Before the American Revolution, the Colonists had to import most of what it needed – including rules and laws. In the 1770’s, the sheriff didn’t wear a badge identifying who he was. “Everybody knew who the sheriff was,” said Mark Pace, local historian and North Carolina Room specialist at Richard Thornton Library in Oxford.
There were laws issued by Parliament, and there was another category based more on tradition, called common law. By the time the Revolution dust had settled, the newly minted United States of America were figuring out which laws – and punishments – to keep and which needed to be updated.
Early on, the police stuck with their British counterparts and did not carry firearms, Pace said. But a man named Samuel Colt changed all that in 1836 with his patent for a barrel-chambered pistol, Pace said, which took away the need to repack and reload after each shot.
Police began carrying firearms after the Civil War, during which time the holster, conveniently, was used.
There was a push to make the laws more humane, Pace said. The punishments imposed on people found guilty of crimes were harsh. As late as the 1820’s and ’30’s, Pace said there were 28 felonies that were punishable by death. Other punishments included branding, maiming and being burned at the stake – which makes standing in stocks and pillars in the public square seem tame by comparison.
Pace said lawmakers were more interested in deterring crime than being punitive.
“There was inconsistency from county to county,” he said, which resulted in a movement in the state of North Carolina to codify laws to ensure everyone got fair and equitable treatment under the law.
Horse theft was one of those crimes that was treated seriously. Very few people owned their homes or land, and often a horse was the most valuable – and useful – property one could have. Used as transportation and work on the farm, a horse thief was among the lowest of the low.
Pace recalled the Revolutionary War-era story of two fellows who were sent out by Patriots to look for Tory horse thieves. They were unsuccessful, Pace said, because, well, their horses were stolen.
Down, but not out, the men applied for – and received – restitution from the state of North Carolina for their loss, Pace said.
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