USA > Georgia > Georgia's landmarks, memorials and legends, Volume I > Part 33
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Judge Clayton married a niece of Thomas P. Carnes, in whose office, when a resident of Augusta, he began to read law. He was a student in the Richmond Academy, when Washington visited Augusta, in 1791, and he received at this time a prize for declamation awarded by the distinguished visitor. Judge W. W. Clayton says : "In my father's library is a copy of Sallust, presented to him by General Washington, in which the following
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appears-'Premium of the President of the United States to Smith Clayton, a student of Richmond Academy as a memorial of esteem and a premium due to merit. Pre- sented by his request. Signed : Robert Forsyth, Abraham Baldwin.' "
The Battle of One of the most important battles of the Jonesboro. Civil War was fought at Jonesboro, on August 31, 1864. It was in this engage- ment that Governor Allen D. Candler lost an eye. Says Professor Joseph T. Derry: "Sherman, after trying in vain for more than six weeks to force his way into . Atlanta, marched with his main army to the rear of the Confederates and threw a strong force across the Central Railroad, at Jonesboro, the last line of supply for Hood's army. General William J. Hardee was unable to dis- lodge him, but by a desperate fight against tremendous odds, he secured the safe retreat of Hood from Atlanta."
Original Settlers. See Henry and Fayette, from which counties Clayton was formed.
To the pioneer list may be added: R. E. Morrow and James F. Johnson, who represented Clayton in the secession convention at Milledgeville. The old estab- lished families of the county include: the Blalocks, the Huies, the Morrows, the Adamsons, the Camps, the John- sons and others. Wm. Overton Betts was also an early settler.
Men of Note. Robert Adamson, Private Secretary to Mayor Gaynor, of the City of New York, was born on a farm in Clayton. Choosing journalism as
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a profession, he served his novitiate on the staff of the Atlanta Constitution. In 1896 seeking a wider field for his talents he went to New York where he soon made his mark in the newspaper life of the metropolis. He is today a power in New York politics. As this volume goes to press, Mr. Adamson's name is mentioned in connection with the Private Secretaryship to Presi- dent Wilson; or, in lieu of this appointment, the sooth- sayers predict for him an important office under the incoming Democratic administration. Mr. Tilden Adam- son, a younger brother, has also achieved a brilliant suc- cess in New York.
CLINCH
Created by Legislative Act, from Wayne County, February 14, 1850. Named for General Duncan L. Clinch, a noted officer of the U. S. Army, who distinguished himself in the Indian campaigns, afterwards a member of Congress. Homerville, the county-seat, was named for Dr. John Homer Mattox who originally owned the land lot on which the town was built, and by whom the town was laid out, in 1859, at which time the old Atlantic and Gulf Railroad, now the Atlantic Coast Line, was completed to this point. The town was incorporated some ten years later.
General Duncan L. Clinch was a soldier of marked attainments. On reaching the age of twenty-one, he entered the regular army of the United States, receiving a Lieutenant's commission. He became a Colonel in the War of 1812, by reason of his gallantry on the field, after which he distinguished himself still further in the cam- paigns against the Seminole Indians in Florida, where, in 1835, he effectually suppressed an uprising by a decisive victory over the great chief, Osceola, at the battle of Withlacoochee. But finally provoked by the inefficient tactics of the War Department he resigned with the rank of Brigadier-General and retired to his plantation, near St. Mary's, Ga. Twenty-eight years of his life were spent in the military service of his country nor is there anything in his splendid record as a soldier for which the State of Georgia needs to blush. In
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1844, he was elected to a seat in Congress, made vacant by the death of John Millen, but served only one term. He was also narrowly defeated for Governor by George W. Towns, in 1847. General Clinch was born in Edge- combe County, N. C., on April 6, 1787, and died in Macon, Ga. October 28, 1849. He was three times married. Ex- Governor Duncan C. Heyward, of South Carolina, is his grandson.
