USA > Georgia > A standard history of Georgia and Georgians > Part 59
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76
Vol. I-29
449
450
GEORGIA AND GEORGIANS
As we have already anticipated in a former chapter dealing with the Yazoo Fraud, Georgia in 1802 ceded her western lands to the Federal Government, in return for which the latter, in addition to certain mone- tary considerations, agreed to extinguish all Indian titles to the state's remaining lands .* In partial fulfilmient of this stipulation, three com- missioners were appointed by the Federal Government to negotiate a treaty with the Creeks at Fort Wilkinson, on the Oconee River, and, on June 16, 1802, a treaty was signed under which these Indians were to re- linquish a part of the Tallassee country, lying south of the Altamaha and a tract between the Oconee and the Oemulgee rivers. The commissioners who negotiated this treaty were : Benjamin Hawkins, James Wilkinson, and Andrew Pickens.t Some of the western or Upper Creeks were dis- posed to make trouble over this relinquishment of lands belonging to the Creek Nation; but Col. Benjamin Hawkins, who was then the resident Indian agent, with headquarters at the old agency on the Flint, suc- ceeded in quieting these hostile tribes.
When the Legislature met in November, 1802, John Milledge, a dis- tinguished Revolutionary patriot and friend of education, was elected governor ; and to accept this post of honor he resigned a seat in Congress.
Out of the new lands acquired under the Treaty of Fort Wilkinson, the Legislature, on May 1, 1803, passed an act creating three great coun- ties, Baldwin, Wilkinson and Wayne. The last named eounty was carved out of the Tallassee cession, to the south of the Altamaha, and was named for Gen. Anthony Wayne, of the Revolution, a former resident of this state. The county-seat of the new county was named Waynesville.
Baldwin and Wilkinson were formed out of the newly acquired belt of land between the Oconee and the Ocmulgee rivers, Baldwin was named for Abraham Baldwin, then a United States senator from Geor- gia. Milledgeville, its county-seat, was named for John Milledge, then governor of the state. Wilkinson was named for Gen. James Wilkinson, one of the United States commissioners who negotiated the treaty at Fort Wilkinson, a locality which was likewise named in his honor. Irwin- ton, the county-seat, was named for Governor Jared Irwin.
When the lands in these newly created counties were opened to set- tlement, a system of distribution known as the land lottery system was adopted by the Legislature in an act approved May 11, 1803. ¿ Great dis- satisfaction had resulted from the old head right system, in vogue since the Revolution, and heretofore described at some length. It gave the set- tler an unrestricted power of selection, in consequence of which he in- variably chose the best lands, leaving large unoccupied tracts. These intermediate areas were slow in finding occupants and as a result settle- ments were too isolated for safety. In the second place, due to the un- settled character of the wilderness, it was a difficult matter to fix boun- dary lines, and it frequently happened that grants conveying the same traet of land were issued to more than one settler, causing a tangle which gave rise to numerous law suits. But, in addition to involving honest men in mistakes, it gave to unscrupulous persons an unlimited oppor-
* See Chapter (7), Section III.
+ "Indian Affairs, " I, p. 669.
+ "Clayton 's Compilation, " pp. 100-107.
451
GEORGIA AND GEORGIANS
tunity for graft. As we have already seen, in our discussion of the Pine Barren frauds, land speculators at one time acquired fietitions grants to 7,000,000 acres of land in Montgomery County, an aggregate greater than the county's total acreage, all of which they planned to sell and some of which they did sell to unsuspecting persons outside the state, entailing endless litigation.
