Lemuel Sawyer: North Carolina's First Playwright
North Carolina
About one hundred sixty yards northwest lies the grave of Lemuel Sawyer, born in seventeen seventy-seven in Camden County and one of the more unusual figures North Carolina sent to Congress. He served eight terms in the House of Representatives over two decades. In eighteen twenty-four he published Blackbeard, a four-act comedy now recognized as the first play written by a native North Carolinian using North Carolina scenes and characters.
Despite the title, the play has almost nothing to do with the famous pirate. Instead it satirizes gullible treasure-hunters and corrupt local politicians, which suggests Sawyer knew his audience. So pleased was he with the sales, which he ran as a subscription through Congress, that he immediately published a second play the same year.
Neither has ever been staged.
