Alleghany County, North Carolina Genealogy


 * This article is about a northwestern North Carolina county. For other uses, see Alleghany.

United States   North Carolina    Alleghany County

History
In 1776 settlers in what would eventually become Tennessee successfully petitioned North Carolina to recognize the Washington District. The District included all of modern Tennessee except two small settlements (North-of-Holston, Fincastle County, and Pendleton, Washington County) in the far northeast that were considered part of Virginia at the time. Washington (old) County was created from Washington District by North Carolina in 1777 as the western county of North Carolina.

In August 1784 delegates from Washington and two other western North Carolina counties which had split off from Washington (all now in Tennessee), declared their Independence from North Carolina because of perceived neglect, and misuse by North Carolina’s legislature. By May 1785 they had petitioned to be admitted to the United States as the new State of Franklin. The Franklin statehood request was denied. By 1789 the hopes for a State of Franklin faded. North Carolina refused to recognize several counties created by Franklin out of Washington County.

North Carolina was admitted to the Union in 1789 and ceded her western counties to the United States. The United States made these western counties into the Southwest Territory. In 1792 North Carolina divided Washington (old) County and annexed some of its land that would later become Alleghany, Ashe, and Watauga counties in North Carolina to Wilkes County, North Carolina. In 1796 the remainder of Washington County became part of the new State of Tennessee.

North Carolina created Ashe County out of Wilkes County in 1799, and in 1859 erected Alleghany County out of Ashe County.

Parent County
1859--Alleghany County was created in 1859 from Ashe County. County seat: Sparta

Neighboring Counties

 * Ashe
 * Grayson County, Virginia
 * Surry
 * Wilkes

Yearbooks

 * Alleghany County students at NC colleges - a list via the NCGenWeb Yearbook Index

Web Sites

 * NCGenWeb: Alleghany County - free genealogy resources; part of the national USGenWeb Project
 * Family History Library Catalog