11; 



Proposed Convention of I86I . 



In early I86I, with the threat of civil conflict lowering, 

 the General Assembly authorized a popular vote on whether to 

 call a convention of the people "to consider all grievances 

 affecting North Carolina as a member of the Confederacy lUnion], . . ," 

 The people rejected the proposed Convention of I86I by a narrow 

 margin. 

 Convention of 1861-62 , 



Shortly thereafter, an extra session of the General Assembly 

 exercised its power to call a convention without holding a popular 

 referendum on the issue; furthermore, the act calling the convention 



did not require that any constitutional amendments it might adopt 



12 

 be submitted to the people for ratification. 



Convention of l86g-66 . 



As a part of the presidential plan of reconstruction. President 

 Johnson appointed a Provisional Governor of North Carolina and di- 

 rected him to convene a convention of the people of the State to 

 amend the Constitution and to take such other action as might be 

 necessary to restore the relationship of North Carolina to the 

 Union, Upon this authority, the Provisional Governor issued 

 his proclamation, calling for the election of delegates to the 

 Convention of 1865-66, without submitting to the people the 

 question whether a convention should be held,!^ 



ll Public Laws I86O-6I , C. 17, 

 l^ Public Laws I66I (1st Extra Session), C. 9. 

 13 Proclamation by President Andrew Johnson, 29 May 1865, 

 7 Richardson, Messages and Papers of the Presidents 3510-3512 (c, 1921 ed.), 



•^Proclamation by Provisional Governor W, VJ. Holden, 8 Aug, 1865, 

 William W. Holden, Record Book Relative to the Provisional Government , 



1665 , 132-137, MS in State Department of Archives and History. 



