The North Carolina Mason

to Joseph's unexpected death. He would die far away from home in Philadelphia on Wednesday, November 10, 1779, and be laid to rest in the graveyard of Christ Church. Brother Joseph Hewes was 49 years old. William Hooper entered upon the world's stage on Wednesday, June 28, 1742, in Boston, Massachusetts. Channeling his energies toward the study of law, William would graduate from Harvard, "reading law" with the learned James Otis. As tensions rose between the American Colonies and Britain, his family voiced loyalist sentiments. Between 1764/67 Brother Hooper would relocate to the less volatile colony of North Carolina. Here, in Wilmington, he established a most successful law practice as well as achieving the appointment of Royal Governor Tryon's Deputy Adjutant General. It was during this time that disgruntled Colonists, known as Regulators, voiced their displeasure with the Crown's policy. In 1771 Governor Tryon utilized military force to suppress this movement, and did so at the Battle of Alamance (somewhat a precursor to the American Revolution). William Hooper was involved in this campaign to end the Regulators' quest. With his law practice thriving, William would wed Anne Clarke, and their union would result in the birth of a daughter and two sons. Again, with Colonial records being somewhat "sketchy," it is widely accepted that Brother Hooper began his Masonic journey in Hanover Lodge (extinct) in Masonborough, NC. This Lodge was established mainly by French & Indian War veterans and successful men in the Wilmington area. Some say it was a precursor to Wilmington's St. John's Lodge No. 1, which Brother Hooper probably attended. Smoldering tensions continued and Hooper's feelings diverted from loyal subject to those of a patriot. He would sit in the North Carolina Provincial Congress, and then be elected to serve in the 1st and 2nd Continental Congresses. It is reported by John Adams that Hooper's oratory skills rivaled Virginians Richard Henry Lee and Patrick Henry. Reportedly Hooper had no reservations about signing the Declaration, making known his feelings for personal liberty. Later when British troops under Brother General Charles Cornwallis landed in Wilmington, William Hooper's home and goods were burned and his assets seized. He and his wife and family fled Wilmington and stayed in Hillsborough, NC. Unfortunately whilst fleeing and living in harsh conditions, William contracted malaria. With the war's conclusion, William returned to his once lucrative law practice. Yet, with his fortune lost, he and his family spent more time in the Piedmont of North Carolina. In hoping for unity between Americans, he called for leniency toward Loyalists. Seeming to be in fair health, he retired from his practice, yet on Thursday, October 14, 1790, he unexpectedly died at the age of 48. Some say it was as a result of his never-ending bout with the malaria he contracted fleeing British capture. Viewed by his contemporaries as a "squared away" man, Brother Hooper was remembered as "…essentially an aristocrat, cultivated, fearless, aloof… distinguished by his directness, speech and clear judgement." Initially he was laid to rest in the Old Town Cemetery in Hillsborough (where his wife would join him in five years). In 1894 tribute was rendered by reinterring his remains upon the It is reported by John Adams that Hooper's oratory skills rivaled Virginians Richard Henry Lee & Patrick Henry. 16 | T H E M A S O N M AGA Z I N E

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