USA > Georgia > Jackson County > The early history of Jackson county, Georgia. "The writings of the late G.J.N. Wilson, embracing some of the early history of Jackson county". The first settlers, 1784; formation and boundaries to the present time; records of the Talasee colony > Part 1
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THE EARLY HISTORY OF JACKSON COUNTY GEORGIA-
1800
Class
F212
Book
J13WI
Copyright N.º.
COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT.
THE EARLY HISTORY OF JACKSON COUNTY GEORGIA
"The Writings of the Late G. J. N. Wilson, embracing some of the Early History of Jackson County."
THE FIRST SETTLERS, 1784
FORMATION AND BOUNDARIES TO THE PRESENT TIME
RECORDS OF THE TALASEE COLONY
STRUGGLES OF THE COLONIES OF YAMACUTAH, GROANING ROCK, FORT YARGO, STONETHROW AND THOMOCOGGAN
Given in Narrative Style without Burdening the Reader with Dates Hard to Remember By G. J. N. WILSON
With Supplement giving a list of Officers of the County, 1796 to 1914 Judges of the Inferior Court Jackson County's Part in the Civil War Confederate Veterans in the County Representatives and Senators from Jackson, 1799 to 1914 And Some Strange Records by Editor
Edited and Published by W. E. WHITE All Rights Reserved.
.J13WY
FOOTE & DAVIES CO. ATLANTA
MAY -8 1914
COPYRIGHT 1914 BY W. E. WHITE
CCIA371806
100,
THE EARLY HISTORY OF JACKSON COUNTY, GEORGIA By G. J. N. WILSON ,
DEDICATION
In full appreciation of their kindness and in glad memory of their unselfish services, this narrative of a bygone age is
. LOVINGLY DEDICATED TO MY FRIENDS.
7
RECOMMENDATIONS.
We, the committee appointed by the teachers at their regular monthly meeting in April, to examine the manuscripts of the late G. J. N. Wilson, with a view to seeing whether or not any part or parts can be used as a History of Jackson County, beg leave to make the following report :
That we, as a committee, recommend that the manuscripts be published as "The Writings of the late G. J. N. Wilson, em- bracing some of the Early History of Jackson County."
Jefferson, Ga., July 4, 1913.
J. E. J. LORD, Chairman, Ex-Member Legislature,
J. A. CROOK, Principal Plain View High School,
W. H. MALEY, Member Board of Education,
LUTHER ELROD, Supt. Public Schools, Jackson County,
J. N. ROSS, Member Board of Education.
Committee.
On August 29, 1913, the Board of Education of Jackson County in meeting assembled, unanimously concurred in the above recom- mendation.
J. C. TURNER, President. LUTHER ELROD, Secretary.
8
EDITOR'S PREFACE.
"My friend, if I fail to get my book out before the Master calls, I want you to promise me, now, that you will see that it is pub- lished."
In obedience to the above request, made some six months be- fore the death of the late Hon. G. J. N. Wilson, the Editor is offering this work to the public.
It has been no small task to take up the manuscripts of a dead man, these, too, at different dates, and assemble them in the order that one would suppose the author intended. He left no instruc- tions whatever and but one explanation, and that concerned the Talasee Colony. Mr. Wilson stated that when a small boy, he had a "liking for scribbling." That a descendant of the Talasee people lived near his father's home and they very kindly allowed him to use the old papers as a copy. This he did as mere pas- time, it never once occuring to him then that these papers would be found useful. A few days after the papers were returned the neighbor's house burned.
Thus does God verify His saying, "And a little child shall lead them." Through the work of a little boy these records have been saved from oblivion. We can learn a few things about how the first settlers began the work of redeeming the forest and building homes in the garden spot of all Georgia.
We have made just as few changes as possible, leaving, as it were, "the author in his work," even to the peculiar manner of spelling some words.
After having traveled more than 500 miles, from place to place, verifying what was stated, and finding dates, places and people just as described in the manuscript, we feel that no higher
9
enconium can be paid the author than to say, "What is written, is written."
In the Supplement to this work the reader will find what we believe will interest as well as instruct.
