Chatham County, North Carolina in 1771 from Orange County. It had been named in 1758 for William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham, who served as British Prime Minister from 1766 to 1768 and opposed harsh colonial policies. In 1907, parts of Chatham County and Moore County were combined to form Lee County. While not devoted to large plantations, the county was developed for small farms, where slave labor was integral to the owners' productivity and success. By 1860 one-third of the county population were African Americans, chiefly enslaved. George Moses Horton, Historic Poet Laureate of Chatham County, (1797?-1883) lived most of his life enslaved
Earl Ligonier 19 July 1776 the earldom was revived when he was made Earl Ligonier, of Clonmell in the County of Tipperary, in the Peerage of Ireland. The titles became extinct on his death on 14 June 1782. Earl Ligonier Earl Ligonier was a title that was created twice in British history, once in the Peerage of Great Britain and once in the Peerage of Ireland. The first creation came in the Peerage of Great Britain on 10 September 1766 in favour of the French-born soldier Field Marshal John Ligonier. The peerage was created with normal remainder to the heirs male of