Tryon County, North Carolina

Tryon County is a former county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It was formed in 1768 from the part of Mecklenburg County west of the Catawba River, though the legislative act that created it did not become effective until April 10, 1769. It was named for William Tryon, Governor of North Carolina from 1765 to 1771. In 1779 Tryon County was divided into Lincoln County and Rutherford County, and ceased to exist. The county courthouse was located near the present-day unincorporated community of Tryon in Gaston County (which was later formed from Lincoln County).

Tryon County played an important early role in the American Revolution. Following the Battle of Lexington in Massachusetts, 49 Tryon residents gathered at the Tryon County courthouse and issued the Tryon Resolves, a declaration of resistance to coercive actions by the British Empire against its North American colonies. The Tryon Resolves were among the earliest of many local colonial declarations against the British government. The document was signed on August 14, 1775, predating the United States Declaration of Independence by almost 11 months.

As tensions between the North American colonies and the British government increased, residents began forming Committees of Safety to prepare militia companies for a potential war. On September 14, 1775 many of the signers of the Tryon Resolves formed the Tryon County Militia in preparation for British retaliation against American revolutionaries.

ee also

* List of extinct U.S. counties
* List of North Carolina counties

References

* [http://www.glrl.lib.nc.us/tryon.htm Tryon County, NC: 1768–1779]