Mebane Triumph, Posted on February 4, 2026

• February 4, 2026
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• Posted By: Scott Family Collection

Photo credit: Cotton flower, Mississippi State University, University Extension

What in the world is Mebane Triumph?

The Mebane family has accomplished so much over the last several hundred years, it would be hard to guess which of their triumphs I am referring to.

So, you might be surprised to find out that Mebane Triumph is a variety of cotton!

It was developed by Alexander Duff Mebane (1855-1923), a descendant of a brother of General Alexander Mebane, Jr. who served in the Revolutionary War.

Alec as he was called, was born in 1855 in what would become Mebane, North Carolina, a small city that straddles Alamance and Orange Counties.

His parents, David Mitchell Mebane and Elizabeth Kerr Mebane moved the family to Dancyville, Tennessee, where they lived through the Civil War.

Around 1870, the Mebanes moved again, this time to Texas. They built a two-room cabin and resumed farming.

Alec was a farmer, but he also bred horses, a venture that ended in a disastrous fire. He returned to farming and by luck, observation and skillful plant breeding developed a variety of cotton that was sold all over the world. He marketed his new variety as Mebane Triumph Cotton.

What is an Indenture? Posted on January 28, 2026

• January 29, 2026
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• Posted By: Scott Family Collection

 In the fall of 1793, Alexander Mebane and Samuel Scott signed an indenture in which Alexander sold 200 acres of land along the Haw River to Samuel. James Mebane was one of two witnesses to this transaction.

Here is a photo of the top of the document, which was entered into a bound volume at the County Clerk’s Office. The page number is visible at the top: 458. The bottom of the document shows who was present at the signing.

The word, “indenture” is not one we use all the time. When I looked it up, the definition was given as a legal agreement, contract, or document.

Samuel and James (the witness) were about the same age and most likely good friends by this time.

Because, less than a year later, when Samuel decided to get married, James stood up for him as bondsman.

The friendship must have endured, because years later, Samuel named one of his sons James Mebane Scott.

Guilty Pleasures, Posted on January 20, 2026

• January 20, 2026
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• Posted By: Scott Family Collection

One of the guilty pleasures afforded to historians is the chance to read the private correspondence and diaries of people who lived long ago.

Recently, I found a letter posted in December of 1945, while the United States was at war.

The letter was addressed to Mary Kerr (Mrs. John T. Kerr, Sr., 1864-1947).  It was from her niece Gertrude who lived in Canada at the time.

The letter included an update on Mary’s brother (Gertrude’s father) who was in the hospital with a duodenal ulcer. Apparently, he was feeling much better and would be discharged soon. She suggested that if Mary wanted to cheer her brother up, some cigars would help. He was contemplating a vacation to Florida but didn’t want to go alone, she added. 

Mary was expecting a lonely Christmas as her husband had passed away in 1940 and her son, John T. Kerr III was away in the Navy. So a trip to sunny Florida would be a nice diversion. 

I wonder if Mary took the hint.

Button, Button, Who’s Got the Button? Posted on January 13, 2026

• January 13, 2026
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• Posted By: Scott Family Collection

I found this charming button in an antique secretary here at the Scott Family Collection. The button was attached to a small piece of paper indicating that the image is of John T. Kerr, Jr. who was born in 1898.

This button looks old timey now, but when it was made, such things were all the rage. The button was made by placing a small photograph on a metal backing and then covering it with clear celluloid. Celluloid was an early form of plastic, but not a true plastic, as the formula contained some organic material.

The secretary, a lovely pre-Civil War piece, was a bequest from John Jr.’s son, John Thomas Kerr III (1925-2021). I found the button and some lapel pins in one of the drawers.

The Kerr family and the Scott family are related through ancestors Nathaniel Greene Kerr and Margaret Graham (Barrett) Kerr.  Nathaniel Greene Kerr was a patriot who served in the Revolutionary War. His grandson, John T. Kerr, settled in Durham and started a foundry.

John Thomas Kerr III was a college student when in 1945 he interrupted his studies to join the Navy. After his service, he finished his degree and then joined the family business, Durham Foundry & Machine Works. John had many interests but perhaps chief among them was his love for his family, his church, and Kerr family history. He was a charter member of the Saint Andrew’s Society of North Carolina and was very active in all things Kerr. Thank you, John!