To explain the land lottery system adopted at this time as a substi- tute for the old system of head rights: slips or tickets were prepared on which certain numbers were placed representing the land lots to be dis- tributed. These were then put into boxes, together with a number of blanks. As set forth in the aet those entitled to draw were: "All free white males, twenty-one years of age or over, who had been residents of the State for twelve months." These were entitled to draw once. "But every white male person having a wife, with one ehild or more under age; all widows having children under age; and all families of orphans under age, were entitled to draw twice." To prevent improper manipu- lation, lists were carefully drawn in each county by legal officers. These were then sent to the governor, who ordered a drawing to be held under the supervision of five managers. Some inevitably drew blanks. To those who were fortunate, grants were issued, each bearing the gov- ernor's signature, attested by the great seal of the state, which was stamped upon a wax pendant and attached to the deed by means of a ribbon. Each grant was also accompanied by a plot of the land con- veyed. Within twelve months after receiving his grant, each person was required to pay into the treasury a nominal sum of $4 for every 100 acres of land contained in his lot; and, on failure to comply with this requirement, he forfeited his titles to the land deeded. These lots varied in size. Those in Baldwin and Wilkinson were 35 chains square and contained 20216 acres. Those in Wayne were 70 chains square and contained 490 aeres.
So effective did the land lottery system prove, that all the remaining lands of the state were from time to time distributed according to this method. The last distribution was made under the Cherokee Lottery of 1832. All of the lands of the state lying west of the Oconee and north of the Altamaha were distributed under the land lottery system ; and, in like manner all the lands south of the Altamaha and west of the old original County of Wayne. On the other hand, all the lands east of these dividing lines, were distributed under the head right system.
Louisville, as a permanent site for the state capital, had failed to give satisfaction. The locality was found to be unhealthful. Moreover, with the movement of population toward the foot-hills, there was a strong demand for locating the seat of government at some convenient point in the uplands. Considerably more than one-half of the state's popula- tion was now found in the middle helt. Georgia, having eeded to the Federal Government her western lands and having received in return a guarantee of the titles under which she held her remaining lands, this seemed to be an opportune time for selecting a new seat of government; and accordingly, in the Land Lottery Act of 1803, commissioners were authorized to locate a town at the head of navigation on the Oconee River. Sixteen land lots, or 3.240 aeres of land, were allotted to the proposed new seat of government; and here, on the wooded heights, a
452
GEORGIA AND GEORGIANS
town was laid off by the following commissioners, to wit: Littleberry Bostwick, A. M. Devereaux, George M. Troup, John Herbert, and Oliver Porter. It was an ideal site for a town, thickly wooded with oaks and hickories, in an area of splendid hills. On the eastern side of the town ran Fishing Creek, then a stream of transparent crystal, threading the virgin forest like a skein of silver. The new capital of the state was to be called Milledgeville, in honor of the distinguished governor who was then occupying the executive chair. It was a tribute alike to the popu- larity and to the statesmanship of this great man that, while at the helm of affairs, his name should have been conferred upon the capital of his native state: an honor to be cherished by his children and by his chil- dren's children to the latest generation.
To Gen. Jett Thomas, a civil engineer, who had built the first struc- ture on the campus at Athens, for Franklin College, was committed the task of erecting Georgia's new state house-an edifice of Norman design which remains to this day an imposing memorial of the ante-bellum period, surpassed by no other existing landmark in its wealth of historic associations.
But, while the new state house was in process of erection, the Leg- islature continued to meet in Louisville, where its last session was held in 1806.
Milledgeville was thus given a double distinction. It was to be not only the county-seat of Baldwin County but the seat of government for all Georgia; and the state's wealth, refinement, influence, and power were soon to converge at this new center, destined for more than sixty years to give laws to a great commonwealth and to retain its honors as Georgia's capital.
In 1804, while occupying a seat on the bench of the Middle Circuit, Hon. George Walton, the last surviving member of Georgia's immortal trio of independence, breathed his last, having been honored with almost every high and important office within Georgia's gift.
On November 3, 1804, Col. Benjamin Hawkins, the resident Indian agent, negotiated a treaty with the Creeks, under which a body of land between the Oconee and the Ocmulgee rivers was acquired .*
In the presidential contest of 1804, Georgia cast six electoral votes. She supported in this contest, Thomas Jefferson, of Virginia, and George Clinton, of New York. Her electors were Edward Telfair and James B. Maxwell, from the state at large; and David Emanuel, John Rutherford, Henry Graybill and David Creswell, from the congressional districts.t
On November 14, 1805, Henry Dearborn, then secretary of war, met six chiefs of the Creek Nation, in Washington, District of Columbia, with whom he negotiated a treaty under which the remaining lands between the Oconee and the Ocmulgee rivers were acquired. ¿ Privileges were granted to establish forts, factories and trading-posts among the In- dians; and a horse-path was to be maintained over which the safety of travelers was guaranteed.
