanta, about 150 knitters, and $1,535.43 given. The officers were re-elected, and Capt. Stuart Allen of Canada's Princess Patricia regiment spoke on the fighting in France. People: John W. Graham, Henrietta P. Collins Place: Court House, Hillsborough · Also named: Stuart AllenSearch the index · State Archives of North Carolina, Military Collection, WWI Papers, Box 2, Folder 37: Orange County Red Cross History (typescripts, 1918-1919), scan 7
  61. A Liberty Bonfire on the court house square rallies Hillsborough for the Second Liberty Loan On the night of Tuesday, October 23, young Billy Hayes lit a Liberty Bonfire at the corner of the court house square, and seven speakers gave three-minute talks. The county's four banks sold $132,550 in second-loan bonds, and a women's committee under Mrs. James H. Webb raised $79,800. People: Frank Nash, John W. Graham, Samuel Mallett Gattis, Paul C. Collins Place: Hillsborough · Also named: Billy Hayes, Mrs. James H. WebbSearch the index · Documenting the American South: A Record of the War Activities in Orange County, North Carolina, 1917-1919, p. 62
  62. Orange County raises about $2,000 in a Y.M.C.A. war fund drive A Y.M.C.A. drive ran November 11-19, 1917, led by N. W. Brown, G. K. Collins and T. M. Grant. At a packed court house rally on November 18, with Maj. John W. Graham presiding, pledges reached $1,400, and the rest of the $2,000 was raised afterward. People: John W. Graham, Samuel Mallett Gattis, N. W. Brown Place: Hillsborough · Also named: G. K. Collins, T. M. GrantSearch the index · Documenting the American South: A Record of the War Activities in Orange County, North Carolina, 1917-1919, p. 71
  63. W. S. Roberson joins the county's legal advisory board for draft questionnaires A legal advisory board was formed to help Orange County men fill out the government's draft questionnaires, with Major John W. Graham, Frank Nash and W. S. Roberson as members. People: W. S. Roberson, Frank Nash, John W. Graham Place: Orange CountySearch the index · Documenting the American South: A Record of the War Activities in Orange County, North Carolina, 1917-1919, p. 45
  64. The Orange County Red Cross raises $4,294 in its second War Fund drive A drive led by F. A. McNeer ran May 20-27, 1918, after ministers across the county preached on Red Cross Sunday, May 19. It raised $4,294.38, and the chapter sent $3,300 to national headquarters and kept about a quarter for local work. People: John W. Graham Place: Orange County · Also named: F. A. McNeerSearch the index · Documenting the American South: A Record of the War Activities in Orange County, North Carolina, 1917-1919, p. 39
  65. The Orange County Red Cross sends $120 for canteen work among troops passing through Raleigh Answering James H. Pou's appeal, the executive committee voted on John W. Graham's motion on July 19, 1918 to send $120 from chapter funds to Mrs. William Grimes of the Raleigh chapter for troops passing through Raleigh. The same meeting reported War Fund receipts of $4,294.38. People: James H. Pou, John W. Graham Place: HillsboroughSearch the index · State Archives of North Carolina, Military Collection, WWI Papers, Box 2, Folder 37: Orange County Red Cross History (typescripts, 1918-1919), scan 13
  66. The Orange County Red Cross organizes volunteer nursing for the epidemic Meeting on October 26, 1918, with the county influenza relief committee, the chapter named T. N. Webb and Nellie Russell to take requests for nurses in the West Hill and Hillsborough school districts and canvassed the town for volunteers. Chester Turner and Ross Turner, a Black man, served as volunteer nurses wherever needed. People: John W. Graham, Chester D. Turner Place: Hillsborough · Also named: T. N. Webb, Nellie Russell, Chester Turner, Ross TurnerDocumenting the American South: A Record of the War Activities in Orange County, North Carolina, 1917-1919, p. 77
  67. Hillsborough holds the county homecoming celebration for returned soldiers On July 16, 1919, about 15,000 people came to Hillsborough to welcome home Orange County's soldiers and sailors, with a parade, Gov. Bickett's address at the court house and a dinner for about a thousand guests in Cameron Park. J. Cheshire Webb chaired the celebration, and the county Red Cross voted $300 toward its cost, money the celebration fund turned out not to need. People: Frank Nash, Julian S. Carr, John W. Graham, J. Cheshire Webb, Samuel Mallett Gattis, Thomas W. Bickett Place: Hillsborough · Also mentions: Cameron ParkSearch the index · Documenting the American South: A Record of the War Activities in Orange County, North Carolina, 1917-1919, p. 112 · Also: State Archives of North Carolina, Military Collection, WWI Papers, Box 2, Folder 37: Orange County Red Cross History, Hillsborough chapter h
  68. The University gives Maj. John W. Graham of Hillsborough, its oldest trustee, an honorary doctor of laws On University Day the trustees, through Archibald Henderson, conferred the honorary degree of doctor of laws on Maj. John W. Graham of Hillsborough, the oldest trustee of the University. The same exercises included the Masons' laying of a cornerstone for the first building of the new state-funded building program. People: Archibald Henderson Place: University of North Carolina, Chapel HillSearch the index · The News (Chapel Hill), October 20, 1921, p. 3
  69. Alexander H. Graham inherits Montrose on the death of his father, John W. Graham When John W. Graham died in 1928, Montrose passed to his son Alexander H. 'Sandy' Graham, later lieutenant governor. People: Alexander H. "Sandy" Graham, John W. Graham Place: Montrose, 320 St. Mary's Road, HillsboroughSearch the index · NC State Historic Preservation Office: Hillsborough Historic District Additional Documentation, National Register (OR0077ad, 2014), 320 St. Mary's Road, Montrose · Also: UNC Commission on History, Race, and a Way Forward, Graham Residence Hall
  70. Major John W. Graham dies in Hillsborough Major John W. Graham, Confederate officer, delegate to the 1868 constitutional convention, member of the Holden impeachment court, several-term state senator and University trustee since 1876, died in Hillsborough. He was the oldest member of the board and had helped reopen the University in the 1870s. Place: HillsboroughSearch the index · The Chapel Hill Weekly, March 30, 1928, p. 2
  71. The trustees name a Lower Quad dormitory Graham Residence Hall for John W. Graham Meeting shortly after his death, the university trustees named the dormitory finished in 1924 on the Lower Quad for John Washington Graham, class of 1857 and a trustee since 1876. They praised his service at the 1864 Battle of Plymouth, where Confederate troops massacred Black soldiers and people who had fled slavery. Place: Graham Residence Hall, Chapel HillSearch the index · UNC Commission on History, Race, and a Way Forward: Graham Residence Hall (2021)

