Our People

Meet a few of the historic figures that helped shape Hillsborough's rich history.

Elizabeth Keckly

Visit the Burwell School Historic Site to discover the inspiring story of Elizabeth Keckly, perhaps one of Hillsborough’s most nationally known individuals. Mrs. Keckly was a former slave turned successful seamstress, who is most notably known as being Mary Todd Lincoln's personal dress designer and confidante. Her autobiography, Behind the Scenes Or, Thirty Years a Slave and Four Years in the White House, tells how Mrs. Keckly utilized her intelligence, keen business savvy, and sewing and design skills to arrange and ultimately buy her freedom (and that of her son George as well), and later enjoyed regular business with the wives of the government elite as her base clientele.

William Hooper

Hillsborough has historically been a center of law, politics, and education. For this reason, many important people have chosen, and still choose, to live here. William Hooper was one such man. Hooper was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. William Hopper lived and died in Hillsborough. He was first buried in the Old Town Cemetery; however, don’t be surprised if you can’t find his grave. William Hooper’s body was removed from Hillsborough and taken to Guilford Courthouse National Battleground in Greensboro.

Billy Strayhorn

Hillsborough's rich artistic heritage includes jazz, as well. Billy Strayhorn was an American composer, pianist and arranger, best known for his successful collaboration with bandleader and composer Duke Ellington lasting close to three decades. His compositions include "Chelsea Bridge", "Take the "A" Train" and "Lush Life". Strayhorn spent many months of his childhood at his grandparents' house in Hillsborough.

Edmund Fanning

Visitors to the town can see evidence of our rich legal history in the variety of buildings, such as the Old Courthouse and the Norwood Law Office. One such story belongs to Edmund Fanning. Edmund Fanning was a Yale graduate and a judge who lived in Hillsborough before the Revolutionary War. Fanning’s home sat where the Masonic Lodge currently sits. Edmund Fanning was involved in the political process of his time and was loyal to the British crown. He even served as British General Governor. Many people in Hillsborough disagreed with Fanning’s position on political and legal matters and took action against him, ultimately destroying his home.

John Lawson

Maybe you like to explore, or perhaps you enjoy visiting natural areas such as the Eno River or the Occaneechi Mountain. If so, then you are following in the footsteps of John Lawson. Lawson was the explorer who visited the Occaneechi Indian Village in 1701. The Occaneechi settled along the Great Trading Path and the Eno River, a location ideal for trade and travel. If you haven’t explored this area yourself, come to Hillsborough and learn about some of its earliest inhabitants and explorers.