Wynns History

History of the Wynns family taken from Judge B. B. Winborne
History of Birtie and Hertford Counties

We find Captain George Wynns representative from Birtie County in the Colonial Assembly in 1731-32 and again in 1734.  John Wynns represented Bertie County in 1746.  The Eastern Counties began to rebel against Governor Johnson.  He wanted to deprive them of their proper representation.  In 1746 John Wynns was the only member of Birtie who appeared.  The Governor issued his mandates that the members must attend the sessions and represent the free holders, but they defied the commands.  The next time we find Birtie and the other indignant counties being represented in full was in 1754.  Benjamin Wynns was one of the representatives from Birtie County, from 1754 to 1759.  William Wynns was elected Justice of the Peace in 1759, but was cut off in the new county of Hertford.  Benjamin Wynns, clerk of the court, was also cut off.  He represented Hertford County in the General Assembly from 1764 to 1774.  Benjamin Jr. was a member of the assembly from 1772-74.

George Wynns was a member of the assembly in 1775.  Benjamin Wynns lived where the Town of Winston is now located; he was a man of great wealth, long experience as a public officer and legislator.  Mr. Wynns in 1754 introduced a bill to locate and incorporate a town on his land at Barfields.  That failed, and ten years later, while a member from the new County of Hertford, he, in 1764, introduced a bill to establish a town on his land, where the town of Winston is now located.  The bill passed in 1768, and he donated 150 acres of land for the town which was named Winston in his honor.

Benjamin Wynns was appointed one of the Commissioners in the act., to have the town laid off, the streets named, lots numbered, and a map made of the town. Fifty acres were set apart for the town Commons.  This was the first incorporated town in the County, and stood alone in its glory for twenty years.  It soon became the center and the mecca of Hertford's dignitaries.  Benjamin Wynns owned all the land and river front from Folly Branch to Hares-Mill-Race, besides other large bodies of land in the county.

Benjamin Wynns was the first clerk of the Court in the County from 1760 to 1764.

John A. Wynns of Winston was probably the son of Benjamin Wynns, Jr. Benjamin and John Wynns were men of prominence in Birdie Precinct as far back as 1735.  They were Deputy surveyors under the Surveyors General of the Crown in 1744 and their crown depositions were taken on behalf of the crown to prove charges of corruption against Governor Johnson, for violating the land Grant laws. The offices held by Benjamin and John Wynns were of great importance in these days, and only worthy and efficient men were selected to fill them.  Both of them were freeholders and on the juror list of Birtie in 1740.  John Wynns was deputy clerk in the court of that County, aged 39.  COL. REC. VOL. 4  PAGE 1117.

George Wynns, who was still older, was prominent in Birtie, as far back as 1719. George Wynns was a member of the Grand Jury July 28th, 1719.  In 1723 he was a witness in all land suits tried in court held at Ahoskie.  April 9th, 1724 Wynns was appointed a justice of the peace for Birtie Precinct.  He was Clerk of the Court of his County and in 1728 is mentioned in the Col. Records as Captain in the Militia.  He represented Birtie Precinct after the Lord Proprietors surrendered their Charter rights to the Crown, in the Assembly of the Providence from 1731 to 1736.  "Williams Wynns was a Justice of the Peace in Birtie six years prior to the foundation of Hertford, and was also a justice in Hertford."

George Wynns Jr. was made a major in the Colonial Militia in 1764 and entered the Continental Army in 1777.  In 1780 has captured by the British and carried to London and held as a prisoner until the close of the war.  He returned to Hertford County and was a member from his county in the Convention of the State in 1788, to consider the constitution ratification of the United States Constitution.

Benjamin, John, William and George Jr., who was made Major in 1764 must have been the sons of George Wynns Sr., Benjamin Wynns son, George was Public Registrar from 1760 to 1764 and clerk of the Court from 1764 to 1772 and a member of the Assembly from 1773-74.

We do not find John Wynns mentioned in the public life after 1746.  Peter Wynns was in the Assembly from 1769 to 1770, after this date we loose track of him. Benjamin Wynns Jr. left four sons, Benjamin III, William, George and Thomas. Thomas was the youngest and was born in 1758 or 59 according to the notice of his death, published in the Raleigh Register in 1825.  His age given at his death being about 66 years.  Benjamin Wynns III left four sons, Benjamin IV, Thomas, James, Dean and William B. Wynns.

The United States Census of 1790 shows at that time John A. Wynns, Mathews Wynns, Major George Wynns, General Thomas Wynns and William Wynns were living in this county and were heads of families.  The others had died previous to that date except Benjamin III.  The Wynns family were among the oldest and most prominent in the county in those days.

