Culpeper's Rebellion
IV. A New Government,
A New Disorder (Part 1)

Eastchurch and Miller took a ship sailing one of the normal trade routes from England to the island of Nevis in the Leeward Islands where they could obtain another ship for America.¹⁰⁸ In Nevis, Eastchurch met a woman of considerable fortune and took the opportunity to marry her. Not wishing to depart quickly and to avoid further delay in settling affairs in Albemarle County, Eastchurch provided Miller with a commission to serve as president of the Grand Council until his arrival and gave him "very full and ample powers."¹⁰⁹ The president of the Grand Council normally acted as governor in that official's absence. Miller, however, chose this time to begin his own scheme for acquiring power and fortune. Instead of taking a ship directly for America, he went via Bermuda where he took passage for Albemarle County in the shallop Success. Previous writers, using the testimony prepared for the November 1680 trial of John Culpeper, have stated that Miller outfitted, manned, and sailed the shallop to North Carolina at his own cost for use in collecting customs and as defense for the colony in his role as commander-in-chief.¹¹⁰ A recently found deposition from a crewman on that voyage shows that Miller was only a passenger, and that the master, Solomon Summers, was directed by the shallop's owner, Thomas Leech, to return in 40 days with the proceeds from their cargo of calico, salt, and powder.¹¹¹ The voyage had begun 20 May 1677 but was not completed until 9 July 1677, an extraordinarily long time for such a short trip.¹¹² On arrival in Albemarle County the shallop was anchored off Timothy Biggs' landing. Miller and Summers, along with Leech's boy, took lodgings with Biggs, and the goods from the shallop were placed in Biggs' storehouse. Some of the calico was used for clothing for Biggs and his wife as well as for Miller. Additional calico was used for curtains and valences on Miller's bed.¹¹³ The salt was used for preparing meat to be shipped to Antigua in Biggs' sloop. Miller, however, refused to account to Summers for the shallop's goods. The inhabitants of Albemarle County were told that Miller was the owner of the shallop's goods, and since those goods, which had not been distributed, were kept at Biggs' storehouse, no one doubted this statement.¹¹⁴

On 15 March 1679/80 Summers stated in an affidavit to the Lords of the Treasury that he departed Bermuda on 20 May 1677 and arrived in Albemarle County on 9 July. He further indicated that from that time until 4 December of the same year he and his crew were employed by Miller for the prevention of frauds by stopping New England traders using the new inlet of the country.¹¹⁵ Summers claimed £84 14s. 3d. as being due him for this work;¹¹⁶ yet recently found testimony from William Hammond, a resident of the county during that time, claimed that Summers had been so badly abused by Miller and Timothy Biggs that both Summers and Leech's boy had to take refuge in Durant's house prior to December.¹¹⁷ Richard Gamble also testified that the shallop's sails were kept in the Biggs storehouse after Summers moved to Durant's house.¹¹⁸ During a May 1678 trip to London with Gillam and Durant, Summers freely thanked Durant for the debt he owed to Durant's wife for entertaining him prior to Durant's return in December 1677.¹¹⁹

We see here evidence of a systematic process of thievery by Miller against Summers, and then later Summers pleading for relief from the English treasury for work not actually done. Miller was in London at the time Summers submitted his petition and could have protested this claim had he wished, but there is no evidence of his doing so. We also see the close tie between Thomas Miller and Timothy Biggs, the two main sources for information on which much of the history previously written about this event has been based.

Some authors have said that Miller required armed force to establish his position as president of the Grand Council and acting governor,¹²⁰ but neither Miller nor Solomon Summers, master of the shallop Success, report any such difficulties.¹²¹ We also find that another observer, as well as one of Miller's deputy collectors, Timothy Biggs, confirmed that "all people haveing quietly submitted... & the New England Men complied in payeing their duty."¹²² Henry Hudson, appointed a deputy collector by Miller, made no mention in his deposition of any difficulty on Miller's arrival.¹²³ The Lords Proprietors in their summary of the case in February 1679/80 wrote that Miller "is quyetly received into y^e Governm^t."¹²⁴ Similar words are used by the Lords Proprietors in their 20 November 1680 final statement on the affair.¹²⁵ A remonstrance from Quakers in Albemarle County declared that "Miller was received as president by the Inhabitants of this County."¹²⁶ The one place where we find documentation of armed resistance at Miller's arrival is in the unsigned document entitled "Representation to the Lords Proprietors of Carolina Concerning the Rebellion in that Country. To be Made use of in Further Examinations." That anonymous author stated, "Bird and the rest of the subscribers were the first that took armes and opposed Miller at his first landing."¹²⁷ Without knowing either the full meaning of the "first landing" or author of this piece, we cannot evaluate his bias or his access to the facts. Solomon Summers does report "upon y^e 2^d or 3^d day of y^e s^d Miller's arrivall there was great abuse & affronts offered to him ... by some of y^e inhabitants there." Summers also reported a violent assault by "Patt White" at Richard Foster's house when White "swearing y^t he could freely run his knife were itt not for feare of y^e law into y^e s^d Miller . . . many other words to this or worse purpose uttered by . . . White & his wife & others . . . "¹²⁸ Dangerous words to be sure; even felonious words in those times, but they hardly fit the twentieth century usage of "armed resistance."¹²⁹ One must conclude that Miller was received peaceably despite the prior attempts to prosecute him for his intemperate language.

