Uncovering Slavery at the North Carolina State Capitol

Welcome to From Naming to Knowing, an ongoing project of the North Carolina State Capitol Historic Site. The goal of this project is to name and, as much as possible, share the stories of the enslaved men who built and maintained the State Capitol between 1833 and 1865. The project team is committed to learning all that we can about each individual as we research every known name.

Enslaved people were forced to carry out a variety of tasks in service to the state. Most of the men listed within these pages worked on the Capitol’s construction in the 1830s, either as laborers at the construction site or as quarry hands at the nearby state-operated quarry. In several cases, documents refer to enslaved laborers at the Capitol but do not record their names – we remember these individuals with “Unnamed” in the list of names below. All stories are unique, but taken together they illustrate the complexities of slavery in a community. Some stories include both slavery and Emancipation. No matter how much or how little is currently known, each person should be named as we honor their humanity and contribution.

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North Carolina State Capitol

1 East Edenton St, Raleigh, NC 27601

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The following enslaved men built and sustained the Capitol from 1831 until 1865:

William Abott – George Andrews – James Andrews – Simon Andrews – Arthur Baker – Buck Baker – Ephraim Baker – Tom Battle – Jerry Bennehan – Henry Blount – Junius Brickle – Gilbert Buffalo – Clayton Cannon – Stepney Cannon – Gabe Cobbs – Dick Coman – Henderson Coman – Ingram Coman – John Coman – Matthew Coman – Sam Coman – Anderson Cooke – Benjamin Cooke – Edmund Cooke – Horace Cooke – Robert Cooke – Buck Cotton – Daniel Cotton – Riddick Cotton – Sampson Cotton – Wiley Cotton – James Curtis – Burrell Dilliard – John Dilliard – Boston Finch – Henry Ford – William Ford – Peter Gaddy – Anthony Gales – Sam Gales – John Geddy – Roger Haley – Isaac Harrison – Isam Harrison – Peter Harrison – Phill Harrison – Tim Harrison – Abraham Haywood – Anderson Haywood – Cato Haywood – Charles Haywood – Elich Haywood – Henry Haywood – Jacob Stanley – John Haywood – Joseph Haywood – Moses Haywood – Peter Haywood – Phillip Haywood – Rochester Haywood – Sam Haywood – Sandy Haywood – Wiley Haywood – Jack High – Jim High – Anderson Hill – Washington Hill – Bob Hinton – Henry Hinton – Jerry Hinton – Abraham Hunt – Peter Hunter – Pompey Hunter – Allen Hutchings – Ned Hutchins – Sam Hutchins – Dick Jones – Friday Jones – Logan Jones – Robin Jones – Roger Kelly – Lunsford Lane – Handy Lockhart – John M’Pheeters – Simon M’Pheeters – Henry Marshall – Beverly Morning – Edmund Nichols – Fountain Nichols – Sandy Nichols – Taylor Nichols – Thomas Nichols – William Nichols – Yancy Nichols – John Noyes – Nat Peck – Ned Peck – Anderson Phillips – Willis Polk – William Pruitt – Wesley Pulham – Bob Pulliam – Ivan Robinson – Glasgow Saunders – Henry Saunders – Peter Saunders – Washington Saunders – Jordan Spruill – Caesar Stone – David Stone – George Stone – Giles Stone – Nelson Stone – Reuben Stone – Robin Stone – Nathan Stuart – Isham Terrell – Garland Terry – Richard Terry – Horace Thomas – Joseph Thomas – Joshua Thompson – Alston Tucker – Unnamed – Lewis Ward – Alfred Wheaton – Andrew Whitaker – Frank Whitaker – Madison William – August Williams – Elisha Williams – Evans Williams – Tom Williams – William Winters – Phill Womble – Frank Wrinn – Squire Wrinn – Daniel Young – Isham Young – Joseph Young

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Do you want to know more about this effort? Want to contribute to our research?

This site is an ongoing research project that will change over time as new information or records are located. Retracing the lives of enslaved people can be a difficult process, as those keeping and updating written records were primarily White people and often enslavers. If you have information on any of the people listed on this page or slavery at the State Capitol, please contact us using the form below. The North Carolina State Capitol is administered by the Division of State Historic Sites under the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.