Barbecue, North Carolina facts for kids
Barbecue is a small, unincorporated community located in Harnett County, North Carolina, United States. It's part of the Dunn Micropolitan Area, which is also connected to the larger Raleigh–Durham–Cary area.
Contents
How Barbecue Got Its Name
An early settler named "Red" McNeill saw steam rising from a nearby creek. This reminded him of the meat-cooking pits he had seen in the Caribbean. So, he named the creek Barbecue Creek. The name became official in the early 1750s. This was when many Scottish Gaelic-speaking settlers started moving into the area.
Barbecue's History
Early Church and Famous Visitors
The Barbecue Presbyterian Church had an early minister named Rev. Iain Beutan, also known as John Bethune. He was from a place called Glenelg. Around 1773, he convinced a famous poet, Iain mac Mhurchaidh, to move from Scotland to the Colony of North Carolina.
During colonial times, a very famous person attended this church: Flora MacDonald. She was known for helping Prince Charles Edward Stuart escape after his defeat in the Battle of Culloden in 1746.
The American Revolution and Loyalists
When the American Revolution began, Rev. Bethune, Iain mac Mhurchaidh, and Flora MacDonald's husband supported King George III. They were known as Loyalists. Rev. Bethune even served as a chaplain for the Loyalist soldiers.
After the Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge in February 1776, Rev. Bethune was captured by Patriot soldiers. He was imprisoned in Philadelphia with other Loyalist officers. Later, he moved to British-held Montreal and then settled in Williamstown, Ontario. There, he helped start the first Presbyterian Church in that area.
Even though Rev. Bethune was a Loyalist, the church and the local area became known as "an island of Whigs in a sea of Tories." This means many people in the community supported the American cause, even if some leaders did not.
A Skirmish at the Church
On March 27, 1781, the Barbecue Presbyterian Church was the site of a small fight. Local Patriots from the Cumberland County Militia, led by Captain Daniel Buie, fought against British soldiers. These British soldiers were part of the British Legion and led by Lt.-Col. Banastre Tarleton.
The fight resulted in one Patriot soldier dying and several others being wounded. The British won this skirmish. The surviving Patriots were taken prisoner and held on prison ships in Charleston harbor.
See also
In Spanish: Barbecue (Carolina del Norte) para niños
