The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1900-05-15
I'm HANGMAN'S WOODS
To This Day a Kind of Superstition
Awe Connected With the Place.
THE HOME COUNTYOf NATHANIEL MACON
In His Day, the Last of the Romans, Was Ac'
customed to be Addressed as Mr..
Meekins." A Visit to War
ren's Patriarch.
To the Editor.

~ n :
Whoever visits Warren county or
its capital Warrenton. cannot fail to
be impressed with the many mOnu-
ments Of a past and happier clvlllza-
ton. Nowhere in North Carolina is
a more representative section Of old
North Carolina. of ."FO' de war times
than is to be seen in Southern Warren
or the country about WarrentOn Itself
At the beginning of the century the
old county Of Warren was i~lourishing.
1t was 10 that section Of the State
what Hillsborc was to Orange an:i
counties. This relative
Importance did not last. \ rap'd
growth. such as characterized North
ern towns before the war or Southern
towns since was nknOW III North
! Carolina before 1860. WarrentOn. like
all other towns Of the State. was a
country place. Il residence town OF
some three or four hundred white
| people and perhaps two Thousand ne
GRO slaves. From 1910 to 1860 was the
golden era Of the patriarchal c%iv,li-
zation Of North Carolina before the
war. and Warrenton certainly was no
! exception to this general rule. All the
| prominent houses Of the old town to-
| day were built during that period. at
least. With few exceptions. 1t IS sci
dom that one sees q place OF the same
! size that can boast SO many handsome
residences residences built b. Il past
generation. lis true: yet beautiful.
spacious and surrounded by lOrdlN
! oaks and broad lawns. And the peO-
pie OF the owl and surrounding
- = 80 -.
these proud. ~aristocratic old buildings.
They have no and cannot forget the
past. and like that generous. chival-
rous generation. they are chiva!rous.
cultured and hospitable to Il fault.
The very houses with their broad
piaIZaS and wide. open doors: thelr
shady groves and graNellN winding
walks and promenadeS tempt the
- to 90 in and enjoy 4 boun-
teouS hospitality.
The most striking thing though is
the living presence Of 4 departed age
that one feels and sees on every hand
in Warren. county as we'll as town.
The homeSteadS Of the Eatons. the
.\lStonS and others hardly less known
10 North Carolina. history tel! us O;
their builders and proud masters.
\ trip in the country in ANY direc-
ton is for the same reason interest
INC in the extreme.
1t was the writer's privilege to take
a trip To the Southern part of the
county in company With the present
sheriff OF Warren. Nathaniel Macon
Jones. the son and brother Of sheritfS
Of Warren county. We travelled along
the old louiSburg road-the Old stage
road from the North TO the South. u
road along which the Virginia 1roop
came to North Cardinals assistance in
the RcNolution. The same too that Ire
! del and John Marshall. Suprem, col,"t
Judges used to 90 to Raleigh. Column
bia and Savannah: and it does not re
quirc a very lively imagination in trav-
filing such 4 road to have before ones
mind the dignitied. cOurtlN Old gen
tlenen of 4 century g
There Was old Butte court house to
locate and the hangman's wood to
point out the little forest on i pref
tN steep declivitN where criminals.
guilty OF horse-stealing or carrying
off too MANY hams from Il n~eighbOr's
smoke. house. were hanged. No mar
has been willing to make the place 4
part of his field kind Of supersti-
tious awe seems TO connect itself with
the place.
Only Two miles away is the old Gid
con Macon place now large fields
that have been in steady cultivation
for Il hundred years. \ large half
dead pear tree marks the spot Wher
, the house used to Stand-the house
!, in which Nathaniel Macon was BORN
Nat. Macon or Mr.. Meckins" as
the more ilIiterate people in Ware,
call him. \ little further away is the
Old Philemon Hawkins homestead
F., the place where Benjamin Hawkins
\-
: in Congress- was born and reared
! The two boys went to school tooethe,
, to the first bishop Of the EpiScopa
, Church Of North Carolina. The school
house was about halfway between tn,
homes Of the two families. and no
far from the Old court house. The
, neighbor-boNS afterwards went tt
: the same college Princeton. the grca
| Institution for sons Of "diSSenters'
{ all over the South at that time. :,
mile or two to the left and lust acrOs.
I. the ShOcco creek are the famous Sui
T. phur Springs where the elite of a for
Z mer day used to spend the summer
t There Annie CustiS Lee. daughter o
t the famous general. died in 1862. an,
there in the family cemetery Of IN,
y ZONES. she was buried. Warren coun
s tN buried the remains Of the nubl,
soldiers daughter: the people erected
G Il handsome granite monument to he
memory. The deserted hotel. with IT
5 broad NerandaS and great banQiIe
G hall reminds one sadly Of the civil
| zation that was then making It's "rea
S fight for existence.
Robert +. Lee visited this last rest
e ing place of his beloved daughter 500
after the war closed and the old conn
# tN turned out as never before to homo
n mortal man. The people literall
l. Wept With the ~sorrowing commando
$ and it is said that "Uncle Robert
recognized man. Of his old follower
and called them by name. There wa
IS talk in Virginia Of removing Ami
a Lees remains to that State. but lie
Y. preferred to leave them amongst tn