HistoricSiteMarkers
Early Republic

Lafayette's Visit, 1825

Murfreesboro, Hertford County, North Carolina

Marker Inscription

Lafayette. On his American tour Lafayette spent night of Feb. 26, 1825, at Indian Queen Inn which stood two blocks north.

Erected by North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources

The Story

On the night of February 26, 1825, the Marquis de Lafayette lodged at the Indian Queen Inn, which once stood two blocks north of this Murfreesboro marker. The aging Revolutionary War hero was then near the end of his grand tour of the United States, greeted by adoring crowds in nearly every town he passed. His journey rekindled national memory of the Revolution as its founding generation was passing away.

Why it matters

Lafayette's triumphal 1824–25 tour was a moment of shared national reverence, binding a young, quarrelsome Republic to the ideals and sacrifices of its revolutionary birth.

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Related people

  • Β· Marquis de Lafayette

Related events

  • Β· Lafayette's Grand Tour of the United States

Themes & tags

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