On March 19, 1806, United States Senator James Jackson died in
* "Indian Affairs," I, p. 691.
t "Lanman's Biographical Annals of the United States Government," pp. 515-516.
# "Clayton's Compilation, " p. 336; "Indian Affairs," I, 698.
453
GEORGIA AND GEORGIANS
Washington, District of Columbia, at the comparatively early age of forty-nine. It is said that his death was due to the debilitating effect of wounds received on the field of honor, most of them in consequence of his relentless opposition to the Yazooists. Never a robust man, his con- stitution was greatly enfeebled by these numerous duels. Senator Jack- son was buried in the Congressional Cemetery, on the banks of the Potomac. His grave is marked by a square block, resembling a bee-hive, and is not unlike many others erected by Congress within this same plot of ground to commemorate the services of senators and representatives who died in official harness and were here buried. As a memorial, it is most inadequate and Georgia owes it to the memory of this devoted patriot to reinter his ashes beneath a handsome shaft of marble in her own soil. With his expiring breath he is said to have deelared that if his breast should be opened after death Georgia would be found let- tered upon his heart.
To succeed Senator Jackson, the Legislature, at an extra session held in June, 1806, elected Governor John Milledge, who was still occupying the executive chair. Jared Irwin, who was then president of the Senate, once more became governor, an office which he had already twice filled ; and when the Legislature met in November he was elected for a full term.
Just one year after Senator Jackson's death, his colleague, the illus- trions Abraham Baldwin, died in Washington, District of Columbia, on Mareh 4, 1807. Hon. George Jones, of Savannah, was appointed to suc- ceed him under a temporary commission ; and, at the next session of the Legislature in November, IIon. William H. Crawford, of Lexington, then a member of Congress, was awarded the senatorial toga.
Under the Federal census of 1800 Georgia was entitled to four mem- bers in the National House of Representatives; but it was not until the Eighth Congress (1803-1805) that the new apportionment was put into effect. The state's four members at this time were : Joseph Bryan, Peter Early, Samuel Hammond and David Meriwether .* Samuel Hammond, near the close of the session, relinquished his seat in Congress to become territorial governor of Upper Louisiana. Georgia's four members in the Ninth Congress (1805-1807) were: Joseph Bryan, Peter Early, David Meriwether and Cowles Mead.+ Joseph Bryan resigned in 1806 and was succeeded by Dr. Dennis Smelt. On December 24, 1805, Cowles Mead resigned and was succeeded by Thomas Spalding, as the result of a con- test in which the latter was seated. Mr. Spalding resigned, however, for some reason, in 1806, and was succeeded by Dr. W. W. Bibb, for whom there were in store still higher honors. To the Tenth Congress (1807- 1809), Georgia sent the following strong delegation : W. W. Bibb, How- ell Cobb, Dennis Smelt, and George M. Troup. Captain Cobb was an unele of the distinguished soldier and statesman who bore this same name at a later period.
* "Biog. Cong. Directory, 1774-1911,"' p. 55.
t Ibid., p. 60.
