xt7cc24qnh1x https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt7cc24qnh1x/data/mets.xml Lee County, Georgia Georgia Historical Records Survey 1942 Prepared by The Georgia Historical Records Survey, Division of Professional and Service Projects, Work Projects Administration; Other contributors include: United States Works Progress Administration, Division of Professional and Service Projects; 2 volumes: illustrated, maps, plans, 28 cm; Mimeographed; Includes bibliographies and indexes; UK holds archival copy for ASERL Collaborative Federal Depository Program libraries; Call number FW 4.14:G 296/no.88 books English Atlanta: The Survey This digital resource may be freely searched and displayed in accordance with U. S. copyright laws. Georiga Works Progress Administration Publications Inventory of the County Archives of Georgia, Number 88, Volume I Lee County (Leesburg) text Inventory of the County Archives of Georgia, Number 88, Volume I Lee County (Leesburg) 1942 1942 2015 true xt7cc24qnh1x section xt7cc24qnh1x       I   VERS   KEN¥UcKV  
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  A INVENTORY
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  § COUNTY ARCHIVES
  I OE GEORGIA
  E
E   NO. 88 LEE COUNTY (LEESBURG)
      Volume I, Historical Sketch
             
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  THE GEORGIA HISTORICAL RECORDS SURVEY
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  WORK PROJECTS ADMINISTRATION

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Ei The Inventory pf_the County Archives pf Georgia is one of a number
gg of guides to historical materials prepared throughout the United States
pe by workers on the Historical Records Survey projects of the Work Proj-
Qi ects Administration. The publication herewith presented, the Historical
g Sketch of an inventory of the archives of Lee County, is Volume I of
£ Number 88 of the Georgia series.
§ The Historical Records Survey program was undertaken in the winter
i of 1935-36 for the purpose of providing useful employment to needy unem-
§ ployed historians, lawyers, teachers, and research and clerical workers.
g In carrying out this objective, the project was organized to compile
3 inventories of historical materials, particularly the unpublished govern-
g ment documents and records which are basic in the administration of local
y governments, and which provide invaluable data for students of political,
j economic, and social history. Up to the present time approximately 2,000
j publications have been issued by the Survey throughout the country. The
Q archival guide herewith presented is intended to meet the requirements of
E day-to-day administration by the officials of the county, and also the
i needs of lawyers, businessmen, and other citizens who require facts from
i the public records for the proper conduct of their affairs. The volume
i in so designed that it can be used by the historian in his research in
g unprinted sources in the same way he uses the library card catalog for
3 printed sources.
Q The inventories produced by the Historical Records Survey projects
_ attempt to do more than give merely a list of records - they attempt fur-
, ther to sketch in the historical background of the county or other unit
Q of government, and to describe precisely and in detail the organization
. and functions of the government agencies whose records they list. The
Q county, town, and other local inventories for the entire country will,
Q] when completed, constitute an encyclopedia of local government as well
t as a bibliography of local archives.
`  `
i The successful conclusion of the work of the Historical Records
if Survey projects, even in a single county, would not be possible without
fi the support of public officials, historical and legal specialists, and
gi many other groups in the community. Their cooperation is gratefully
j acknowledged.
{ The Survey program was organized by Luther H. Evans, who served as
kp Director until March l, l940, when he was succeeded by Sargent E. Child.
ij The Survey operates as a Nation-wide series of locally sponsored projects
S in the Service Division, of which Mrs. Florence Kerr, Assistant Commis-
3; sioner, is in charge.
[ HOWARD O. HUNTER
Q Commissioner of
H Work Projects
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rf The Historical Records Survey was initiated in Georgia in October
(Q 1956, as a unit of a Nation-wide program under the supervision of Dr.
