Historical Marker #54), the first steamboat in North Carolina, which operated on the Cape Fear River. In 1823, he built Warrior in Beaufort, followed by the brig Henry, eight years later. During much of the 1820s, he managed a store and taproom on his Beaufort property, and also had a partnership in a Taylor's Creek salt distribution company. Burns possessed a number of vessels, such as a schooner, seiner, sailboat and a mullet boat. Among other things, he also co-owned brick kilns used by the federal government to build Fort Macon, in the largest public works project in the history of the area, and enslaved 11 people, whose forced labor was used for his businesses and on his plantation in Carteret County. Political career Burns' political career started with his 1821 election to represent Carteret County in the North Carolina House of Commons and his appointment to serve as the commissioner of a local canal connecting Neuse and Newport Rivers. He served 11 terms in the legislature — seven in the House of Representatives and four in the Senate — over a course of 14 years. Later life In 1835 President Andrew Jackson appointed him keeper of the Brant Island Shoal Light, a position he held until his death. He is buried in the Old Burying Ground at Beaufort. Legacy Two destroyers have been named in his honor: and , in service during World War I and II, respectively. In 1834, Burnsville, North Carolina was founded and named in his honor. A statue of him was placed in the town square in 1909. The town of Otway, in Carteret County, North Carolina, is also named for him. He has descendants living today in the areas of Beaufort, Swansboro and Atlantic Beach, North Carolina, and in the immediate area of his birth near Queens Creek, North Carolina. Captain Burns' life is the basis of a historical novel by Ruth P. Barbour, The Cruise of the Snap Dragon. Notes Further reading , External links Biographical Page 1775 births 1850 deaths American privateers North Carolina state senators Members of the North Carolina House of Representatives People from Carteret County, North Carolina People from Onslow County, North Carolina