We wish to thank the many friends that have been so ready to help by allowing us the use of their libraries, and also for the words of encouragement spoken by those who hope to see our county at the front.
Jefferson, Ga., March, 1914.
W. E. WHITE.
THE HOME OF THE "OLD GENERAL."
THE LIFE OF GUSTAVUS JAMES NASH WILSON.
On October the 16th, 1827, was born a baby boy, near what is now the beautiful little city of Commerce, Jackson County. He was named Gustavus James Nash Wilson and was destined to make a mark in the world.
He belonged to a family living in the county when it was or- ganized in 1796 and subsequently prominent in its political, busi- ness and social affairs.
He was a grandson of George Wilson, a leading citizen of the pioneer days of Jackson County and one who made the original draft of the first constitution of the state of Georgia.
George Wilson was one of the first settlers of the county and was an elder in the first Presbyterian church organized in this part of the State. James, a son, married Miss Martha Bowles, daughter of another old settler, and they were the parents of the subject of this sketch.
The father was a farmer and a brave soldier in the wars of 1812 and the Indian troubles of 1836. He died at the home of his son, G. J. N. Wilson, near Pentecost Church, on March 19, 1870, aged eighty-three years. Mr. G. J. N. Wilson then lived in the Flannigan house, where Mrs. Amanda Finch now resides.
In the youthful days of Mr. Gustavus Wilson educational ad- vantages were few. The "old-field" schools, and here and there a private academy, furnished the mental training of the masses. In the former Mr. Wilson's natural love for learning was nurtured until his mind was prepared to guide it into channels of self education. He was from childhood a hard and thorough student, ever seeking knowledge.
At thirteen years of age he was so far advanced that he was asked to teach a school near where Commerce now is, and so eminent were his qualifications and successful was he in the work, that he taught this school for fourteen successive years. He was associated with other schools in the county, and was at the head
11
of some of the most prominent institutions of the county in ante- bellum days.
In May 1862, Mr. Wilson left his profession to cast his lot with the Confederate Army as an officer in Company E, Thirty-fourth Georgia Regiment.
After the war he devoted most of his time to carpentry; and was thus engaged when, in 1871, he was elected to the position of County School Commissioner. He held this position for about 30 years in succession.
Mr. Wilson came of Scotch-Irish descent; of fine mental attain- ments and possessed a physique of Herculenean proportions.
He was an Elder in the Presbyterian church, a Chapter Mason, also an Odd Fellow.
Mr. Wilson was what some might term eccentric, but to know him was to love him. His friendship knew no bounds. He was the same to all; the high or the low, rich or poor received his help at all times. Hundreds of teachers who now have made their mark in the world, can look back to the time when they, struggling to rise, would have given up in despair but for the timely aid and sweet sympathy given them by the one above them-and yet never above, for the Old General never took advantage of his position as Commissioner to "bully" his friends or teachers.
He could boast of never spending an idle day in his life, always busy with mind or hand, and his motto was: "Owe no man anything."
In his official capacity he never cost the county one "nickel." He even furnished his own office and office fixtures free of any cost to the county he loved so well.
By using "little scraps of time," Mr. Wilson erected one of the nicest homes in the city of Jefferson, with his own hands.
The Old General, as his friends loved to call him, was always at home to his host of friends; and many a time strangers could be seen looking around the place and inspecting the many inter- esting things that he had gathered from time to time. These good people were drawn thither by some chance remark made by some other traveler, maybe in a distant state, as to how they had spent the time when "passing through the city."
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(Right here let it be understood that the term, "General," was not a title nor was it ever used as such by Mr. Wilson, but was only a "nickname," by which his friends addressed him.)
Mr. Wilson owned one of the finest private libraries in the State, and one never went to him for help, intellectually, and went away empty. He seldom had to refer to his books but had the desired information at the "tip of his tongue," so to speak. He kept up with the political movements of the times, but never at any time stooped to "dabble" with the dirty tricks that some- times curse this section of the State.
He, like many another good man, lived, as it were, before his day, and his worth was not appreciated. Even since his death he has been criticised by some who did not understand him.