{Q Luther H. Evans, National Director. The project at the beginning was
li set up as a part of the Federal Writers Project, but functioned there-
{Q under for only a few weeks. The Survey became an independent unit of
VQ Federal Project No. l on November 1, 1956, and operated as such until
rj September l, 1959, when the transfer of the Survey to the status of a
if locally sponsored State-wide project was effected. The present State
3 Supervisor of the Survey was appointed on October 10, 1940.
@1 The principal objective of the Survey in Georgia is to prepare com-
§ plete inventories of the public archives of the State and its political
S subdivisions, and to make readily accessible to research students and
Q historians this large store of source material. This includes the pub-
? lication, not only of inventories of county archives, but also of maps,
E vital statistics, and other important data found both in State and
Q county depositories. Inventories of church archives, of Federal Archives
gc in the State of Georgia, and guides to manuscript depositories have also
i been or will be prepared. A list of the publications of the Georgia
i Historical Records Survey appears on page 85, Such a survey should
T greatly aid and encourage a more systematic study of local governmental
Q structure and point the way to an improvement in the methods of storage
»_ and preservation of both current and noncurrent records.
V1
C, The Inventory of the County Archives of Georgia will, when com-
}? pleted, consist of afseparate, numbered volume Zor volumes) for each
y’ county in the State. Each county unit of the series is numbered accord-
{J ing to its respective position in an alphabetical list of Georgia's 159
Q counties. Thus, the volumes for Lee County are numbered 88, in accor-
Ql dance with this list.
 .
Q, In order to encourage the study of local history in the schools,
fj the publication of the Historical Sketch of Lee County as a seperate
QV volume was decided upon. The Survey plans to publish the section con-
fp taining the county office and governmental organization essays and the
fg record entries at a later date, as a second volume.
~gQ The Survey was begun in Lee County in January 1940, and the ini-
QY tial field work was completed in December of that year. The work was
T rechecked during December 1941. For the completeness and accuracy of
ig the inventory of the records, as well as the transcriptions of the county
in minutes cited herein, the field workers are responsible. The research
f was made and the draft of the historical sketch was written by Paul B.
K] Ccle, of the project editorial staff, and was edited and revised by
jj Harold Warnell, Project Techinician.
W? The publication of this volume is made possible largely through
in the assistance rendered on behalf of Lee County by the Commissioners of
ij Roads and Revenues. The valuable assistance rendered by the Superin-
b iéndent of Schools, the Superior Court Clerk, the Ordinary, and other
gf (vii)

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viii T. 
A 
Preface _;
officials of Lee County is gratefully acknowledged, Acknowledgment is U
also made for the aid given by the various workers and officials of the A
p State and District offices of the Work Projects Administration, Q
The inventory of the State archives, of county, municipal, and iQ
other local records, will constitute separate series of publications. nj
They are in mimeographed form for free distribution to certain State and if
local public officials, public libraries in Georgia, and to a limited  g
number of libraries and governmental agencies outside the State. Re- Q
quests for information concerning these publications should be addressed Q
to Julian J. Barfield, State Supervisor, Research and Records Program, if
Ten Forsyth Street Building, Atlanta, Georgia• Q
FREDERICK S. HULSE if
State Supervisor L
The Georgia Historical Records Survey —Y
r &~
Atlanta, Georgia g
April 1942  
 
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Qi tee County Courthouse, Leesburg, Georgia . .. Frcntisoiece
Q; Vresident Roosevelt‘s statement. ,.., ,nHH. _,__ U. N .. iii
and fi foreword M". .,.,. , ..,.. H. ,,.., 4 H .... 4U4 ,,,,,..,,. in .,,, M.W ,.,_ all mm..l H...,..MW - v
l T.?
_ lr Preface , ... A rHi..ih.c.H . ,.., .c ,. .M. ,... .n,Hwu44 vii
:sed i
1, § Historical Sketch
S Physical Characteristicse ..-w .-uMW M ..,.,.. .rrr H ..,.. H.u4 ..,, ,ul l
'\ T, . . . . i
Q ierritory Prior to the Organization of the County_ __,_ ,_M 2
ii Creation and Organization of the County ___4U M__M 4
;y ; Creation; Organization and Growth; findertonz
3 “ f . “
g Early Leesburg; Stark&s)ville; Courthouses and
y Jails; Election Vrecincts.
