Landon Carter was a prominent member of the House of Burgesses (1752–1768) and perhaps the most prolific published Virginia writer of his generation—the author of four major political pamphlets, nearly fifty newspaper essays, and a revealing personal diary. Carter was the son of the powerful landowner Robert “King” Carter and for a time managed some of his father’s land. Upon King Carter’s death, Landon Carter inherited a substantial Richmond County estate and built his home, Sabine Hall, there. After three failed attempts, Carter was elected to the House of Burgesses in 1752 and was rewarded with powerful committee appointments. He publicly defended the House in published pamphlets and newspaper essays until he was defeated in his bid for reelection in 1768. The first to raise the alarm in Virginia over the Stamp Act, Carter was chair of the Richmond County Committee (1774–1776) and a wholehearted supporter of independence during the American Revolution (1775–1783). He died at Sabine Hall in 1778.
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