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OUR 1876 HISTORICAL CABARRUS COUNTY COURTHOUSE <br />"The Veterans who built and administered the courthouse" <br />Cabarrus County in the state of North Carolina and its courthouse "Cabarrus County Courthouse" were named in the honor of <br />Stephen Cabarrus. Stephen Cabarrus was born in France in 1754 and immigrated to America during the Revolutionary War. He <br />settled in Edenton, Chowan County, North Carolina and served two terms as the Speaker of the North Carolina House of <br />Commons. His first term was from 1789 —1793 and his second term was from 1800 —1805. In Edenton, he met and married <br />the well-to-do widow Jeanne Henrietta d'Amery Bodley who was also born in France. Jeanne was born abt.1740 making her <br />about 14 years his senior. When Stephen married Jeanne he became the master of his wife's estate Pembroke Plantation <br />which held 1,980 acres of land and 60 slaves. Historical records show that Stephen Cabarrus often ran fugitive slave ads in <br />eastern North Carolina newspapers in an attempt to bring those who ran away and return them to Pembroke. <br />In 1792 the newly formed Cabarrus County was created from a portion of Mecklenburg County. This newly formed county <br />which was named for Stephen Cabarrus was never visited by its namesake Stephen Cabarrus. <br />Stephen Cabarrus died on 4 August 1808. His wife Jeanne died on 10 November 1799. Both Stephen and Jeanne are buried in <br />the St. Paul's Episcopal Churchyard in Edenton, Chowan County, North Carolina. <br />History of the Cabarrus County Courthouse <br />Much is known about the 1876 Cabarrus County historic courthouse. Facts known are who owned the property the courthouse <br />was built upon, that the construction was started in 1875 and completed in 1876 at the cost of $30,000, the types of materials <br />used in its' construction, the architectural style, the history of the clock in the tower, the history of the bell in the tower, and <br />the names of those responsible for building the courthouse are all known. In May 1973, the organization Historic Cabarrus was <br />formed to save the courthouse from destruction and to restore it to its former glory. In the 70's the mindset was to "tear down <br />those old building" and build new very modern ones. Go modern was the flavor of the day. On 15 May 1974 an application was <br />completed and submitted to the National Register of Historic Places for the purpose of saving this old courthouse. <br />The names are documented of those who were responsible for building the 1876 courthouse and jail. They were the elected <br />Cabarrus County Commissioners who voted to build it, the building committee, and those who were the administrators that <br />worked in the new 1876 courthouse, and the Sheriff who was responsible for the new jail. <br />Who were those people who built and originally ran the courthouse? Not just their names, not just the positions they held, but <br />who really were these people? Defining who these people are is the purpose of this research. What is now known is that those <br />responsible for building and running the 1876 courthouse and jail were veterans. <br />The logical starting point to define who these people really were that had the responsible for the building of the new <br />courthouse and jail would be to begin with the Cabarrus County Commissioners. <br />Page 1 <br />Page 16 <br />