Swansboro is a town of 3800 people. In 2018, Swansboro was among the hardest hit cities by Hurricane Florence. About 77 cm of rain fell on the city during the hurricane.
Otway Burns was born in Swansboro around 1775. He went on to become a privateer during the War of 1812. He captained the Snap Dragon. Their first prize was a British merchant ship that was armed with 14 cannons. Burns had many encounters of sailing away from British warships and also took several ships as prizes.
After the war, Burns went into business, using much of the wealth he earned as a privateer to get started. He started a shipbuilding business in Swansboro. His company built Prometheus, the first steamboat in North Carolina, which operated on the Cape Fear River. He built two more steamboats, the Warrior and the Henry.
1821 he was elected to represent Carteret County in the North Carolina House of Commons and was appointed as the commissioner of a local canal that connected the Neuse and Newport Rivers. He ended up serving 11 terms - seven in the House of Representatives and four in the Senate.
He died in 1850.
Two destroyers were named in his honour - USS Burns (DD-171) and in service during the First World War (decommissioned in 1930 and sold for scrap in 1932), and USS Burns (DD-588) in service during the Second World War (decommissioned in 1946 and sunk as a target in 1974). DD-588 received 11 battle stars for service in World War II. Burnsville, North Carolina was founded and named in his honour. Otway, North Carolina is also named for him. He still has descendants
that live in the areas of Beaufort, Swansboro, and Atlantic Beach.
that live in the areas of Beaufort, Swansboro, and Atlantic Beach.
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