Culpeper's reaction to Miller's arrival is not known. Mattie Erma Parker has written a comprehensive study of the "Legal Aspects of 'Culpeper's Rebellion'" in which she shows that Miller was not on firm legal ground in assuming the position of acting governor.¹³⁰ She also makes extensive use of a then recently found, but as yet unpublished, narrative by Timothy Biggs which discusses events of the Miller administration in the second half of 1677.¹³¹

Regardless of how he was received, Miller gained control of the government in the summer of 1677 and promptly began to follow his instructions from Eastchurch to set the affairs of the county in order. Summers reported that Miller

reduced & quietted y^e Indians settled y^e Malitia brought y^e Inhabitants to a good ord^r & peaceable decorum & lastly settled his Maj^tys affaires in reference to the customes & all this done w^thout y^e least dropp of bloodshed w^ch peaceable & quiett posture of affaires to y^e then general satisfaction of y^e Inhabitants soe continued from July afores^d nothw^th:standing the seditious designes of a few there till X^ber [December] following.¹³²

Another report of Miller's actions on his arrival is the Biggs narrative, which Parker believes was written about January 1677/78. Biggs wrote that Miller arrived about 15 July 1677 with various commissions, including one for himself to act as governor in Albemarle County and as deputy to one of the Lords Proprietors. Miller called a meeting of the assembly, whose power the Lords Proprietors had confirmed until the new elections scheduled for September under the Fundamental Constitutions could be held. Major Richard Foster, designated as deputy for Sir George Carteret, initially declined the appointment and even allowed his home to be used by Patrick White to abuse Miller. Foster later relented and accepted Carteret's commission as well as one as deputy collector of the county from Miller.¹³³ The representatives from Currituck precinct declined to appear at the scheduled assembly meeting, claiming the press of business, but Miller proceeded with the meeting and presented the instructions, commissions, and orders which he had brought from London and from Eastchurch. Prior to adjourning, the assembly appointed a court to begin clearing cases, some of which had been pending for three or four years. The court found several persons guilty of sundry misdemeanors, and Biggs claimed that to protect the court from danger, Miller was forced to have a guard of men in arms.¹³⁴ It would appear that the only protection required was from the inhabitant's reaction to Miller's attempts to acquire excessive power. This is supported by the recently found depositions which contain statements that Miller assembled the guard for his personal protection. The depositions also alleged that the guard consisted of thirty to forty men of bad repute who had assisted Bacon in his rebellion in Virginia and who had fled or been run out of that colony after Bacon's death.¹³⁵ In addition to the previously noted irony that Culpeper (with possible connections to Berkeley) was a member of the faction described by some writers as anti- proprietor, we see here that Miller was supporting the so-called proprietor faction with fugitives from Bacon's rebellion. Again we have evidence that while the factions certainly existed, they did not see themselves as primarily pro- or anti-proprietor.

As the time for elections approached, Miller obtained the consent of the appointed deputies to issue the necessary writs for the election of burgesses. Miller's instructions that accompanied the writs, however, called for new election procedures requiring the use of ballots and specifically excluded certain persons who opposed Miller. Even though some of those whom Miller had excluded were elected anyway, Miller's supporters would not allow them to serve. This led to considerable dissension among the inhabitants. The accepted members of the assembly met with the appointed deputies and with Miller as president to elect Thomas Cullen speaker. This assembly set a tax levy to cover the cost of the recent Indian wars, and since there had been no levy for the two preceding years, it was high.¹³⁶ In addition to "omitting many hainous matters" Miller was later accused in a remonstrance drawn up by Culpeper of denying free elections of an assembly, cheating the country of 130,000 pounds of tobacco, and raising the levy to 250 pounds of tobacco more than it otherwise would have been to pay for his "pipeing guard."¹³⁷