He was loved by his teachers and pupils alike. And even now one can hear him referred to as "That dear old Commissioner that visited our school when I was a little tot."
Mr. Wilson was married on August 1, 1847, to Miss Carrie Coleman. They had two children to bless their home, Mr. L. C. Wilson and Mrs. Maggie Johnson.
Gustavus James Nash Wilson died on the 28th day of March, 1909, and was laid to rest in Woodbine cemetery in the city of Jefferson, Ga. EDITOR.
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CONTENTS.
SECTION I.
Introduction.
CHAPTER. PAGE
I. Formation, Boundaries, etc. £ 21
II. The Country, its Inhabitants, Forests, Streams and Birds 33
III. Animals, Together with some Incidents Relating to Them-The Mysterious Wog 43
SECTION II. THE TALASEE COLONY.
I. First Settlers from Effingham County 51
II. Johnson Josiah Strong Makes a Discovery 60
III. The White Ladies Visit Adabor . 71
IV. The Identity of Banna Mar de Vedo is Found Out 82
V. The Cherokee Spy 93
VI. A Number of New Emigrants Arrive 106
VII. The Visit to Yamacutah and Return . 119
VIII. The Draper and Modin Families at Snodon 132
IX. The Visit to Nodoroc 145
X. Trouble at Snodon and the Arrival of More Emigrants 162
XI. The Cold Winter and a Visit by Governor Matthews. The Organization for Mutual Protection 173
SECTION III.
YAMACUTAH.
I. First Settlers at Tumbling Shoals and Related Incidents 186
SECTION IV.
THE OLD-TIME LOGROLLING.
I. The Log is Rolled . 201
II. The Dance at Dunson's and Preaching at the School House 211
III. Brantly Carries His Bride to Jefferson 220
IV. Gabe Nash Spells "Tizic" 228
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SECTION V. CELL No. 21.
CHAPTER. PAGE
I. The "A" Family 238
II. Sidney York is Arrested 243 ·
III. York is Found Guilty-Coatney's Confession 247
SECTION VI.
THE HUT OWL IN BORROWED FEATHERS.
I. The Reading of the Poem Opens Their Eyes 253
SECTION VII.
THE REBEL GIRL.
I. The Search for the Rebel . 261
II. The Girl in the Hollow Tree 266
III. A Cousin is Discovered
274
IV. The Rebel Girl is Carried Home .
277
SUPPLEMENT.
Public School Officers of Jackson County .
285
Harmony Grove Female Academy, 1824
.
286
Commissioners Roads and Revenues 286
Sheriffs 287
Coroners 288
Ordinaries 289
Deputy Sheriffs
289
Clerks Inferior Court
290
Tax Receivers 290
Treasurers 291
Surveyors 291
Tax Collectors 291
Clerks Superior Court 292
Justices of the Peace, Notaries Public, and Constables in 1914 293 Some Queer Things Culled from Court Records . 294
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PAGE
Judges Inferior Court .
298
Courts of Jackson County .
301
Officers City Court of Jefferson
302
Board Tax Assessors 302
Jackson County's Part in Civil War 303
Convention of 1861 . 303
Confederate Veterans Who Enlisted From Jackson 304
Confederate Soldiers Living in Jackson County 324
Convention of 1865 . 328
Convention of 1867-8
329
Convention of 1877 .
329
Members of General Assembly from Jackson County 330
Some Strange Old Papers . 333
Health and Longevity of People 337
Some Facts About Jackson County
339
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A LIST OF THE DIFFICULT INDIAN NAMES FOUND IN THIS BOOK, DIVIDED INTO SYLLABLES AND AN EXPLANATION AS TO WHAT THEY BELONGED TO IN THE DAYS OF THE FIRST SETTLEMENTS.
