The 1st North Carolina Infantry was organized at the race track at Warrenton, North Carolina during the spring of 1861 and mustered in on June 3, 1861 with nearly 1600 officers and men hailing from eleven North Carolina counties. Colonel Montford S. Stokes, a son of North Carolina Governor Montfort Stokes, became its commanding officer. He served in the Navy from 1832 to 1839 and also fought as a Major with the North Carolina Volunteers during the Mexican–American War. The other field officers were Lieutenant-Colonel Matt W. Ransom and Major John A. McDowell. The regiment initially served in Department of North Carolina, and after the First Manassas was relocated to Virginia.