To assist him in collecting customs, Miller appointed Timothy Biggs and Henry Hudson to be his deputy collectors. They recovered a £500 sterling bond given by Valentine Bird, the collector serving at Miller's arrival, for allowing ships to depart without paying the required duties; seized a £200 sterling bond from John Willoughby for allowing John Liscomb, a New England trader, to sail for New England with 70 tons of tobacco without paying the necessary customs; and forced Richard Foster, a deputy collector and then member of the Grand Council, to surrender a bond of 410 hogsheads of tobacco. The total of these bonds and tobacco, plus other seizures and customs, was £1242 8s. 1d., in addition to 817 hogsheads of tobacco and the vessel Patience.¹³⁸

According to Timothy Biggs, all was quiet until the 1 December 1677 arrival of Captain Gillam's ship from London with George Durant on board.¹³⁹ In the newly found depositions made by other residents of Albemarle County during that time, we find a different view. John Wood, who was in Albemarle County from 1677 until May 1679, declared in a 4 August 1681 deposition that three or four days prior to the arrival of Gillam's ship, Miller had commanded the inhabitants to bring their arms to him.¹⁴⁰ Peter Brockwell, who was in Albemarle County from October 1677 until about 1680 also deposed on 25 July 1681 that when Miller feared that the country would not endure his government, he sent out warrants in his name for the inhabitants to bring their arms to him.¹⁴¹ Thus Miller's own actions had created the climate for rebellion prior to the arrival of Gillam's ship. This is at significant variance from previous histories of this event in that it clarifies the immediate readiness of many inhabitants to oppose openly Miller's government.

The newly found depositions also show that another factor in the readiness of the colony to revolt against Miller was that he had threatened to hang George Durant. John Wood deposed that he had on several occasions heard Miller say that he would hang Durant at his own home as soon as he returned. Peter Brockwell confirmed that threat.¹⁴² Miller may have said this because of a report from England that Durant would turn rebel if Thomas Eastchurch became governor or Miller may have been present when the statement was made by Durant. The proposal to hang Durant at his home was not necessarily an indication of special vindictiveness on Miller's part, since Durant's home was then the normal meeting place for the court, and all the necessary apparatus for punishment was installed there.¹⁴³ This threat to Durant's life has not been mentioned in previous histories of this disturbance. The Navigation Act of 1663 required the master of each ship arriving in a colonial port to report to the governor the name of the ship, the name of the master, certification that the ship was English built, that the ship's crew was three-fourths English, and a complete inventory of her cargo showing where it was loaded. This action had to take place before any unloading or loading could commence. On the evening of his arrival and anchoring at Pasquotank, Captain Gillam proceeded ashore with a four or five man boat crew to make his report to Miller, who was both acting governor and collector of customs.¹⁴⁴ "180 hogsheads," was Gillam's response to Miller's question of how much tobacco Gillam had carried out of the country in the previous year.¹⁴⁵ Miller then requested payment of one penny per pound for that tobacco, but Gillam responded that he had already paid the customs in England and had aboard his ship the necessary port clearances and certificates to prove those payments. Miller demanded that he be paid before the ship left the country and then arrested Gillam, seized his papers, and imprisoned both Gillam and his boat crew. Several authors have written that Miller placed the ship's crew in confinement, but Gillam's testimony indicates that only the four or five men who accompanied him ashore in the ship's boat were taken into custody. The recently found depositions of two of his crew members who accompanied Gillam ashore also confirm that only Gillam and his shore party were arrested by Miller.¹⁴⁶ The correct nautical usage, certainly that used by Captain Gillam, and that shown in the Oxford English Dictionary as then current, was to use "boat" only for those waterborne craft carried in a ship. In his deposition from which much of the above information is taken Gillam uses the word "ship" six times and only once mentions "boat"; the latter in connection with his the imprisonment of himself and his boat crew.¹⁴⁷

Miller was wrong in demanding the payment of taxes in Carolina for that tobacco being shipped directly to England. The Navigation Act of 1673 (Plantation Duty Act) provided that one could give an adequate bond that the tobacco was being taken to England, Wales, or the town of Berwick upon Tweed, there to be unloaded and put on shore. Only when such bond was not given was the payment of one penny per pound duty on tobacco required.¹⁴⁸ The remonstrance published by the rebels later indicated that Gillam had been placed under a £1000 sterling bond and that some inhabitants had to persuade him not to depart immediately.¹⁴⁹ In view of his cargo and the size of the alleged bond, it seems most unlikely that Gillam would have left without selling his goods. Gillam, however, failed to mention the bond in either his February 1679/80 testimony or in his recently found August 1681 deposition.¹⁵⁰ One must conclude that Miller requested, but never received, a bond from Gillam.

