Robert Brank Vance was born at Reem's Creek (Buncombe County), North Carolina, on April 24, 1828. Vance was a Confederate General and politician. He served as a Congressional Representative for the state of North Carolina from 1873- 1885, and a representative of Buncombe County in the North Carolina House of Representatives from 1893-1895. He died in Alexander (Buncombe County), North Carolina, on November 28, 1899.