This marker is located along the main street of downtown Murfreesboro and points out the biography…read moreand home of a local. The marker reads, "Home of William Hardy Murfree, member of U.S. Congress, 1813-1817; North Carolina House, 1805 & 1812; presidential elector, 1812. House stands 1 block North." It is marker number A-20 and it was erected in 1971 by the North Carolina State Department of Archives and History. Murfree was born in Murfreesboro on October 2, 1781, educated at the University of North Carolina, and trained in law before opening a practice in his hometown. He entered politics in 1805, served in the state House of Commons, acted as a Democratic elector in 1813, and later represented North Carolina in Congress, where his proposals for internal improvements failed to gain traction. Discouraged, he moved to Tennessee in 1820 and settled on his father's Revolutionary War lands, living only a few more years before his death in 1826. His early home, a two‑story Greek Revival brick house known as 'Melrose,' was sold in 1813 to Brigadier General Joseph Dickinson, who expanded it before his own death in 1822. [Review 17 of 2026 - 4521 in North Carolina - 25208 overall]

This marker is near the center of Murfreesboro and points out the birthplace of this local who went…read moreon to service his country and travel the world. It is marker number A-18 and it was erected in 1948 by the North Carolina Archives, Conservation and Highway Departments. It has the same text on both sides, reading "Historian, legislator, superintendent U.S. Mint at Charlotte, state treasurer, minister to Nicaragua, born 1806 in brick house 300 yards north." John H. Wheeler was a lawyer, historian, and public servant whose career spanned law, politics, and diplomacy. Educated at Columbian College and the University of North Carolina, he served in the state legislature, led the Charlotte branch of the United States Mint, and was appointed ambassador to Nicaragua, though his tenure ended controversially after helping aid Tennessean William Walker's attempted coup within the nation. A prolific writer and Unionist during the Civil War, Wheeler published several historical works, helped found the North Carolina Historical Society, and spent his final years in Washington, D.C., where he died in 1882 and was buried in Oak Hill Cemetery. There is more information online. There is room to stop and pull over here to read the marker. [Review 1011 of 2025 - 4357 in North Carolina - 24565 overall]

A few steps from the county courthouse, this historical marker offers a compact but engaging window…read moreinto the early life of a local politician who rose far beyond these streets. Like most North Carolina markers, it is brief and to the point. It is a simple stop, but a rewarding one if you enjoy seeing how big stories begin in small places. The marker has the same text on both sides. It reads, "Secretary of War under Andrew Jackson; U.S. Senator from Tennessee; Florida governor; U.S. minister to Spain. Born here." It is marker number E-99 and it was erected in 1989 by the Division of Archives and History. John H. Eaton was born in Halifax County in 1790, likely on one of his family's town lots in the heart of Halifax. After leaving the University of North Carolina without graduating, he moved to Tennessee, married Myra Lewis, and entered Andrew Jackson's inner circle. In 1840 he broke with Jackson by declining to support Martin Van Buren for president. Eaton lived the rest of his life in Washington DC. [Review 54 of 2026 - 4533 in North Carolina - 25244 overall]

Not far from the intersection that marks the center of Murfreesboro, this marker is along the…read moreroadside and points out a local citizen with a history of history. It has the same text on both sides. It reads, "Folklorist and publisher. Left newspapering 1962 to chronicle folkways & peoples of northeastern North Carolina. Office stood here." "F. Roy Johnson is a hunter of sorts, a man after rare game. His prey is often elusive as a fox, and the terrain he covers can be delicate. He stalks the folk tales and memories of another time." So began a feature story in the September 1, 1981, issue of the Norfolk Virginian-Pilot. The subject was Frank Roy Johnson, a native of Bladen County who moved to Murfreesboro in 1940. He was a 1932 graduate of Duke University, where he worked on the student newspaper and met his future wife, Margaret Hamlin. Beginning his newspaper career in 1934, Johnson founded and merged two titles in Murfreesboro before selling them in 1962 to focus on documenting northeastern North Carolina's history and folklore. Through Johnson Publishing Company, he produced twenty-two books on topics ranging from Native American history and Nat Turner to riverboating and regional legends, often setting type and binding each copy by hand using salvaged equipment. A mentor to scholars like Thomas Parramore and Frank Stephenson, Johnson collaborated with the Division of Archives and History, earned recognition from the North Carolina Folklore Society in 1976, and left behind a rich archival legacy upon his death in 1988. This is marker number A-86 and it was erected in 2014 by the North Carolina Office of Archives and History. [Review 1012 of 2025 - 4358 in North Carolina - 24566 overall]