5
E . . . M
E Agricultural Pevelopment before the Civil Marc 4.4 , , l4
{ The Creek War; Palmyra; Plantations and Farms.
li Commercial Development before the Civil`War M. cw.- M. EO
i Transoortation, Roads, and Bridges; Industry,
% Manufacture, and Trade.
  · Y • 4
g Ante—Bellum Social nife and Culture W. -U .... .. . .r.. ,. 24
t
Q _
j The Civil war , . No . _,____ . ,... . ...o H .,WHu r,r.r . . .. 99
i N . ,. . . Q U .
l secession; Military Companies; Care oi ooldiers‘
4{ Families; Military Supply; Military Police.
{ Reconstruction ,.. ,4 4.,. ..."c. ., ... . , . 56
g Political and Social Conditions; Health and
L Lorale; Churches; White Churches; Colored
{ Churches; Agricultural Development; Culture
Q of the "New South"; Roads; Bridaes.
1 Early Twentieth Century . ,,.. . .N .H..M.H . .. 95
f Transportation and Communications; lndustry
Bl and Agriculture; Health Progress.
{C After the Roll Feevil U4.MM . M.,4 M 58
]i Agriculture; Commerce and lndustry; Vital
Y; Statistics; Transportation Facilities:
“ Education. .
9; (ix}
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Contents Page tj
4 Er ?
Population Chart of Lee County ..., ,. ..,... im.oW. o.,,. ...o., rm. ,.,..,......C.,...,C..... . ,.._,...,..,.......... or 69 {M
? Eilzlicgrsphyw. .o.V . »C.,»». . ..4.   .o...,   Vo_....V.   .,.,.   .....».C,. . ..._ . .4....4..o44...C..CC...o4.......4..,o.,..._, . ,.....o.,....4..4....4.C.,C4,.,...... 7l ig ;
Rcstsr cf` Officials cf Lss Cccnty ,.....o.....,...V....,.....,o..4.a.,4.4.C.4....,.4.4,....o4.4....,.......,...o......,.....44, -. 79 {Q ?
List of Publications of The Georgia @t
Historical Records Survey. V..,.l_o . .o»,.... .. ,..,»»..... . ....,,   ..,l............._.... . ........ . .l.... . .....o..a..ll.,..l...l., 85 {Q T
ILLUSTRATIONS lj .
L Opposite QH
’ Page `t
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Lee County at the Time of Its Creation, 1826 W____,___,_____V_l_________ 4 ___,A _ ___A,, _ ,____4___AA_ l Q
Map Showing Historical Development of Lee _ ; 
County and Map of Georgia, January l, 1842.ww, .r...to...._ . _,l..l.._.,_.........l 8 é
iii
Maps of Georgia, 1826 and l942rHmlNiu Muir. ..,.. .mH ..A. HHH, ..., W 28 g
Map of Lee County Now T l_l_l,...._l___ _ l__.,.4,l_, A o_...._l_ _ ____.,...._,._,l._l..,,,.4 . ,Ty,_... C .l.,_.r.o.....,.o T ,.r,....,.. . ,.,...,.,.l. . T....T.....l. .. 5% it
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Yi HISTORICAL SKETCH
*0»R1&.$ y 
Qi Physical Characteristics
M 
Y; Lee County is in the southwestern section of the State, It is
qt roughly rectangular in shape, its maximum dimensions being, north and
pq south, 20 miles, east and west, 24 miles. On the north it is bounded
IQ by Sumter County, on the west by Terrell County, on the south by Dough-
yj erty County, and on the east by the Flint River, which separates it
tj from Worth and Crisp Counties. The area of the county is B58 square
lf miles, or 229,120 acres.l
ii Physiographically, Lee County is located in the Dougherty Plain,
Iilll ff that part of the coastal plain lying in southwest Georgia. It is char-
'EI acterized by a mild relief, a few small surface streams, and numerous
1g limestone sinks forming depressions in an otherwise very smooth plain.
