Early Years
Carter was born about 1707 to Robert "King" Carter, a land baron and member of the governor's Council, and Elizabeth Landon Willis Carter. It was the second marriage of both his parents. His elder half brother John Carter (d. 1742) became secretary of the colony and also a councillor, and his younger brother, Landon Carter, served with him in the House of Burgesses. Carter and his brothers were educated in England. After his return to Virginia early in 1724 he moved to one of his father's estates near Urbanna, in Middlesex County. The governor appointed Carter naval officer, or customs official, for the Rappahannock District on November 1, 1729, and on the following April 29 named him a justice of the peace for Middlesex County.
Political Career
Lieutenant Governor William Gooch recommended Carter for the governor's Council late in 1742, but another man received the appointment. Throughout his career in the assembly Carter usually served on committees appointed to frame petitions to the Crown or to draft bills and major state papers on such topics as finance. In the October 1748 assembly session Carter succeeded Edwin Conway, who had temporarily retired from the House, as Robinson's right-hand man. Carter chaired the Committee of Propositions and Grievances and routinely presided during debate in the committee of the whole, which allowed Robinson to exercise his power effectively without fear of adverse rulings from the chair. Until his death, Carter remained, next to the Speaker, the most influential member of the House of Burgesses, even as the next generation of legislators, such as Richard Bland and Peyton Randolph (d. 1775), emerged early in the 1760s. Along with Robinson, Randolph, his kinsman Carter Burwell, and his brother Landon Carter, he was appointed in 1756 as one of the directors to oversee the colony's financing of troops to protect the Virginia frontier during the Seven Years' War.
Advocate for Economic Diversification
Carter was equally committed to the diversification of the colony's economy and the development of the Piedmont and the backcountry. He worked in the 1750s with other colonial gentlemen to obtain grants to large tracts of land in the West, and in 1754 he persuaded George Washington to survey the Potomac River above the falls in pursuit of their mutual interest in opening the upper regions of that river to navigation.
In 1759 Carter sponsored a bill to create a committee to encourage economic diversification in Virginia and award "bounties or premiums for the more speedy and effectual bringing to perfection any art or manufacture of service to the public." As committee chair, he initiated an extended correspondence with the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, in London. Carter shared the results of his experiments and the trials other planters made with a variety of raw goods and manufactures, ranging from hemp and salted fish to naval stores and viticulture. The society awarded him a medal in 1763 for his attempt to produce wine in Virginia. Carter hoped to improve the colony's economy and the profitability of its plantations by fostering new exports to replace tobacco, which he feared would saturate the European market. Carter was one of the pioneers in transforming the plantation economy of northern Virginia from tobacco production to grains and other commodities.
Later Years
When Carter wrote his will in 1762 he sought to extend his vision of economic improvement under the direction of a secure class of planter families. He instructed his executors to implement his full plan of agricultural reform at Cleve, and he granted a favored slave, Benjamin Boyd, a continued role in the maintenance of the estate's manufactures, as well as an annual income. Carter made substantial provision for all of his children, daughters as well as sons, and younger sons as well as his firstborn, and he ordered that his younger sons study law in London in order to prepare themselves for their varied business affairs in the colony. Carter used his will as an attempt to instill in his family a code of behavior that shunned material ostentation and emphasized genteel manners. Carter died at his home in King George County on April 26, 1764, of "a dropsey" that may have been induced by the use of narcotics to relieve pain or reduce fever. He was buried probably on his estate at Cleve.
Time Line
-
ca. 1707 - Charles Carter is born to Robert "King" Carter and Elizabeth Landon Willis Carter.
-
1724 - Charles Carter returns to Virginia after receiving his education in England. He moves to one of his father's estates near Urbanna, in Middlesex County.
-
ca. 1728 - Charles Carter marries Mary Walker, of Yorktown. They will have three daughters and two sons.
-
November 1, 1729 - The governor appoints Charles Carter naval officer, or customs official, for the Rappahannock District.
-
April 29, 1730 - Charles Carter is named a justice of the peace for Middlesex County.
-
1732 - After the death of his father, Robert "King" Carter, Charles Carter (ca. 1707–1764) inherits Stanstead plantation in King George County, and moves there.
-
1734 - Charles Carter (ca. 1707–1764) begins to serve as a justice of the peace for King George County and becomes county lieutenant, or commanding officer of the militia.
-
September 1734 - Charles Carter (ca. 1707–1764) stands for election to the House of Burgesses from King George County, loses, and unsuccessfully challenges the result.
-
1736 - Charles Carter (ca. 1707–1764) is elected to the House of Burgesses from King George County. His victory is contested on the ground that Carter had offered life leases to one or more men to make them qualified to vote, but the challenge is dismissed.
-
Early 1742 - Mary Walker Carter, wife of Charles Carter (ca. 1707–1764), dies.
-
December 25, 1742 - Charles Carter (ca. 1707–1764) marries Anne Byrd, the daughter of William Byrd II. They will have six daughters and two sons.
-
ca. 1746 - Construction begins on the seven-bay house at Cleve, Charles Carter (ca. 1707–1764)'s plantation in King George County.
-
1756 - Carter Burwell, Charles Carter (ca. 1707–1764), Landon Carter, Peyton Randolph, and John Robinson are appointed as directors to oversee the colony's financing of troops to protect the Virginia frontier during the Seven Years' War.
-
September 11, 1757 - Anne Byrd Carter, the wife of Charles Carter (ca. 1707–1764), dies.
-
1759 - Charles Carter (ca. 1707–1764) sponsors a bill to create a committee to encourage economic diversification in Virginia and award "bounties or premiums for the more speedy and effectual bringing to perfection any art of manufacture of service to the public."
-
1762 - Charles Carter (ca. 1707–1764) writes his will and instructs his executors to implement a full plan of agricultural reform at his plantation, Cleve.
-
1763 - The Royal Society of the Encouragement of the Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, in London, awards Charles Carter (ca. 1707–1764) a medal for his attempt to produce wine in Virginia.
-
June 9, 1763 - Charles Carter (ca. 1707–1764) marries Lucy Taliaferro. They will have one daughter.
-
April 26, 1764 - Charles Carter (ca. 1707–1764) dies of "a dropsey" at his home in King George County. He is buried probably on his estate at Cleve.
Categories
References
Further Reading
Cite This Entry
- APA Citation:
Ragsdale, B. A., & the Dictionary of Virginia Biography. Charles Carter (ca. 1707–1764). (2013, November 6). In Encyclopedia Virginia. Retrieved from http://www.EncyclopediaVirginia.org/Carter_Charles_ca_1707-1764.
- MLA Citation:
Ragsdale, Bruce A. and the Dictionary of Virginia Biography. "Charles Carter (ca. 1707–1764)." Encyclopedia Virginia. Virginia Humanities, 6 Nov. 2013. Web. READ_DATE.
First published: June 17, 2013 | Last modified: November 6, 2013
Contributed by Bruce A. Ragsdale and the Dictionary of Virginia Biography.