Town of Wentworth Civil War Trail Marker

At the start of the Civil War in 1861, Wentworth was a small but bustling village with a courthouse, churches, stores, hotels, and tobacco factories. Many historic buildings remain, including a law office built in 1856 for three attorneys—Settle, Ruffin, and Dillard—who became Confederate officers and later NC Supreme Court justices. Postmaster Ratliffe’s 1859 store served as a Confederate post office, and Wright Tavern was the site of a riot during a fiery 1864 political speech. Gen. Alfred M. Scales helped organize the Presbyterian Church in 1859 and later lived in the Reynolds-Gunn House. The current courthouse replaced the original, which burned in 1906.