I The range in elevation is slightly less than 125 feet and the general
yd slope is from northwest to southeast. One of the highest points in the
“y¤ county is Smithville, in the northwest part, where the elevation above
`````` Y‘ sea level is 541 feet. Elevations along the south county line range
°, from 225 to 250 feet,
Yr The physiographic divisions include gently rolling uplands, undu-
li lating upland plains, and lowelying plains, part of which are well
`~ gi drained and part of which are wet and swampy, The western part of the
‘‘```'‘` Q, county is drained by Kinchafoonee Creek and its branches, Reedy and
E Fowltown Creeks, the central part by Muckalee Creek and branch, Huck-
Q aloochee Creek, and the eastern and northern part by the Flint River
Q, through Chokee Creek and other and smaller tributaries. A number of
{ subterranean streams flow on the surface for part of their course and
Q underground the rest of the way, changing four or five times within the
‘‘‘‘‘‘‘‘‘‘ t county. Springs, surface wells, and deep-bored wells are common over
ty: the county.
mp, The soils of the county range in texture from loose, coarse, quartz
ity sands to clay loams. The sandy loams occupy more than 50 percent of
¥~ the area of the county, sands and loamy sand the next largest acreage,
i‘"```'`' i` §i and the clay loams, the less extensive area.2
gd 1 U. S. Bureau of Chemistry and Soils, Soil Survey of Lee County,
it Georgia (Series 1927, No. 4), p. 1, and map. There has been some
············· UP doubt as to the exact area of the county. The U. S. Census, Popu-
fi lation, Georgia, 1940, gives 555 sq. miles; Georgia's Official
iQ Register, 1953-1935-1937, p. 491, gives 526 sq. miles; the Educa-
E_ tional Survey of Lee County, 1920, gives 425 sq. miles; Lucian
if Lamar Knight, A_Standard History of Georgia and Georgians, II,
Qi 125, gives 436—sqT_HE1es2——The—?isca1 Administrative Frogram of the
;§ Work Projects Administration by addition of the acreage of every
{Y parcel of land owned in the county found 552.5 sq. miles. with
_ Yi the addition of public roads, the rrea of the county would ce about
,»’ ij 355 or 558 sq. miles.
° -=`  _Q 2 U. S. Bureau of Chemistry and coils, Soil Survey, pp. 1, 2.
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Historical Sketch %§
ui His
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· An early survey of the soil of Lee County was made prior to 1849 Li
by Dr. L. B. Mercer, a resident of the county and a state commissioner. QQ as
He found that the sandy soils, believed to be a diluvium transported {QQ 18*
i from the older parts of the continent, rested upon tertiary limestone @  t`; WG?
varying in depths from 20 to 50 feet./ The smaller streams, as well as @1 PGY
the Flint River, had washed away this diluvium in their course through pj the
the limestone, dissolving channels through which the streams flowed. 1i*
The Indian name for the Flint River was Thornateeska. Rain water, per- i§Q _
colating through the diluvium, dissolved here and there subterranean Ep SE1
channels and caverns in the limestone, and these, giving away from yg? whe
time to time, formed lime-sinks and ponds. Fragments of burrstone, of @_ vlc
the same division of rocks (Eocene) that distinguished the limestone, na
were embedded in the diluvium and in the streams, forming shoals ob- if
i structing stream navigation.l· f§* Eg?
