Carolinian Robertsons: The Family of Adjutant General T. R. Robertson of Winnsboro, SC, and Charlotte and Raleigh, NC

Book excerpt: T. R. Robertson was born and reared in Winnsboro, SC. The first decade of his professional career, begun during Reconstruction, was spent in Winnsboro; then, he and his wife, Cora Johnston Robertson, moved their family 70 miles north to Charlotte, NC. *** In North Carolina, a vigorous assault on the practice of racial lynching occurred during the 1905-1909 term of Governor Robert Glenn. Appointed by Gov. Glenn, T. R. Robertson served as Adjutant General of the North Carolina National Guard. During the 18-year period from 1891 to 1909, T. R. Robertson repeatedly used the military resources under his command to prevent lynchings and maintain the rule of law. As Adjutant General, he directed over 2000 men to protect the state's population. As Gov. Glenn’s primary military advisor, he helped to militarily lead the Governor’s successful campaign to permanently turn the state’s tide of racial lynching. *** Cora helped to establish two institutions that remain important to Charlotte today. In 1891, a local newspaper referred to her as “the prime mover” in transforming the disbanding Charlotte Female Institute into Long’s Seminary, which would evolve into Queen’s University. She also became an eight-year officer of North Carolina’s first general hospital, St. Peter’s Hospital, and served as its president from 1894 to 1897. (St. Peter's Hospital evolved into today's massive Carolinas Medical Center.) *** The children of Cora and T. R. provided leadership in the military and in local and state historical and literary associations. They were also co-developers of large-scale commercial projects in uptown Charlotte. *** This book also introduces several earlier Robertson generations of Fairfield County, SC, and related families. Two prominent members of Fairfield's Robertson clan are featured: Confederate leader Judge William Ross Robertson, and his presumed cousin, Union leader Thomas James Robertson. After becoming one of his state’s wealthiest planters, Thomas became an abolitionist, a two-term U.S. Senator, and a major rebuilder of South Carolina’s capital city, Columbia. (Recipient of a 2023 Award of Excellence from the North Carolina Society of Historians)