also established a general merchandise store and Patterson invested in a railroad. He served as a director of the Northwestern and Western North Carolina Railroads. He served a term as trustee of North Carolina University in 1874. In 1875, he was elected Mayor of Salem, serving a one-year term. Patterson married Marie Louise Morehead in 1852. They had five children: Jesse Lindsay, Carrier F., Lettie W., Louis Morehead (died in adolescence), and a son that died in infancy. Marie died in 1862 and Patterson married Mary E. Fries two years later. They had six children: Frank F., Samuel F., Andrew H., Rufus L., John L., and Edmond V. Rufus Lenoir Patterson Jr. founded American Machine and Foundry and served as a vice president of the American Tobacco Company. In 1878, Patterson Sr., was accepted into the Moravian Church. He was a frequent benefactor to his alma mater. Patterson died on July 15, 1879 and was buried at Salem Woodland Cemetery. References 1830 births 1879 deaths People from Caldwell County, North Carolina Mayors of Winston-Salem, North Carolina University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni Businesspeople from North Carolina North Carolina lawyers 19th-century American businesspeople 19th-century American lawyers Burials at Salem Cemetery