Magnolia: A Lost By act of the General Assembly in Town. 1852 the town of Magnolia was made the county-seat of Clinch. Previous to this time the little cluster of homes at this point was called Polk. In 1860 another act of the Legislature authorized the removal of the county officers to "Station Number Eleven" on the Atlantic and Gulf Railroad where Homerville, the present county-seat of Clinch, was incorporated in 1869. The town of Magnolia, no longer exists upon the map, though a militia district still retains the name. There is an old church still standing in the neighborhood but naught else-save a few gaunt and spectral chimneys-to tell where cheerful fires once warmed the hearthstones of this silent town of Southern Georgia.
Original Settlers. Among the early pioneers of Clinch, according to White, were: Benjamin Semmons, J. C. Kirkland, Samuel Register, John Tomlin- son, sen., John Roberts, J. J. Robinson E. H. Morgan, John North, Wm. Starling, Abraham Register, and H. Sears.
Charles Griffin and Sanders Nobles, both patriots of '76, are buried somewhere in this county, presumably near Homerville.
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Over the eastern border line of Clinch there extends a part of the famous Okefinokee Swamp, one of the most extensive areas of submerged land on the North Ameri- can continent.
COBB
Created by Legislative Act, December 3, 1832, from Cherokee County. Named for Hon. Thomas W. Cobb, a distinguished United States Senator from Georgia. Marietta, the county-seat, was probably named for the famous pioneer town of the Ohio Valley, settled in 1788 by General Putnam. There are no less than eight towns of this name in the United States.
Thomas Willis Cobb was an eminent jurist and states- man of the ante-bellum period. He studied law under the great William H. Crawford and became the legal guar- dian of the illustrious Robert Toombs. He represented the State in Congress for three terms, two of which were in succession; and, on the death of Nicholas Ware, was chosen to succeed him in the United States Senate. Four years of service in the upper forum sufficed to fill the measure of his ambition; and relinquishing the toga he was elected to a seat on the Superior Court bench, where he remained until his death. Judge Cobb was richly endowed with the gifts of his noted household. He was born in Columbia County, Ga., in 1784 and died at Greens- boro, Ga., February 1, 1830, at the age of forty-six. His grandfather, Colonel Thomas Cobb, was a soldier of the Revolution who reached the phenomenal age of 110 years and died possessed of large holdings. Joseph Beckham Cobb, the Senator's son, settled in Mississippi, where he attained high rank at the bar and became distinguished as an author. He published a novel entitled: "Creole Days, or the Siege of New Orleans," and two volumes of sketches, viz .: "Leisure Hours" and "Mississippi Scenes," besides a number of essays.
Indian Traditions. According to an old Indian tradition, the line between the Creeks and the Cherokees commenced on the Chattahoochee River, in
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the extreme southern angle of what is now Cobb County, extending thence in a northwesterly direction toward the Coosa. Prior to the establishment of this line, there was some dispute between the tribes concerning the exact boundaries which divided them, and to settle the vexed issue they agreed to abide the result of a game of ball. Quite a strip of territory was staked upon the outcome. It included the present areas of Cobb, Paulding, and Polk Counties, all of which was to be awarded to the success- ful contestant. The Creeks lost. Consequently the land in question became the prize of the victorious Cherokees. Near Bolton, Ga., on the Cobb side of the river, under- neath the trestle of the Southern Railway, there is still to be seen an ancient mound. It is doubtless an old burial-place of the Indians.
Kennesaw Town was an Indian village located be- tween the Chattahoochee River and Kennesaw Mountain. It gave to the latter place the historic name by which it is today known. In 1833, the village numbered 200 inhabi- tants.
Altoona on the Etowah was another important settle- ment. Its population was something like 500 at the time of the removal.
Sweet Water, Old Town and Buffalo Fish Town were also at one time important places, but commenced to de- cline before the Cherokees left for the West. The site of the former was on a plantation owned before the war by Mr. Israel Casey. The location of the latter was near the old homestead of Mrs. Varner.
Where Two Gov- ernors Have Lived.
Charles J. McDon- ald: An Episode of His Career.
Volume II.
Volume IT.