CHAPTER II
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY MEETS FOR THE FIRST TIME AT MILLEDGEVILLE IN 1807-SIX NEW COUNTIES CREATED-MORGAN, PUTNAM, LAURENS, JONES, TELFAIR AND RANDOLPH-THE LAST NAMED COUNTY CHANGED TO JASPER-REASONS FOR DISCARDING RANDOLPH-BOUNDARY LINE DISPUTE BETWEEN GEORGIA AND NORTH CAROLINA-THE OCMULGEE CIRCUIT CREATED-PETER EARLY ITS FIRST JUDGE-ROBERT FULTON'S STEAMBOAT, THE CLERMONT, MAKES A SUCCESSFUL TRIP ON THE HUD- SON-THE PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN OF 1808-PULASKI COUNTY IS FORMED-GEORGIA'S DELEGATION IN THE ELEVENTH CONGRESS-JUDGE CHARLES TAIT SUCCEEDS JOHN MILLEDGE AS UNITED STATES SENATOR -DAVID B. MITCHELL BECOMES GOVERNOR-PUBLIC IMPROVEMENTS BEGIN-GEORGIA'S EARLY ROADS-STAGE COACH DAYS-RIVER CHAN- NELS ARE DEEPENED-TWIGGS COUNTY IS ORGANIZED-GEORGIA'S OLD- EST BANK IS CHARTERED-THE BANK OF AUGUSTA-THE STATE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY IS FOUNDED-CHARTER MEMBERS- GEORGIA'S FIRST COTTON FACTORY -- NUMEROUS ACADEMIES CHARTERED POWEL- TON-MOUNT ZION-GEORGIA'S POPULATION IN 1810-SIX REPRESEN- TATIVES IN CONGRESS-DR. W. W. BIBB SUCCEEDS WILLIAM H. CRAW- FORD IN THE FEDERAL SENATE-THE LATTER IS MADE AMBASSADOR TO FRANCE-HONORED BY NAPOLEON.
NOTE: MR. CRAWFORD AT THE COURT OF NAPOLEON.
On the first Monday in November, 1807, the General Assembly met for the first time at the new seat of government in Milledgeville. Jared Irwin occupied the governor's chair ; while Robert Walton, of Richmond, was president of the Senate, and Benjamin Whitaker, of Jefferson, speaker of the House. Within four years a handsome edifice of brick, Norman in design, had been ereeted under the supervision of Gen. Jett Thomas, civil engineer and contraetor. Occupying an eminence which came to be known as Capitol ITill, it presented an appearance of great impressiveness, with its beetling towers. Many of the state's leading families became identified with Milledgeville at this time, purchasing lots in the town and acquiring extensive plantations in the rich virgin lands just opened to settlement.
Under an act of the Legislature, approved December 10, 1807, six new counties were created, some out of the recently acquired Indian lands, and some out of the large counties already organized, to wit: Morgan, Putnam, Laurens, Jones, Telfair, and Randolph.
Two of these counties, Morgan and Putnam, were named for distin- guished Revolutionary soldiers: Gen. Daniel Morgan, of Virginia, and Gen. Israel Putnam, of Connecticut. Laurens bore the name of a gallant
454
-
455
GEORGIA AND GEORGIANS
South Carolinian, Col. John Laurens. Jones was named for HIon. James Jones, a former member of Congress and one of the state's three com- missioners appointed to cede its western lands to the Federal Govern- ment. Telfair bore the name of an honored governor of Georgia, Ed- ward Telfair; while Randolph was named for John Randolph of Roanoke.
Randolph was a great favorite in Georgia at this time, due to his prolonged fight in Congress against the Yazooists; but when in 1812 he opposed the second war with England there was such a revulsion of feeling that the name of Randolph County was changed to Jasper, in honor of Sergeant Jasper, of the Revolution, who fell mortally wounded at the siege of Savannah, while engaged in the rescue of his colors. Later, however, when Randolph again rode the popular wave, a new county was created on the western border to which Randolph's name was given.
THE OLD STATE CAPITOL AT MILLEDGEVILLE
Morgan was organized out of lands taken from Baldwin and Wilkin- son ; Jones ont of lands acquired from the Creek Indians under the treaty of 1805; Putnam and Randolph out of lands taken from Baldwin ; and Laurens and Telfair ont of lands taken from Wilkinson.