Po-ca-tăl-i-go was the name used by the Indians for Sandy creek ; Tish-ma-gū was Mulberry river; Ē-to-ho, North Oconee river; Ith-lo-bee, Middle Oconee; Pin-ho-lo-wah, Turkey creek; Töb-kē-sö-fos-kee, Curry's creek; Num-sā-co-tä, Hurricane creek; Ca-hoo-tä-con-nough, Double branches; Jä-rà-thog-gin, Beaver creek ; Ip-sē-quil-tä, Cedar Creek; Yō-to-comp-sä, Morgan's creek; Tau-rū-lä-boule, Beech creek; Tip-toe, Price's Mountain, on the line of Hall; Yăm-a-cū-tah, Tumbling Shoals; Yăm-trä-hooch-ee, Hurricane Shoals ; Tăl-a-pä-hoo, Rock ford; O-ko-lo-co Trail, was on the western side of the county (present boundary) and passed through Sno-don, now Winder; La-co-dä Trail led from Augusta to the mountains, passing through Groaning Rock, now Commerce, thence through where Maysville now is, and on through Stone- throw (Gillsville), to the Tallulah and Nacoochee countries ; Po-gä-nip, Cedar Hill; No-do-roc, the mud volcano, that the In- dians thought was hell; So-quil-läs, meant horses; Ū-mau-sau-gä, the old chief that lived at Tal-a-see Shoals, his home being called A-da-bor ; Ē-to-hau-tō was Umausauga's brother ; Yr-tyr-myr-myr- mys-co and Wö-kö-log were two Indian bucks; I-rö and Al-bö-rak, names of two of their horses; Tä-litch-lech-ee was the name of a certain man; Yēth-à, a woman's name; Rä-do-ä-tä, was a battle- field near Attica; Är-här-rä, another battlefield nearer the Tish- maugu; O-no-co-wäh, a word of lament; A-lö-thä, the Bell spring; Lăp-si-da-li, the woman that caused trouble between the Creeks and Cherokees; O-nő-mä-co, Lapsidali's brother; Nū-měr-ä-dō, the old battlefield at the mouth of the Num-sa-co-tä creek; Shul-tä-moo-zaw, an Indian village where Black's Creek church now stands; Hū-a-nä-co, the name of a certain Cherokee messen- ger; Bo-hū-ron, the place where Oconee Heights is situated; Neg-li-gole was the Indians' word for renegade; Tä-tä changed his name to Nyx-ter when he became a spy among the Bo-hū-rons; Ē-lăn-cy-dyne was the Cherokee's queen until she was killed at the battle of Arharra; El-tro-vä-dyne, the orphaned daughter of
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Elancydyne. She was found on the field of Arharra and became the adopted daughter, Băn-nä, of old Umausauga; Rä-mo-jä and Emefila meant a festival known as the Corn dance; Ho-no-räs were men among the Creeks that correspond to our present day sheriffs; Nē-rē Na-ra and Nū-rū-lyn, names of two girls; Thom-o-cog-găn, the present city of Jefferson was once so called ; Hooch-lē-o-hoo-päh, a certain man's name; Nö-din was the name of a man who lived at Sno-don; We-tump-kä, Columbus, Ga .; Õ-kō-kö-bee, a Creek chief over the Ufallayak division of the nation and was the father of Umausauga, El-to-mū-ra and Etohauto; Nē-nä-the-mä-ho-lä, successor to Okokobee; Sī-lō-quot of Hä-i-tau-thū-gä, near Fort Yargo, was a spy and whose com- panions were Ē-lī-to-boy, Cā-măs-too-kā and No-vū-är-kä; O-ko-le-gee, the old chief that lived on Tip-toe; I-no-ma-tū-hä-tä lived on Pea Ridge; I-no-mā-taw-tun-sig-nä lived at what is now known as the Arnold old mill place. These three, Okolegee, Inomatuhata and Inomatawtunsigna together with Talasee were all chiefs and were among the fourteen In- dian chiefs that signed the treaty at Augusta that gave Jackson County the "Wofford Settlements." Al-a-pa-ha and his daughter, Ū-ni-coy, lived near Yamtrahoochee. Wau-to-wau-to was the chief that stole Flora Clover and Susan Bingham at the shoals and a little later killed Dr. Henry Therrauld at the battle of Nau-hä-tä. EDITOR.
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INTRODUCTORY.
