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WILKES COUNTY HISTORY
Wilkesboro is the county seat of Wilkes County. A Moravian surveying party passed through the
area in 1752, and documented that a Cherokee Indian village stood in the old fields. The Cherokee
translation for Mulberry Fields is "Keowee". Keowee was often used by the Cherokees as a place
name during the Colonial Period.
The act establishing Wilkes County stated that the first court would be held at the home of John
Brown located at the bend of the Yadkin River on the second day of March 1778. Commissioners
were named to select a place centrally located for the erection of a courthouse, prison and stocks.
On June 2, 1778, Mulberry Field Meeting House was chosen to serve as the courthouse.
During the Revolutionary War, the Mulberry Fields area was a common mustering site for the Wilkes
County Militia. The Mulberry Meeting House was a common meeting place to discuss local government
issues of the day.
In 1795 an act was passed naming new commissioners to purchase fifty acres of land on which to lay
out a town and erect public buildings. Mulberry Fields became Wilkesboro in 1800 when the town was
laid out by William Lenoir. Lenoir refused to allow the town to be named after himself. Later, following
his death, the next town up the road was named for Lenoir.
Wilkes County has a rich and varied history involving the Revolutionary and Civil Wars. You may select
a topic of interest below to take our Virtual History Tour, and view all of our current historical information.
Be sure to check back often for updates.
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