First map of Beaufort 1713In 1713, about a year before his untimely death, Farnifold Green, frightened and discouraged, assigned his land patent to Robert Turner, a merchant from Craven Precinct. Even though the Tuscarora War had delayed the establishment of the town, within months after the peace treaty was in force, a town was laid out on the southwest corner of the peninsula between the North River on the west and the Newport River on the east.
Robert Turner named the town Beaufort after his friend, Henry Somerset, the 2nd Duke of Beaufort, one of the Lords Proprietors, who in 1713 was Palatine of Carolina—the chief position among the Proprietors. Turner hired Deputy Surveyor Richard Graves to design the layout of the town.
Except for a few minor changes, the plan and the streets have never changed.
Two streets were named for the then reigning Queen Anne—Queen and Ann Streets. Orange Street was named for William III of Orange, who had occupied the throne before Queen Anne. Moore Street was named for Colonel James Moore, a hero in the Tuscarora War. Pollock Street was named for the Colonial Governor then in office. Craven Street was named for one of the Lords Proprietors, William Lord Craven. The only road into town was named Turner Street, after Robert Turner, the father of the town.
It wasn’t until after 1782 that Front Street got its name—before that, the irregular oyster-shell thoroughfare was known as Water Street.
Robert Turner named the town Beaufort after his friend, Henry Somerset, the 2nd Duke of Beaufort, one of the Lords Proprietors, who in 1713 was Palatine of Carolina—the chief position among the Proprietors. Turner hired Deputy Surveyor Richard Graves to design the layout of the town.
Except for a few minor changes, the plan and the streets have never changed.
Two streets were named for the then reigning Queen Anne—Queen and Ann Streets. Orange Street was named for William III of Orange, who had occupied the throne before Queen Anne. Moore Street was named for Colonel James Moore, a hero in the Tuscarora War. Pollock Street was named for the Colonial Governor then in office. Craven Street was named for one of the Lords Proprietors, William Lord Craven. The only road into town was named Turner Street, after Robert Turner, the father of the town.
It wasn’t until after 1782 that Front Street got its name—before that, the irregular oyster-shell thoroughfare was known as Water Street.
Deputy Surveyor Richard Graves, draftsman for the plat, had been born about 1673 in Old Rappahannock County, Virginia, to Francis Graves and Jane Davenport Maguffey. Somewhere between 1708 and 1714, Richard left Virginia and slogged south to Carolina. He and Francis Shackelford, also from Essex County, Virginia, bought a sloop—probably speculating on engaging in coastal trade.
In 1715 Richard Graves married Hannah Kent Smithwick Green, widow of Farnifold Green. Graves family, and Essex County, Virginia records show Richard Graves as a person of recognized ability, taking a prominent part in the affairs of Craven Precinct. In the Colonial Records of North Carolina, Richard Graves is noted in 1726 as representing Craven Precinct in the Lower House of the Assembly of North Carolina.
Richard Graves made out his will on April 30, 1730 and died that same year. After his death, his wife Hannah, who outlived three other husbands besides Graves, ran the ferry across a tributary of the Neuse River not far from Turkey Quarter on the Old Washington Post Road in what is now Craven County. Hannah’s fifth and last husband was George Linnington; they had no children. Hannah is thought to have died about 1742.
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