James Hasell was a British colonial

official An official is someone who holds an office (function or Mandate (politics), mandate, regardless of whether it carries an actual Office, working space with it) in an organization or government and participates in the exercise of authority (eithe ...

who served as the

acting Acting is an activity in which a story is told by means of its enactment by an actor who adopts a character—in theatre, television, film, radio, or any other medium that makes use of the mimetic mode. Acting involves a broad range of sk ...

governor of North Carolina The governor of North Carolina is the head of government of the United States, U.S. state of North Carolina. Seventy-five people have held the office since the first state governor, Richard Caswell, took office in 1777. The governor serves a ...

in 1771.

Early life

In 1763 when Governor

Arthur Dobbs Arthur Dobbs (2 April 1689 – 28 March 1765) was a British Army officer and colonial administrator who served as the governor of North Carolina from 1754 to 1764. Early life and career Arthur Dobbs was born in Girvan, Ayrshire where his mot ...

was absent from the colony on a visit to

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

, Hassel, as senior member of the Council, was in charge on the government. Hasell also had other experience in colonial affairs as judge of the Court of

Oyer and Terminer In English law, oyer and terminer (; a partial translation of the Anglo-French , which literally means 'to hear and to determine') was one of the commissions by which a judge of assize sat. Apart from its Law French name, the commission was also ...

(a court to hear and determine cases) for Craven, Carteret,

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, Beaufort, and Hyde counties. He lived at Belgrange on the

lower Cape Fear Cape Fear is a coastal plain and Tidewater region of North Carolina centered about the city of Wilmington. The region takes its name from the adjacent Cape Fear headland, as does the Cape Fear River which flows through the region and empties ...

. In 1766 Governor Tryon wrote the British

Board of Trade The Board of Trade is a British government body concerned with commerce and industry, currently within the Department for Business and Trade. Its full title is The Lords of the Committee of the Privy Council appointed for the consideration of ...

that he had given the commission of chief justice to James Hasell and described him as "senior member of his Majesty's Council, next to the President. He is much the gentleman, has acted in this office at different times seven years to general satisfaction: has been always esteemed a steady friend to the measures of government...."

Acting governor of North Carolina

After Governor Tryon left North Carolina to become governor of

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, the Council met on July 1, 1771, and Hasell took over office of the governor until the appointment of

Josiah Martin Josiah Martin (23 April 1737 – 13 April 1786) was a British Army officer and colonial official who served as the ninth and last governor of North Carolina from 1771 to 1776, and in exile until 1783. Early life and career Martin was born i ...

, the last of the British governors. Governor Martin recommended that Hasell be made

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

in the place of Lieutenant Governor George Mercer, thinking that Mercer was to be appointed governor of

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

. Though this appointment did not materialize, Mercer, remaining in

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, nonetheless kept the office in the colony. During the course of this year, he also helped to found and establish the present-day

Queens University of Charlotte The Queens University of Charlotte is a private university in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. It has approximately 1,900 undergraduate and graduate students. Established in 1857, the university offers 50 undergraduate majors, 58 minors, ...

(then known as the classical school Queens Museum). James Hasell (sometimes spelled Hassell) was on board on the

Cape Fear River The Cape Fear River is a blackwater river in east-central North Carolina. It flows into the Atlantic Ocean near Cape Fear, from which it takes its name. The river is formed at the confluence of the Haw River and the Deep River in the town of ...

with Governor Josiah Martin as the council met in its final meeting that called an end to the

Province of North Carolina The Province of North Carolina, originally known as the Albemarle Settlements, was a proprietary colony and later royal colony of Great Britain that existed in North America from 1712 to 1776.(p. 80) It was one of the five Southern col ...

. The record of that meeting notes that Hasell said that the governor should "take every lawful measure in his power to suppress the 'unnatural rebellion' now fomenting".

Legacy

Hasell was apparently a book collector. His "lost" library was discovered in the early part of the 20th century in one of the old houses on the

Sound In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid. In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the br ...

near Wilmington. Described as "all that remains of North Carolina's oldest library", the collection contained a number of first editions, and many autographed by the leading men of the period.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hasell, James Governors of the Province of North Carolina Members of the North-Carolina Provincial Council Presidents of the North-Carolina Provincial Council