County seats were subsequently located in these various counties as follows: Madison, to be the county seat of Morgan, named for James Madison, of Virginia, then secretary of state, in Jefferson's eabinet; Montieello, named for Jefferson's home, in Albemarle County, Virginia, to be the county seat of Randolph, afterwards Jasper. Originally the county seat of Jones was ealled AAlbany, but the name was subsequently changed to Clinton, in honor of George Clinton, of New York. MeRae, the county seat of Telfair, was named for a Secoteh-lrish family to which many of the pioneer settlers belonged. Eatonton, the county seat of Putnam, was named for Gen. William Eaton, a soldier of fortune, who distinguished himself in the war with Tripoli. The original eounty seat of Laurens was Sumterville, but this site proving unsatisfactory Dublin was made the new seat of government, a town named for the
456
GEORGIA AND GEORGIANS
famous Irish capital. The man who donated the land for this purpose to the state was an Irishman, who claimed the privilege of naming the town, in return for his deed of gift.
For several years a bone of contention between Georgia and North Carolina was the matter of locating exactly the 35th parallel of north latitude, recognized as the boundary line between the two states. In 1806 surveyors representing both states, having failed to agree, Georgia in 1807 made a second effort to secure an adjustment, at which time the surveyor-general, re-enforced by two expert surveyors, with the finest instruments to be secured, undertook to run the line; but North Carolina refused to take any part in these proceedings or to recognize the finality of the line fixed by these surveyors. The issue between the two states remained unsettled for several years when the line was finally established by commissioners under appointment from the Federal Government.
The Legislature at this session created a new judicial circuit-the Ocmulgee-of which Peter Early became the first judge, an office which he held until his elevation to the governorship six years later.
In August, 1807, the Clermont, a steamboat constructed by Robert Fulton and operated by means of paddle wheels, made a successful trial trip on the Hudson. But as we have already seen, William Longstreet, on the Savannah, had already successfully applied steam to navigation by contriving a boat propelled by a series of poles, for which he had received a patent from the state in 1787.
Georgia's presidential electors in the campaign of 1808 were: John Rutherford and David Meriwether, from the state at large; and John Twiggs, Christopher Clark, Henry Graybill and James E. Houston, from the congressional districts .* James Madison, of Virginia, and George Clinton, of New York, were given the state's six electoral votes.
On December 15, 1808, an act was approved creating a new county to be called Pulaski, in honor of the gallant Polish nobleman who lost his life at the siege of Savannah. It was to be formed out of lands detached from the County of Laurens.t Hartford was subsequently designated as the county seat, a town which has long since disappeared from the map. It was located on the east side of the Ocmulgee River, opposite the present Town of Hawkinsville.
To the Eleventh Congress (1809-1811) Georgia re-elected all four of her representatives: Dr. W. W. Bibb, Howell Cobb, Dennis Smelt and George MI. Troup. ¿
On November 14, 1809, John Milledge resigned his seat in the United States Senate and to succeed him, the Legislature, which was then in session, elected Judge Charles Tait, of Elberton.
This same Legislature chose David B. Mitchell to succeed Jared Irwin as governor. On assuming the duties of office, Governor Mitchell addressed to the General Assembly a strong document in which he stressed the importance of improving the public highways of the state and of opening new roads through the territory recently acquired from the Indians. An era had now arrived for inaugurating works of public
* Lanman's Biog. Annals of U. S. Government, p: 516-517.
t "Clayton's Compilation, " p. 470.
# "Biog. Cong. Directory," p. 68.
457
GEORGIA AND GEORGIANS
improvement. Travel was slow at best and good roads were needed for stages; also in the interest of the planters, some of whom were forced to haul produce hundreds of miles to market. As a rule, Georgia's ear- liest roads followed the old Indian trails; and, in some respects, especially in the upcountry, were no better. It was difficult for stages, containing some score of passengers, to cover more than twenty-five miles per day, while the journey to New York usually consumed two weeks.
It was also necessary to deepen river channels and to remove all obstructions from the beds of streams. The Legislature of 1809 passed an act to clear the Savannah River. Both the large planter and the small farmer living along the water courses were largely dependent upon these streams which they used for floating produce to market. Similar means were also taken to open the Broad, the Ogeechee and the Oconee rivers, on each of which, settlements were rapidly increasing in number.
On December 24, 1809, an act was approved creating the new County of Twiggs, for which purpose a large body of land was detached from Wilkinson. The new county was named for Gen. John Twiggs, of the Revolution. Marion, the original county seat, is today one of the lost towns of Georgia.