"The very generations of the dead Are swept away, and tomb inherits tomb, Until the memory of an age is fled,
And, buried, sinks beneath its offspring's doom."
-Don Juan.
In the absence of written history one wave of human life sweeps over another until the achievements of the past become wholly unknown, save such as are lodged in the generous bosom of mother earth or transmitted from father to son as in the days before the flood.
The pioneers of this country cared little for written history. To make a record of local events or of the men and measures of the times perhaps never entered their minds. Even official documents were vague in meaning, and often destroyed as soon as used. Stones that have been buried beneath the accumulated dust of ages give us an account of some of the leading nations of antiquity as full as anything that can be found concerning the first settlement of this immediate part of the country. Indeed, the generations which followed have been greatly deficient in this respect.
It was long after the first white settlers came to Jackson County before the people could spare their children from work, or procure the means to send them to school. The first staple production was tobacco; and if the children of to-day, arrayed in their splendid outfit for school purposes, could, for one moment, know how much hard work was necessary to prepare the un- broken forests for cultivation amidst threatening dangers on every side, and imagine the filthiness of killing tobacco worms, pulling off the "suckers," topping of the plants, cutting, curing, stripping the leaves from the stalks, and the hard labor necessary to send it to market in "rolling hogsheads" they would stand in utter amazement at the great difference between then and now, and no longer wonder why their ancestors did not go to school, nor have time to read and write.
But if they did not attend school, knowledge was acquired by intensity of action, by observation and reflection, rather than
19
from books. They were too busy making the way to the ends of life to write incidents on the wayside. Thus it was that through the eventful decades of more than a century generations have come and gone without leaving any record to let the world know that they had ever lived in it.
To secure from oblivion what is known of their history, now fast fading away through the already dim vista of time, is the object of these pages. They are written at the solicitation of friends for whose opinions the writer has the most profound re- spect. They claim no literary merit, but absolute originality. Having no companion nor guide to direct him, he travels alone amid the shadows of the long-gone past. And yet they are not dreary.
To a limited extent the narrative is drawn from documentary evidence, partly from memory, and largely from tradition. Re- garding some incidents there is a difference of opinion; but in such cases the most reliable authorities have been followed. Many of the dates given are correct; others are approximate and where this could not be done, none are given. The writer does not claim to be free from all error. G. J. N. W.
Jefferson, Ga., Sept., 1906.
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CHAPTER I.
FORMATION AND BOUNDARIES-CHANGES MADE TO BRING THE COUNTY DOWN TO ITS PRESENT LIMITS-SOME INCIDENTS BY THE WAY.
In 1784, when Northeast Georgia was a wilderness, inhabited by wild animals and wilder men, with here and there a few white settlements from two to three days' journey apart, Franklin* County, was laid out in order, as the Act to form it declared, "to strengthen the State, and for the convenience of the inhabitants." Its area was extensive, "beginning," continues the Act, "at Sa- vannah river, where the west lines of Wilkes county strikes the same; thence along the said line to the Cherokee corner; from thence on the same direction to the south branch of the Oconee river; thence up the said river to the head or source of the most southern stream thereof; thence along the temporary line, separa- ting the Indian hunting ground to the northern branch of
* Prof. R. P. Brooks' "History of Georgia," Pages 143 and 182.
Note: We quote, here, from "First Settlers of Upper Georgia," Pages 333 to 335, by Gov. George R. Gilmer, extracts from a letter, written to the President of the United States, concerning the Indian troubles, a few years prior to their removal to the West. In this letter, written by a gentleman who had resided in or near the "Broad River Settlement," now Oglethorpe County, all his life, we find many facts as to the location of the Creek and Cherokee Indians in this part of Georgia.
"Executive Department, Milledgeville, Dec. 29, 1829.