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Background on Kirk-Holden War connections, 1870

Background reading on Kirk-Holden War connections, 1870. These works cover the broader subject and may not discuss John W. Graham. Follow a link to find a copy or view the material.

Willie Person Mangum papers,

Mangum, Willie Person,; Mangum, Arthur,; Mangum, Charity Alston Cain

Personal and political papers of Willie Person Mangum, the Whig senator from Orange County, together with papers of Arthur Mangum and Charity Alston Cain Mangum. Correspondents include Daniel Webster, William A. Graham, David L. Swain, John Chavis and Abraham Lincoln, and other topics include plantations at Hillsborough, the estate called Walnut Hill, state politics, agriculture and education.

Library of Congress

Mary Claire Engstrom photographic collection, 1930s-1979 (bulk 1950s-1976).

Engstrom, Mary Claire, 1906-1997 · 1934

Photographs gathered by Mary Claire Engstrom (1906-1997), dated from the 1930s to 1979 with most falling between the 1950s and 1976, about 2,140 items in 4.4 linear feet in UNC's North Carolina Collection. Subjects include historic buildings in Hillsborough and Orange County, the Alexander Dixon House, the Nash Hooper Graham House, Bingham School, Nash and Kollock School, the Hillsboro' Military Academy, Carrboro views, and the Old Chapel Hill Cemetery.

UNC

David L. Swain papers, 1807-1877 (bulk 1833-1868)

Swain, David L. (David Lowry), 1801-1868 · 1807

David L. Swain, 1801 to 1868, served as governor of North Carolina and then as president of the university at Chapel Hill. His papers span 1807 to 1877 with the bulk from 1833 to 1868. Subjects include Cornelia Phillips Spencer, Elisha Mitchell, W. W. Holden and Thomas Ruffin, and cover state politics, railroads, and records of enslaved people. Microfilm reels were made in 1949 and 1974.

UNC

John Heritage Bryan (1798-1870) Collection

Bryan, John Heritage, 1798-1870 · 1716

Papers of John Heritage Bryan (1798 to 1870), New Bern lawyer, legislator and Whig congressman from 1825 to 1829, dating 1716 to 1907. His letters mostly follow social life in the towns and plantations of eastern North Carolina, chiefly New Bern and Raleigh, from the 1820s to the 1860s, and touch the university at Chapel Hill and the Hillsborough Academy.

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