Richard Caswell (3 August 1729 – 10 November 1789) was Governor of North Carolina from 12 November 1776 to 20 April 1780, succeeding Josiah Martin and preceding Abner Nash, and again from 13 May 1785 to 20 December 1787, succeeding Alexander Martin and preceding Samuel Johnston.
Biography[]
Richard Caswell was born on 3 August 1729 in Joppa, Maryland, one of eleven children. In 1745, he departed for New Bern, North Carolina and established the town of Kinston in 1762. Caswell joined the local militia in the fight against the "Regulators" at the 1771 Battle of Alamance, commanding the right wing of Governor William Tryon's forces at the battle. In 1774-1775, Caswell represented his state to the Continental Congress, and he rose in the ranks of the North Carolina militia during the American Revolutionary War. In 1776, he defeated the Tories at the Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge, and in 1780 he became a Major-General in the Continental Army; his forces performed poorly at the battle of Camden. On 13 May 1785, he was elected Governor of North Carolina, serving in this post until 1787. From 1788 to 1789, he served as the Grand Master of the Freemasons in North Carolina, and his successor Samuel Johnston would also succeed him as Governor of North Carolina.