"Independent of any knowledge derived from individuals, it is probable that we could have accounted for the change of possessions of the disputed territory from the Creeks to the Cherokees, from the alteration of the habits of life which has been for a long time taking place in both tribes. Within the last thirty or forty years, the Creeks and Cherokees gradually became less and less capable of subsisting by hunting. Very many of the half- breeds of each tribe exchanged hunting for herding. But even these were but little accustomed to provide, by cultivating the earth, food for the sup- port of their cattle during the winter, but rather trusted to the cane and other natural productions. Both tribes therefore inclined to progress to the south, where the lands on the streams were richer, and the cane more capable of sustaining their cattle. That portion of the Cherokee tribe in particular, who inhabited the high mountains, cold and sterile country about the head waters of the Savannah and the Chattahoochee, were dis- posed to leave it to one further to the south, and more suitable to the change that was taking place in their habits. The truth of this opinion is
21
Stonesthrow
BANKS
Rahata
numerato.
..
commerce
Yarntrahoochee Rock
Groaning
. Dry Pond
Hurricane Shoots arrachaton
Ithlobee
Thomocoggan
Hoschton
or
erson Tobskesoloskee
Currys Creek
conce
Crooked Co 0 Rodoata
Rock Ford
Talasce
dar Hil
Bohurgh
Saidon nodoroe unter X Pt. yargı calamxt
Barbers creeks
WALTON
CONEE
or Oconee River"
andy Creek
ocolocó ***
Tishmaquor mulberry
WYINNE TET
pan
Tauralaboole ~ Beech Creek
or Oconges Height
MAP OF JACKSON COUNTY, GEORGIA Showing the location of the different places mentioned in the Early History of Jackson County, with both the Indian and modern names. Present boundary lines, 1914. 1
22
Lacoda Trail
775 S Tiptog
Etoh 0
Price's mt.
MADISON
Maysville
Savannah river known by the name of Keowee, and down the said river to the beginning."
t Previously to the formation of this large county, the state had no organized means of protecting its citizens, who had emigrated thither from Virginia, North Carolina and the "Broad River Settlement," in Wilkes. They had suffered much, not only from the merciless native Indians, but also from heartless Tories, who, under Champ Moore, the notorious Tory leader, often passed through the country. Though this state of affairs existed for some years after the organization of Franklin County, the popu- lation so greatly increased during the next twelve years, that the people, living in the southern part, [it might be more nearly cor- rect to say southwestern], made application for another new county.
Accordingly, in 1796, when Jared Irwin was governor and Capt. James Terrill represented Franklin County in the legislature. Jackson County, the twenty-second formed in the State, was cut from Franklin. The Act establishing its boundaries bears date of
t Geo. G. Smith says, "There was up to 1792 great danger from Indian forays, and the scattered inhabitants lived much of the time in block- houses." P. 153 .- Ed.
verified by the talk delivered by the Cherokees in 1808, to the President of the United States, in which they represent the scarcity of game in that part of their country, and the intention to leave it. In addition to the superior advantages of a more southern country for the support of their cattle was added the inducement of approaching nearer their markets, rendered important by the increased value of their beef and hides.
"It is probably known to the President, from personal observation that the country in dispute was formerly occupied by the Creeks entirely, and that they gradually relinquished their possession, until, at the close of the late war, there were very few of the tribe remaining in it; and that, at the same time, and in the same manner, the Cherokees by degrees obtained almost entire possession. The fact that all the streams and remarkable places have Creek names prove certainly that it was but lately occupied by the Creeks, and that there has been no general and simultaneous transfer of its possessions from one tribe to the other, and that the Cherokees must therefore have intermingled with the original inhabitants, so as to have adopted their proper names. The Cherokees' talk, the testimony of the Indians, and the information of the original white settlers on the frontier, prove that this occupation of the country by the Cherokees was permissible on the part of the Creeks, and so considered by the Cherokees until 1820, when General McIntosh procured the consent of the Creeks to make it a
23
February 11th, 1796, and says : "The line dividing the County of Jackson from the County of Franklin shall begin on the south of Broad river at the place where it intersects the Counties of Ogle- thorpe and Elbert; from thence it shall run up to the head or source of the middle fork, it being the main stream; from thence south forty-five degrees to the main ridge which divides the waters of Broad river from the waters of the Oconee; thence along the said river to the temporary or western line of Franklin County; and all that part of Franklin lying and being southwardly of the aforesaid line, shall be included and comprehended in the County of Jackson."
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