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Pine Mountain: The Death of General Leonidas Polk. On June 14, 1864, while engaged in reconnoitering, at Pine Mountain, some few miles to the west of Marietta, Lieutenant-General Leon- idas Polk, was killed by a cannon-ball. He was a Bishop in the Episcopal Church, a man of great piety and an utter stranger to the sense of fear. On the person of General Polk, at the time of his death, were found a "Book of Common Prayer," and four copies of a little work by Bishop Quintard entitled : "Balm for the Weary and the Wounded." He intended to give the latter to some of his comrades. Upon the fly leaves were found the following names: General Joseph E. Johnston, Lieuten- ant-General Hardee, and Lieutenant-General Hood. In each case the inscription was made "with the compli- ments of Lieutenant General Leonidas Polk," together with the date, "June 12, 1864." It was only two days before he was summoned to his reward. The spot on which General Polk fell has been appropriately marked by Captain J. Gideon Morris, of Marietta, a gallant Con- federate officer. The burial of the martyred soldier- priest occurred at Augusta, Ga., in famous old St. Paul's.
The Old Gignilliat It was on the lawn in front of this Home. famous old residence that the brief funeral rites of General Polk were conducted, in 1864. Rev. Samuel Benedict, the rector of St. James's Episcopal Church, was at this time a prisoner of war in Canada, because he refused to pray for Mr. Lincoln and insisted on remembering in his petitions "the President of the Confederate States." The church at this time was used as a hospital for Confed- erate soldiers. Some few years ago, Mrs. Charlotte Gignilliat, the mistress of the old Gignilliat home, died in her ninety-first year. She was the widow of a wealthy rice planter, of Darien, Captain Norman Gignilliat, who
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COBB
equipped at his own expense one of the first Confederate volunteer companies-the McIntosh Guards. If Sher- man had been aware of this fact, there might have been left only a heap of ashes where the old land-mark now stands. It is said that the building was saved from de- struction by fire, on account of a crippled young inmate whose helpless condition excited the pity of the Northern soldiers. Though built in the simplest style of ante-bellum architecture, the old home is an im- pressive land-mark, reminiscent of the refined and cul- tured life of the old regime. It is today the property of Mrs. J. J. Daniel, a grand-daughter. The old chestnut tree, under which the funeral of General Polk was con- ducted, in 1864, is standing yet, but one of the large upper branches of the gnarled old giant has fallen.
The Georgia Mili- tary Institute. Volume II.
The Little Brass Cannon. Volume II.
Woman's Tribute to Kennesaw's Heroic Dead. Over the silent bivouac of the dead in which 3000 martyrs of the South- ern Cross today sleep in the Con- federate cemetery at Marietta, there rises a shaft of granite thirty feet in height. It is one of the most artistic monuments to be found in the State. The fact that it stands almost in the shadow of Kennesaw Mountain and on soil consecrated by the blood of the martyred dead, invests it with an interest which few memorials of this character possess. The shaft was unveiled with impressive ceremonies on July 7, 1909. General Clement A. Evans, then Commander-in-Chief of che United Confederate Veterans, delivered the oration. He was introduced to the vast assemblage by his gallant
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comrade-in-arms, General William Phillips, a citizen of the town; and those who have often heard the old soldier declare that he never surpassed the effort which he made on this occasion. Governor Hoke Smith, who was pres- ent, also delivered an eloquent address, and was followed upon the program by two distinguished members of the Legislature, Hon. J. J. Flynt, Presient of the Senate, and Hon. Seaborn Wright, one of the leaders of the House. Fourteen little girls, representing the various States whose soldiers were sleeping in the sacred area around the monument unveiled the shaft and revealed the finish- ed work of the artist, while the great throng gazed upon the scene in mute admiration. Mr. George Sessions of Marietta was marshal of the day.
This beautiful tribute of stone was jointly reared by two organizations which labored side by side in this labor of love: The Ladies Memorial Association and Kennesaw Chapter of the U. D. C. The monument con- tains the following inscriptions :
On the south side of the monument in raised letters, are the words :
"To Our Confederate Dead. Erected and Dedicated, by Kennesaw Chapter United Daughters of the Con- federacy, Marietta, Ga., 1908."
On the north side is a large unfurled Confederate Flag, and the words :
"For though conquered, they adore it, Love the cold dead hands that bore it."
On the west side is a Confederate Cross, beneath which is the inscription :
"To Our Cobb County Soldiers, who so nobly illus- trated Georgia on many a hard won field; to those who died for a sacred cause, and to those who lived to win a nobler victory in time of peace."