This marker is located near the Halifax County Courthouse and the main tourist and historical…read moreattractions in the city. It points out that there is a churchyard nearby and I'd recommend you make the short walk. The marker has the same text on both sides. It reads, "Graves of Confederate general Junius Daniel, editor Abraham Hodge, U.S. District Judge John Sitgreaves, are 1 block northeast." It is marker number E-51 and it was erected in 1953 by the North Carolina Archives Conservation and Highway Departments. The Colonial Churchyard in Halifax grew around an eighteenth‑century Church of England chapel that later served the early St. Mark's Episcopal congregation. Although St. Mark's declined and reorganized over time, the chapel itself survived until 1911. The cemetery's earliest marker belongs to merchant William Alexander, who died in 1766. Other notable burials include Sarah Davie, Judge John Sitgreaves, printer Abraham Hodge, and later members of the Daniel, Marshal, and Gary families who supported the Episcopal Church. [Review 53 of 2026 - 4532 in North Carolina - 25243 overall]

This marker is located just to the east of the center of Murfreesboro and is opposite on entrance…read moreto Chowan University. It points out the history of this learning institution that is no longer. It has the same text on both sides. It reads, "Founded with Methodist support in 1853. Burned, 1877. Rebuilt 1881 and burned again in 1893. Site was 1 block south." This is marker number A-68 and it was erected in 1976 by the North Carolina Division of Archives and History. There is more information online. The college opened in 1853 under the direction of the Methodist Episcopal Church and resumed classes promptly after the Civil War. By the late nineteenth century it had enrolled roughly 1500 students and operated in a substantial three‑story brick building with a tin roof, described at the time as large, comfortable, steam‑heated, and set within a quiet, cultured village. The school stood on East High Street between Wynn and College Streets, anchoring a small academic presence in that part of town. Later residents at 100 High Street reported uncovering old brick foundations in their yard, and local memory placed the building facing east toward College Street. [Review 23 of 2026 - 4523 in North Carolina - 25214 overall]

The historical marker is in front of a beautiful home just to the north of Halifax and points out…read morethe hero that lived here. It reads, "William R. Davie. 1756-1820. A militia officer during the Revolution; governor, 1798-99; envoy to France; "father" of University of N.C. Lived in this house." The house is in the Georgian Federal design with a two-story façade. There is also a caption in front of the house. But this is marker number E-4 and it was erected in 2014 by the North Carolina Office of Archives and History. William Richardson Davie, born in England in 1756 and raised in South Carolina, was a distinguished Revolutionary War officer, eloquent statesman, and founder of the University of North Carolina. After studying at Princeton and briefly practicing law, he joined the Patriot militia, rising through the ranks and earning acclaim for his daring cavalry raids and strategic supply work under General Nathanael Greene. A committed Federalist, Davie served in the North Carolina legislature and played a pivotal role at the Constitutional Convention, advocating for Southern interests while supporting compromise to secure union. As governor, he helped navigate tense diplomatic waters with France, later serving as a U.S. envoy and negotiator with the Tuscarora tribe. Though his later years were marked by personal loss and political retreat, Davie remained engaged with the university he helped establish, leaving behind a legacy of leadership, education, and public service when he died in 1820 at his South Carolina plantation, Tivoli. I'm not sure if the home is private or open for tours. There is room to stop for photos and to read the marker. [Review 929 of 2025 - 4333 in North Carolina - 24485 overall]

This modest marker stands with its paint weathered by sun and rain. The lettering takes a moment to…read moredecipher, but that gentle fade almost suits the story it tells. It asks you to imagine an educational institution that disappeared from the landscape long ago, leaving only this quiet plaque to hint at the classrooms, ambitions, and daily routines that once filled the spot. The marker reads, "Littleton College. Chartered in 1883 as Central Institute and in 1887 as Littleton Female College. Burned 1919. Was located here." It is marker number E-28 and it was erected in 1940 by the State Historical Commission. The school was Methodist‑affiliated, created by local leaders for the intellectual, moral, and religious education of young women. Reverend James Manley Rhodes served as its guiding figure, returning in 1889 to expand the campus after briefly leaving for another post. The college offered a two year curriculum in subjects ranging from chemistry and physics to languages and history, and by 1908 it enrolled hundreds of students from across the South and beyond. A devastating fire in January 1919 destroyed most of the buildings, and with Rhodes unable to rebuild, the institution closed. [Review 55 of 2026 - 4534 in North Carolina - 25245 overall]