The climate of Lee County is temperate, with long warm summers and tf Th?
short mild winters. The average growing season extends from the early QQ gn;
part of March to about the middle of November, a period of approximate- ig “_“
} ly 8 months. The average rain fall is about 50 inches and is vell Tg dll
distributed throughout the year, being heaviest during the growing sea- 3§
son and lightest during the fall.2 2% idh
Territory Prior to the Organization of the County yi, ifi
I i »
Until 1825, when the land was procured from the Indians by treaty, Q GF
the territory was almost unknown to the white men. But the Indians Lg muf
had villages there and were making pottery and chipping flint long be- lé tO
fore the white men reached North America. Some of the finest examples t§ p°t
' of the art of stone chipping in America are said to have been found in IQ D3?
the lower Flint Valley of Georgia. Nowhere in North America did the $5 w?S
materials provided by nature run through such astonishing colors and iff 3*t
color combinations. Near every large spring was a village site, and Q§‘ Gd
close to the villages were ridges yielding flint material. Of the finer K? 181
chipping, millions of flakes have been found as fine as violet petals. 1%
One of the most interesting village sites in southwest Georgia is i£° gpg
said to be in Lee County, about 8 miles northwest of Albany. Axes, jg
celts, and other implements of ground stone may have belonged to an il? ——-
earlier group of Indians than the Creeks, whom the white men found in ’fj
Georgia. Later occupants of this site, near a creek and spring, devel- {Q
oped the art of pottery making. The material used was a local clay M3
mixed with a black mud from the swamps and a fine gravel from the creek ki
bed. Vessels were baked hard, and ranged in size from bowls the size ,§
. of a teaoup to pots of several gallons. Among the flint collections of li
this tribe are arrow- and speorheads in varied color combinations,such 2%
w' 
  i Q} -
l George White, Historical Collections pf Georgia · . ., pp. 511, lgj
512. “G
2 U. S. Bureau of Chemistry and Soils, Soil Survey, p. 3. lf
5 George Gilman Smith, The Story pf Georgia and the Georgia People, {Q
1752-1860, pp. 400, 401. `__—°—-I fg

 Le i
  5
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vp, Historical Sketch
ii 
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gr- gp as pink with brown or yellow, red with white or pink, cream with choco-
gy late and gray, purple with red end yellow. Sometimes these flint points
é yl were of three or four colors and many were translucent, a few trans-
"as j perent. ·Crude corn mills and other implements of stone are also emcng
hgh ig the remains of the tribe.l
>€r_ ig Benjamin Hawkins, visiting the Indians of this section in 1799,
l ig said; "These people have villages on the waters of the Flint River
yi where they have fine stocks of cattle, cows and horses, and raise corn,
Of pp rice and potatoes in great plenty."9
. we
" 1% One of these villages, called by the Indians Che—au—hnu or Cheraw
I yg (shortened by the traders to Chehaw) and Au-muc-cu1—la, was considered
§ as one of the six most important towns of the Confederacy of Creeks,
and tg The village, near present Leesburg and just below rnd adjoining cncther
fly yi lndian village, Oose—oo-che, was marked by an immense live-oak tree,
1tS_ E 9 feet in diameter and 12O feet from tip to tip, under which the ln-
`? dirns held council meetings.°
sea- ,1 1
3 In rebruary 1818, when General Andrew Jackson was enroute to Flor-
75 ida in the Seminole War, he stopped at Cheraw, secured supplies for his
lt army and crre for his sick and wounded.é But the following month some
 % neighboring Indians, the Felemma rnd Hopaunee tribes on the east side
&ty’ lg of the Tlint River, mode incursions rmong the whites, committing some
S it murders. uovernor Rabun at first requested Generrl Jackson for troops
b8_ pg to use against the raiders, but later under his own authority dis-
les E patched tbout 270 men under Captains Obed iright, Robinson, Rogers,
in g Dean, end Childs, and Lieutenants Cooper and Jones. The chief, nopaunee,
G , was reported to have removeg to Cheraw. On this assumption the town was
d 7% attacked on April 25, 1818. The destruction of the village was report-
d 4; ed to General Jackson by General Glascock in a letter dated April 30,
riner Lt 1818*
4:
lS° Q "Yhen the detachment arrived at Cheraw an Indian was discovered
V is I5 grazing some cattle. He proposed to go with the interpreter and to
L l Lg  •-···-·*—
,;;l_ yg 1 K. T. Mclntosh, "Relics of the Red Man," in History ind Reminis-
, 7  .¤...€¤¤<4.S 95 ?2Bé1i€£“1‘1C   PP- 44-46-
TQ E Col. Benjamin Hawkins, "A Sketch of the Creek County, in the years
°rG€k 1E 1798 and 1799," in Collections of the Georgia Historical Society,
$01,   j iii, 64. Y "` W  
;uCh & ~ betters of Andrew Jackson to hon. John C. Calhoun, cecty. of var,
‘§ ¢ay 7, 1818, and to the marriors of the Chehaw Village, may 7,
iQ 1818, in American State Papers, Military Affairs, tugust 19, 1789 —
5 Feb. 25, 1819, pp. 774-777.
L g é Ietters from (Governor) Wm. Rabun to Major General Andrew Jackson,
' E U. S. Army, Creek Nation, Narch 21, 1818, and to Hon. John C.
ri Calhoun, Secty. of War, June 1, 1818, in American State Papers,
319, j? nilitary Affairs, 1789-1819, pp. 774, 775.
-—— ~ 5 ”h1te, historical Collections, pp. 512, 515.
  —i`——
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Historical Sketch V f His
I bring any of the chiefs for the captain to talk with. It was not at- QQ
tended to. An advance was ordered. The cavalry rushed forward and il ML,
, commenced the massacre. Even after the firing and murder commenced, fi was
Major Howard, an old chief, who furnished you with corn, came out of `y his
his house with a white flag in front of the line. It was not respected. lj at
An order was given for a general fire, and nearly four hundred guns { at
were discharged at him before one took effect. He fell and was bayo- gi thj
neted. His son also was killed . . . . Seven men were killed, one v§~ PTC
woman and two children." The town was destroyed.l Q_ lit
§ crt
Captain Wright was arrested by order of General Jackson,2 but was Q
released by the civil authorities,5 was rearrested by Governor Rabun and %
' ordered by the President of the United States, President Monroe, to be g OTE
I placed in the custody of the marshal, but he made his escape.4 _ g bet
A lir
A large granite boulder was unveiled June 14, 1912, on the site of i COL
the Indian village. The inscription read: "Chehaw. Large Indian town, i Que
home of the Chehaws. A friendly agricultural people of the Creek § en;
~ tribe, who aided our early settlers. They contributed men, food, and E Mel
horses, to subdue the hostile Seminoles. Here Andrew Jackson rested Q
with his starving army and was given help in 1818. Through misunder- Q
standing were sacrificed seven of this tribe by Georgia troops, for § PO;
which all possible amends were made. Erected in 1912 by Council of y fr;
Safety Chapter, D. A. R.“5   top
  ee,
Creation and Organization of the County § CO]
g fix
, Creation g
In 1825 the Indian lands between the Flint and Chattahoochee ei '”'
Rivers, approximately 5,850 square miles, 150 miles long and 45 miles Q
broad, were procured by treaty.G When laid out in 1825 the territory i
was almost unknown to white men, and the soil untouched. The lend was é
in tertiary formation, the water was strongly impregnated with lime, §
and the air was laden with malaria.7 Q
1 Letter of Thomas Glascock, Brig. Gen. Com'g. Ga. Militia, U. 5. S., Y
to Major General Andrew Jackson, April BO, 1818, in American State IQ
Papers, p. 776. `—*"-__"—`-T` Q
2 6¥dC?T Headquarters, Division of the South, Andrew Jackson, Major ii
Ceneral, Commanding, May 7, 1818;