Jacob Blount (1726-1789) was a prominent merchant in Pitt and Craven Counties who served as a representative for Craven in the North Carolina General Assembly in 1766, 1768, 1769, and 1770-1771. In 1764, he joined several others in advocating for the establishment of a free school in New Bern. During the American Revolution he served as a paymaster for the 2nd North Carolina Regiment and later the North Carolina Militia. In July 1777 he reported news of the discovery of the Gourd Patch Conspiracy to Governor Richard Caswell.