Previous histories of this event have discussed Miller's proceeding to Gillam's ship the evening of Gillam's arrest and arresting or attempting to arrest George Durant, and that Gillam returned to the ship about midnight to find Miller still aboard. There has always been some question whether or not Durant was mate of the ship.¹⁵¹ The newly found depositions of members of the Carolina's crew confirm that George Durant was the Chief Mate of the Carolina at her August 1677 launching at Limehouse, England; on her trip to Albemarle County between October 1677 and December 1, 1677, and on her return to England from May to July 1678.¹⁵² Durant had remained on the ship in Gillam's absence as the next senior ship's officer and was in charge of the security of the vessel and its cargo.¹⁵³ On the day of the ship's arrival Peter Brockwell, who had been residing in Albemarle County since October 1677, went aboard to warn Durant of Miller's hanging threat, and Durant relayed that information on to Gillam.¹⁵⁴ Brockwell remained aboard with Durant when Gillam went ashore. Brockwell reports that "Miller sent & comanded" Durant to come ashore. Durant refused and increased the security of the ship by posting a sentinel.¹⁵⁵ Others who were not on board that night indicated that Miller came aboard with loaded pistols, one of which he pointed at Durant's breast, but Durant refused to yield, and Miller remained on the ship until Gillam returned about midnight.¹⁵⁶ The weight of the evidence, including the testimony of Miller himself, is that Miller gained access to Gillam's ship, but that he failed in his attempt to make Durant a prisoner. It was Miller who was made a prisoner, and at the February 1679/80 hearing for Gillam in London, Miller complained of having been kept prisoner for more than one and a half hours after Gillam's return to the ship.¹⁵⁷

After Miller came aboard, was disarmed, and placed under guard he was probably told that he would not be released until Gillam and his boat crew were freed and allowed to return to their ship. This would account for Gillam and his boat crew being released so late at night and for Miller complaining about being kept prisoner after Gillam's return to the ship. Miller certainly would not have wanted the captain of the ship or any of his boat crew released from custody before he was able to capture Durant. This removal from harm's way of a portion of the crew was probably the reason for Miller imprisoning Gillam and his men when they came ashore.

Two days after Gillam's arrival a group inspired by Valentine Bird and led by Edward Wells came armed with muskets and swords to Timothy Biggs' house in Perquimans. After breaking open chests and locks they found Miller's commission and instructions for collecting customs as well as his records. All of these papers were taken to William Crawford's house. The following day a group of thirty to forty men from Pasquotank also led by Bird and Wells seized Miller, John Nixon, and Timothy Biggs in Pasquotank and imprisoned them at Crawford's Pasquotank home. At this time Gillam's ship was anchored off Crawford's house. If we are to believe Miller's affidavit, a number of the ringleaders including Bird, Crawford, and Wells went aboard following Miller's capture to join Culpeper and Durant. Bird and his friends left the ship with new cutlasses for themselves and their supporters.¹⁵⁸ It is noteworthy that Miller made no claim that Gillam was supplying fire arms to those who opposed Miller.

Gillam later testified that he did not know of Miller's imprisonment for two days since he was aboard his ship. In view of the problems experienced on his first trip ashore, it seems reasonable that Gillam would stay on the ship to ensure her security as well as that of her cargo. Recently found depositions from crew members show that Durant remained on the ship for about two weeks after Miller was seized even though the ship was anchored only about 20 miles from his home in Perquimans County.¹⁵⁹ At the same time it seems doubtful that news of Miller's capture took two days to reach Gillam and Durant in their ship. On 3 December Culpeper drew up a remonstrance to explain to the rest of the inhabitants of the province why Miller had been imprisoned and his records seized. A letter signed by Culpeper, Bird, and Crawford was sent to Richard Foster at his home in Currituck to inform him of their progress and directing him to seek the election of new burgesses as well as to seize and bring Henry Hudson to Durant's house.¹⁶⁰

Foster made Hudson a prisoner and summoned the inhabitants of Currituck to choose burgesses for a new assembly. Hudson was forced to attend the election even though he was that day to receive one hundred hogsheads of tobacco for customs from John Williams, a New England trader, who subsequently sailed without any duty having been collected. At the election many spoke out against landgraves and cassiques, positions of nobility under Carolina's Fundamental Constitutions. Foster stopped this treasonous outcry, and with yet one more cry of derision against the Lords Proprietors, the crowd began to choose their burgesses. Following their selection, the electors instructed the new burgesses that they should absolutely insist on free trade for tobacco so that it could be sold anywhere without payment of duty to the king. Miller was also denounced for cheating the country of 135,000 pounds of tobacco now held for the king but which the people thought should belong to them.¹⁶¹