With the Indian problem temporarily quieted, there was a marked revival of commercial enterprise throughout the state. To this period belongs the establishment of Georgia's oldest bank. On December 6, 1810, an act was approved creating the Bank of Augusta.# Its capital stoek was $300,000, divided into shares of $100 each, and of this sum $50,000 was reserved for the State of Georgia, subject to the approval of the law-making anthorities. In the event the state became a stock -. holder in the bank, it was stipulated that the governor, treasurer, and comptroller-general, should be entitled, at each succeeding election, to name two members of the board of directors. As given in the bank's charter, the original board of directors consisted of the following stock- holders: Thomas Cumming, its first president ; John Howard, Richard C. Tubman, John MeKinne, James Gardner, Hugh Nesbit, David Reid, John Moore, John Campbell, John Willson, Anderson Watkins, John Carmichael, and Ferdinand Phinzy. The charter was signed by Gov- ernor David B. Mitchell, as governor, and by the presiding officers of the two law-making bodies: Hon. Jared Irwin, president of the Senate, and IIon. Benjamin Whitaker, speaker of the House of Representatives.
Two weeks later, the Planters Bank of Savannah was chartered. But we read in the caption to this act that its purpose was to incorporate "the Planters Bank of the State of Georgia and to repeal an act passed December 5, 1807." t The bank may have failed to operate under its original charter, but, nevertheless, in its legal conception, it is an older institution than the Bank of Augusta. The incorporators of this bank, chartered December 19, 1810, were: Charles Harris, John Bolton, James Ward Stebbins, John P. Williamson, George Scott, William Mein, John M. Berrien, Andrew Low, John Cumming and Zachariah Miller.
On December 6, 1810, the agricultural interests of the state received a wonderful stimulus from an act of the Legislature creating the Agri-
* "Clayton 's Compilation, " pp. 588-595.
t "Clayton's Compilation, " pp. 632-637.
458
GEORGIA AND GEORGIANS
cultural Society of Georgia, an organization which still exists after the lapse of more than a century and which in its manifold activities has been an untold blessing to the state. The charter members of this time- honored organization constitute a roll of honor. These were: * John Bolton, John Cumming, Thomas Young, Thomas Telfair, John M. Ber- rien, Curtis Bolton, Joshua E. White, Richard Richardson, Steele White, Ebenezer Stark, Nieholl Turnbull, Noble W. Jones, Wm. Scarborough, Oliver Sturges, Benjamin Burroughs, Barna McKinne, Benjamin Mau- rice, Charles Perry, Hugh Ross, Hanen Kimball, Joseph Carruthers, John Hunter, Henry Hall, Jabez Longworth, Jonathan Meigs, Wm. Woodbridge, John P. Williamson, James Dickson, David Williford, Stephen Martell, Win. T. Williams, Richard M. Stites, John Anderson, John Eppinger, John Eppinger, Jr., Adam Cope, John G. Williamson, Win. Taylor, Thomas Phelps, Jonathan Battelle, Charles Oddingsells, Robert G. Houston, Benjamin Ansley, Frederick Ball, George Woodruff, Francis Roma, John Lawson, Richard Wall, Archibald S. Bulloch, Lemuel Kollock, Hugh MeCall, Gurdon J. Seymour, Wm. Mein, Edward White, Alfred Cuthbert, Henry Holcomb, Thomas Gardiner, John Craig, George Scott, Tobias V. Gray, James G. Almy, John Grimes, George Anderson, Wm. B. Bulloch, Wm. Gaston, John H. Deubell, James Bilbo, Robert Small, Thomas L. Malone, Thomas Mendenhall, James B. Read, Abraham Richards, Theodore A. Scheodde, Andrew Low, Richard F. Williams, George Harrell, Ralph May, Zachariah Miller, Calvin Baker, B. Ogden, Thomas Bourke, Samuel Barnet, George Jones, L. N. Alard, A. Devuillard, Thomas Dicheneaux, J. J. Coiron, J. J. Blanchard and N. Nazant.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.