The following petition to create Hill’s Neck Road was found at the NC State Archives. It reads as follows:
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To the Worshipfull court of Pleas & Quarter sessions of Craven County, held on the second Monday In Septr. In the Town of Newbern.
Gentlemen being Ancious, the crooked should be made strait, & Ruff ways Smoove, and to shorten the Distance from Core Point Main Road, near Elijah Calliways plantation, on No. Side of the head of Little Swift Creek, through Hills Neck to the old Tarr Yard on the Main Road leading from Bay River & Smiths Creek, to Kingston, which will greatly add to the convenience of Many of the neighbours, and also a great Number of Travillers going from Pamlico, toward Kingston, Raighley, or Even Willmington, so as to avoid crossing Dangerous (or wide ferrys,) your petitioners therefore Humbly prays, your worships, to grant an order for Laying off, & Making the Same a publick Road, and that the hands Liveing on the North Side of Little Swift Creek, should be assigned to said new Road. & your petitioners as in Duty Bound will ever pray.
Sept. 2d 1812.
David Whitford
Thos. Bowen
Hezekiah Willis
Ephraim Pearce
John Hall
John Hall
Henry Ipock
Evean Jones
Nathan Hendricks
Stephen Ernul
Harmon Gaskins
John Arther
Major Willis
Shadrach Willis
Wm. Bryan
Joel Wall
Caleb Toler
D.D. Dunn
Moses Ipock
Ephraim Willis
Jesse Pearce
John IPock
Stephen Searles
[second column of signatures]
Abner Pearce
Samuel Willis
Reuben Callaway
Richard Brown
Stephen More
Milbery More
William More
Hardy Whitford
Leven Dunn
Moses Dunn
Elijah Callaway
Geo. Wilson
David Brothers
Lewis Bryan
The Court will ples [please] to under stand that we wish all the hands Liveing on the North Side of littel Swif Creek abve Fishers Swamp and below Elijah Callaways watter hel Dreen [??] to be the handes asigned to mak[e] and Ever mentain the abov Craved Road and that Hezekiah Willis be apinted over seer of Said HIll neck Road.
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The petition ends there, but a map of the roads and creeks is drawn at the bottom. If I get a chance I will scan and add the map to the posting at a later time. The original signatures are in two columns, David Whitford at the top of the first column, Abner Pearce at the top of the second.
I have added the image of the roadways in 1812. The dotted line is the proposed Hills Neck Road, the really dark lines are the rivers and creeks. Click on the image above for more detail.