The official record of the county indicates how they were regarded by their fellow citizens.  The name is printed various ways in the old Colonial record and state records.  We find it spelled Winn, Wynn, and Wynne, but the old members of the families spelled it Wynns, as shown in their signature on their wills.  The name is spelled in the Charter of Virginia on 1609, Wynne, Captain Thomas Wynne, Captain Peter Wynne and Captain Edmond Wynne are there mentioned in the list of Grantees in their Charter from King Charles II of this illustrious family, Col. James M. Wynns of Murfreesboro was the last of the older set of Wynns to pass on.  His uncle, Benjamin Wynns has descendants living in Florida.  An Aunt of Mrs. James D. Wynns married, Dr. Henry B. Le Vert of Mobile, Alabama.  During the colonial times, the assemble selected a list of persons in each county qualified for Juror service and only free holders were selected.  In 1740 we find Benjamin Wynns one of the jurymen.

In 1776 there were in Hertford County 1393 white men over 18 years of age capable of bearing arms At the General Mueferhe Hertford Reg. of Militia, May 28th, 1772, Col. Benjamin Wynns made the following report.

Commissioned Officers in the regiment are Benjamin Wynns Sr. Co. Benjamin Wynns Jr. Ens.; the next congress, August 21st, 1775, Hertford sent an able and patriotic delegation, one of whom was George Wynns. Col. Rec. Vol. 10 page 164.  On September 1775 the following persons were appointed by this Congress

Officers from Hertford County, Col. Benjamin Wynns, Col. Thomas Wynns and Major George Wynns, during the earlier days of the war.  Col. Benjamin Wynns of Hertford County was in command of the British forces. Col. Wynns succeeded in driving Dunmore back in a speedy retreat.  Col. Wynns was met with great rejoicing among the people and was rewarded with unbounded praises of the Americans along his route.

While the war was raging the state of North Carolina kept up the legislative branch of its government.  William Wynns was one of the representatives from Hertford County in 1779.  North Carolina called a convention to meet at Hillsboro on the 21st of July 1788 to consider the Bill of Rights and Constitution drawn for the American States to adopt and ratify.  This convention was composed of 288 members.  Hertford County sends five Delegates, two of whom were Major George Wynns and General Thomas Wynns.  The convention refused to adopt the constitution, the members returned home to consult their constituents.  The state in 1789 called another convention to meet at Fayetteville on the 2nd day of November to again consider whether North Carolina would join the Union. Hertford sent to their convention some of their ablest  statesmen, General Thomas Wynns being one of them.  General Thomas Wynns was a member of the House of Commons of 1787 and of the convention in 1789, begins his protracted service as state senator from the county from 1790 to 1800 inclusive.  He was elected as Presidential Elector in 1801 and voted for Thomas Jefferson for President of the United States.  He was elected to Congress to succeed Charles Johnson, deceased of Edenton, in 1802, and again elected to the Eighth and Ninth Congresses ending March 4th, 1807.

He declined further nominations for Congress, was again elected by his Countrymen a member of the State Senate, where he continued to serve his country until 1817, when he retired to private life.  He was made a Major General in the State Troops in the First Division which position he held for a number of years.  He was one of the first trustees of the State University of North Carolina.  The Raleigh Registry of 1825 speaks of him as a splendid and noble character and as one of the first men of the state.  The paper also states that he had been frequently urged to accept the nomination for Governor, but he invariably declined.  He was a member of the Electoral College in 1809 and voted for James Madison for President.  In the war of 1812, we find in the Hertford County list of soldiers, William Wynns, Benjamin Wynns and Peter Wynns of Tyrrell County, David Wynns, Henry Wynns and George Wynns of Martin County, James D. Wynns served in the House in 1821.  He long was one of the leading Justices of the Peace and was one of the Special Court of the County for several years prior to his removal to Birtie County.  At the May term 1830 of the County Court, the following Justices of the Peace were among them were James D. Wynns and William B. Wynns.

This was a grand occasion in the county as were all the May terms of Court.  Now was the time for the election of all county officers.  All the grand Moguls of the County were present.  It was a grand display of splendid citizenship.

HERTFORD COUNTY ** CAPITOL WINSTON

Its capitol is Winston and is so named in complement of the Wynne's family, who was for many years a wealthy, patriotic and distinguished family in that county; although a small county and remote from danger, yet in the days 1776 was ready to aid in the cause of liberty.  George Wynns was one of the delegates to the convention at Hillsborough, August 21, 1775.  His delegates to Halifax April 4, 1776 were Sumner, Brickle, and Baker.  The officers appointed by the Congress were Colonel Beay Wynne.

(Wheeler's History of North Carolina., Pp 208.)