Navegation Project on Goshen Swamp Duplin Co. 1785 >From the book on Duplin Co.. The committee reported to the April 1785 Court ; >From the great abundance of water in the said swamp-- there is a practicability of making it navigable by clearing the main run during the dry season. The justices then instructed the committee to search the run of Goshen, lay it off in districts and obtain a list of inhabitants living near each district. The committee reported to the July 1785 court that it had layed off the run of Goshen Swamp into 17 convenient small districts. These districts were numbered consectively from where the Goshen empties into the Northeast Cape Fear, Westward along the Swamp to just beyond the mouth of Panther Branch in the west, which flows into the south side of Goshen a few yards west of where, US 117, now crosses the swamp. This Panther Branch is not to be confused with Panther Creek, which empties into the northeast Cape Fear, just north of the mouth of Goshen Swamp in East Duplin County. A description of each District, together with the names of overseers and hands follows ; 1st district thru 14th district, other surnames. For the 15th District, from mouth of White Oak up to the Bridge ; John Bradley overseer, hands ; Jeptha Daniel, James Bradley, Shadrick Daniel, John Daniel Jr, William Gilly & his son,(not named) Thomas Wiggins & his negro, William Burnham, William Hurst and his two negroes, Thomas Flowers, Simon Flowers, Starling Powell & all others belonging to their families. There were other names listed for the 16th & 17th districts. This was also in the Duplin Co. Court minutes book of 1784-1787. http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~burnhamfamilys/courtrecords.html