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On the east side is this tribute:
"To the 3,000 Soldiers in the Cemetery, from every Southern State, who fell on Georgia soil, in defense of Georgia Homes. They sleep the sleep of our noble slain ; defeated, yet without a stain, proudly and peacefully."
Besides erecting this superb monument, the patriotic women of Marietta placed marble headstones over each of the three thousand mounds; secured from the State an appropriation of $5,000 with which to put the cemetery in proper order; and induced the State to assume the care and maintenance for the future of this sacred resting place of the Confederate dead. It was due largely to the zealous work of Cobb County's two rep- resentatives in the Legislature, Messrs. Foster and Anderson, that the happy result was accomplished. Since the State has taken the matter in charge the man- agement of affairs has been placed in the hands of a board of trustees.
Mrs. Rebecca L. Nesbitt was for ten years President of Kennesaw Chapter of the U. D. C., in addition to which she has been President of the Ladies Memorial Association since the time of organization. Under the leadership of this patriotic woman Marietta was one of the first towns of the State to adopt the custom of decorating annually the graves of the Confederate dead. In a brief outline history of the work, Mrs. Nesbitt states that the first bodies were interred here in 1863. How- ever it was not until the close of the war that most of the graves were made on the beautiful hillside, at which time the battle-fields around Marietta were rigidly searched for the heroic ashes of Georgia's brave defend- ers. Says Mrs. Nesbitt : "Along the line of the Western and Atlantic Railroad, on the battle-fields of Chickamauga, New Hope, Kolb's Farm, in isolated spots, there were
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graves, sometimes marked by rude head-boards on which the soldier's name and command were hastily carved; sometimes underneath the spreading branches of a tree on whose barks the faint epitaphs were fast disappear- ing; but many of them were unmarked and unknown.
"In the late sixties, Mrs. Williams, long gone to her reward, and Miss M. J. Greene, now residing at 25 Cur- rier street, Atlanta, applied to the Legislature for funds to remove these bodies to Marietta, and this being granted and the land being donated for the purpose, these noble women set about their arduous task and today over three thousand Confederate soldiers, representing every Southern States, sleep on the gentle slopes of this lovely site, in full view of historic Kennesaw Mountain. After the bodies were removed, for a year or two the Legisla- ture appropriated money to care for the graves, and then this was refused, and the task being too heavy for the depleted ranks of the Memorial Association, the cemetery gradually fell into neglect. But about fifteen years ago the Memorial Association was reorganized and, receiving new impetus and fresh courage, determined to rescue the cemetery from ruin. There was not one dollar in the treasury and the task was one before which hearts less steadfast, le'ss devoted, would have quailed. But by patient, persistent work, order has been evolved out of chaos. Kennesaw Chapter, United Daughters of the Con- federacy, our younger and more vigorous sister, has nobly aided in the work."
Marietta's Two During the Civil War, the town of Silent Bivouacs : Marietta was a storm-center of hos- Where Sleep the tilities. In fact, the entire length Blue and the Gray. of the Western and Atlantic rail- road, from the Tennessee line to the Chattahoochee River has been called "the dark and bloody ground" of Georgia. It witnessed the giant
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461
"grapplings of the two great western armies; and at the close of the war, presented an area of complete desola- tion. The central location of Marietta, with reference to the field of slaughter, caused it to become the burial- place for the dead on both sides, and for iniles around the bodies of the slain were brought here for interment. The Confederate Cemetery is to the west of the main line of the Western and Atlantic Railroad, and there are three thousand Confederate soldiers buried on the hill- side looking toward Kennesaw Mountain. The Federal "Cemetery is on the eastern outskirts of the town. It occu- pies an extensive area, beautifully shaded with forest trees. The winding drive ways are bordered with plants and flowers, the slopes sodded with rich velvet, and there are many handsome inarble piles in this splendid Vai- "halla; while not less than twelve thousand Federal sol- baiers are here buried. 11
Ils It was the privilege of the author of this work on "April 26, 1910, to deliver the Memorial Address at Marietta, on which occasion he made allusion to the historic environment as follows. Said he naWe stand today on consecrated ground. Before us looms historic Kennesaw. Yesterday a peak of death; today a monument of peace. In the distance can be seen the knob where a cannon ball opened the breast of General Polk. But the batteries today are silent. Neither Hood nor rabo;y "Tonger'
l'Johnston is 0 7/917 01
com- 860
mand of the army of the fit Tennessee. Yonder sleeps
1
Lester with his empty sleeve. Over there dreams Wad-
20 1
dell. Beyond that hedge of green lies Phillips; waiting to rejoin his legion. On the neighboring hill-twelve thousand strong-stretch the laureled beds of the boys in blue. On this velvet couch-'outnumbered but not out- braved, die the crumbled hearts of the boyssin gray. Three thousand of the Dixie Knights dream here; band between the two white camps of silence is the old ratio of battle four to one. For the victor a nation's grati- fiblo- ressoitulovat blo ms to temp edt to , 2020199 9718
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tude stands sentinel; but woman's love keeps vigil o'er the vanquished."
