State of Franklin and its Petitioners

In 1784 North Carolina ceded to the U.S. government the western lands, a portion of which had originally been governed by the self-constituted Watauga Association. The cession was to be accepted within one year, but North Carolina repealed the cession before the year expired. Before learning of the repeal, however, the settlers in the eastern counties had organized the state of Franklin, named in honor of Benjamin Franklin, and elected John Sevier as governor. North Carolina attempted to conciliate the westerners by creating a Washington District with Sevier as brigadier general and David Campbell as judge, thus removing the necessity of taking court cases across the mountains for trial; the settlers, however, decided to continue the separate-state movement. The U.S. Congress failed by two votes to gain the two-thirds majority necessary for passage of a resolution to accept the North Carolina cession. North Carolina refused, until 1789, to remake the cession and encouraged opponents of Sevier, led by John Tipton, to maintain North Carolina government in the Franklin area.

For three years the governments of North Carolina and Franklin attempted to govern the same people and region. The government of Franklin had a constitution providing for the payment of taxes and salaries in the produce of the country. An even more democratic constitution, which would have renamed the state Frankland, was rejected through the influence of Sevier. The feud between Sevier and Tipton reached the point of hostilities, and Sevier was arrested by North Carolina on a charge of high treason. The charge was later dropped, and Sevier was seated in the North Carolina legislature and in Congress. The legislature ceded the Tennessee country a second time; Congress accepted the cession in 1790 and created The Territory of the United States South of the River Ohio (commonly known as the Southwest Territory), which became the state of Tennessee in 1796.

In February 1788, Jonathan Pugh, North Carolina's sheriff of the disputed region, went to John Sevier's home on the Nolichucky river to confiscate goods the state claimed for unpaid taxes. Finding Sevier was not home, Pugh took several slaves and transported them to Col. John Tipton's house for safekeeping.

On February 27, Sevier, upon learning of this seizure, raised 150 men in the extreme cold and marched to Tipton's home. There he demanded the surrender of Tipton and his the others inside. Tipton, though greatly outnumbered, refused. Sevier and his men camped near the cave and spring and laid siege to the house. That evening two women coming to the house were fired upon and one was wounded.

Tipton managed to send messages for reinforcements and by the leap day morning of February 29th, in a snowstorm, Sevier's men advanced on the house but were surprised to find 180 Tipton supporters from Sullivan County who had just arrived. Sevier and his troops retreated and were pursued for about 200 yards before Sevier sent out a flag of surrender to Tipton. Of the handful of casualties on both sides, only Sheriff Pugh's and John Webb's wounds were fatal.

The following year, Sevier swore allegiance to North Carolina and was elected to represent Greene County in the North Carolina Legislature. Both Colonel Tipton and John Sevier served together in the North Carolina session which ratified the U.S. Constitution. Tipton served on the committee which wrote the Tennessee Constitution and, after the formation of that state in 1796, served as Washington County's Senator in the State Assembly during its first two terms. John Sevier became Tennessee's first Governor.

State of Franklin Petitioners - 1787

List of residents of the State of Franklin who petitioned for release from all obligations, taxations, and duties to the North Carolina government:

A - B - C - D - E - F - G - H - I - J - K - L - M - N - O - P - Q - R - S - T - U - V - W - X - Y - Z

Adams, James	Adword Adward	Joseph Alexander	John Armstrong
Adams, Micajah	Anthony Agee	Robert Allison	Lanty Armstrong
John Adkins	Daniel Agee	John Anderson	Owen Atkin
William Adkins	Archibald Alexander	James Arbutton	Benjamin Aze