Biographical/historical information

Exum Lewis Curl was born on February 8, 1802. He married Nancy Fort and had at least three children: Saluda, Francis, and Virginia. Curl died at the age of 62 on February 4, 1865. He is buried in the Exum L. Curl Cemetery in Nash County, NC.

George Washington Carawan (b. 1800 - d. November 30, 1853) was a Baptist preacher from Hyde County, NC. He was raised by a single mother and became an atheist at a young age. At 21, he married Elizabeth Carow and moved to Beaufort County, where he worked as a farmer. After a confrontation with his brother, Carawan moved back to Hyde County and seven years later converted to the Baptist church. He became a preacher and served the church for twenty-five years. Elizabeth died in 1839 and Carawan remarried to Mary Bell, his housekeeper. Carawan accused a schoolteacher, Clement H. Lassiter, of taking interest in his wife. Other reports say that Carawan was assaulting his wife when Lassiter broke into their house to prevent her from being murdered. Carawan told his neighbors that Lassiter should be shot, and Lassiter was later found murdered. Carawan was arrested and taken to court for the crime. Upon his guilty verdict's announcement, Carawan took out a gun and fired at the prosecution's counsel, who survived, then fired the gun at himself. Following his death, Carawan was also accused of his first wife's murder and a suspected lover of his second wife.

Written April 2024

Scope and arrangement

The Exum L. Curl Papers consist of a Day Book of the Nash County school Districts 12 and 13, as recorded by schoolteacher Exum L. Curl for the years 1854-1857. The book, which is handwritten and bound by sewn leather, contains notes pertaining to school matters, listings of names of students, rules of the school, the dates of terms, number of days taught and number of days each student attended. Also included are scattered financial records; examples of problems in history, math, and verse; and an account of 1853 trial for a murder committed by preacher George W. Carawan.

Administrative information

Custodial History

January 28, 1970, 1 volume; Day Book (1854-1857) for Nash County school teacher. Gift of Mr. and Mrs. J. Burton Ricks, Enfield, North Carolina.

Source of acquisition

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. J. Burton Ricks

Processing information

Processed by H. Hunneycutt, March 1970

Encoded by Apex Data Services

Copyright notice

Literary rights to specific documents are retained by the authors or their descendants in accordance with U.S. copyright law.

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