Bartlett S. Durham was born and raised roughly 12 miles (19 km) west of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, in rural Orange County.
[1] At some point during the early 1850s, Durham was elected to represent Orange County in the North Carolina General Assembly, having introduced a bill to form a chapter of the Sons of Temperance.
[1] Ten years later, fueled by the post-Civil War tobacco boom, the North Carolina General Assembly incorporated Durham on the site of the railway station named in his honor.
Durham was laid to rest in a windowed iron coffin in an unmarked grave on the grounds of Antioch Cemetery in Orange County, wearing "gold-rimmed" glasses.
[1] Reburial took place Jan. 2, 1934, in Maplewood Cemetery, under a marker that lists incorrect middle name, and erroneous dates of birth and death.