Papers deal with Bethel, Belvoir, and occasionally Falkland townships in the northwest corner of Pitt County, and pertain primarily to property along Grindle and Conetoe creeks.

Those from the period 1768-1849 belong to the Meeks and Randolph families. Besides land deeds, they include a 1788 survey for a grant of land to David Averett and an 1845 business letter and account statement with information on the sale of cotton, corn, and naval stores on the New York market. Post-Civil War documents all pertain to the family of George B. Whitfield, Bethel attorney-farmer-businessman. They are predominantly legal documents pertaining primarily to a 1902 lawsuit over the ownership of 5,000 acres of land. Other information in the collection concerns creation of a public road from Conetoe Creek (undated), changing land prices from the eighteenth to the early twentieth century, and mortgages and seizures of property for nonpayment of debts and taxes. Also discussed are crops, livestock, timber, and a bond issue (1903) for the Greenville Graded School.

Personal/Family Names

• Meeks family
• Randolph family
• Whitfield family

Topical Terms

• Real property--North Carolina--Pitt County
• Agriculture--North Carolina--Pitt County
• Public schools--North Carolina--Greenville

Accessions Information

November 8, 1979, 50 items; Pitt County, N.C., records (1768-1909) consisting of land records, petitions, and miscellaneous. Gift of Mr. Stephen H. Simonds, Greenville, N.C.

Acquisition Information

Gift of Mr. Stephen H. Simonds

Access Restrictions

No restrictions

Copyright Notice

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

Preferred Citation

Meeks-Randolph-Whitfield Papers (#395), East Carolina Manuscript Collection, J. Y. Joyner Library, East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina, USA.