Miss Rambo Makes One of the fair daughters of a Record. Marietta, Miss Regina Rambo, was the first woman in Georgia to join the crusade for good roads. On July 17, 1910, she started upon a tour of the State, driving her own car, a Columbia. As she appeared upon the scene, to begin the long journey around the State, in company with the touring party organized by the Atlanta Constitution, she was greeted with enthusiastic applause. It was a novel sight. But the record made by Miss Rambo was even more unique. She completed the trip of 1,000 miles, without an accident and finished with a perfect score, having made a circuit of the State in less than ten days and having remained continuously at the wheel. On behalf of the Constitution, she was awarded a handsome loving cup, with the following inscription beautifully engraved upon it :
"Presented to Miss Regina Rambo by the Atlanta Constitution. The first woman to drive an automobile 1,000 miles around Georgia. October 26, 1910."
In view of the modern era of good roads and of im- proved methods of travel which the automobile has inaugurated, Miss Rambo has accomplished something vastly more than the mere feat of making a record. She has incidentally marked an epoch.
John Hames: The On July 11, 1911, there occurred at Oldest Survivor of the Federal Cemetery, in Marietta, the Revolution. an event long to be remembered. It was the re-interment, with impres- sive exercises, of the dust of an old Revolutionary soldier
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COBB
who, at the time of his death, is supposed to have been 131 years of age. He was certainly well beyond the century mark, for he lived until 1860. His name was John Hames. Permission to re-inter the ashes of the old soldier in the beautiful burial-ground of the Federal dead was readily granted by the government, his record of service in the first War for Independence having been established. The solemn ceremonial was performed under the auspices of the Fielding Lewis Chapter of the D. A. R. in the presence of a multitude of spectators.
Prior to the removal of his body, the grave of Mr. Hames was in a very old cemetery in the wild woods of Murray County, some distance from Spring Place, but it was marked by a piece of limestone, which furnished the means of identification. What was once a Hardshell Baptist Church stood in the immediate neighborhood. To avoid the possibility of mistake and to make the evidence complete in every respect, the descendants of the deceas- ed, who conducted the removal, were met by John Shan- non, who made the coffin, and Henry Beemer, who dug the grave in which John Hames was buried. The coffin was made some time before the old soldier died, and it was found to tally with Mr. Shannon's description. It was dovetailed and the lid was put on with pegs. Parts of the coffin were brought to Marietta, together with the headstone. The grave gave up nothing but the dust and a few bones.
John Hames, entered the army of Washington as a private and came out a major. He married a sister of Sergeant Jasper, whose statue stands on Bull Street in Savannahı.
Lieutenant Brumby Raises the American Flag at Manilla.
Volume II.
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· Senator Clay's
On the afternoon of August 12, Monument : The Ex- ercises of Unveiling. 1912, a handsome bronze statue of the late Senator Clay, mounted upon a solid pedestal of Georgia marble, was unveiled with impressive ceremonies, in the town square at Marietta. There were present many of the chief officials and dignitaries of the State, in addition to a vast throng of people. Hon. Wm. G. Brantley, of Brunswick, and Bishop Warren A. Candler, of Atlanta, both intimate personal friends of the deceased, the for- mer an associate in Congress for more than twelve years, delivered addresses. The following account of the exer- cises is taken from a newspaper report :
"Miss Evelyn Clay, the late Senator's only daughter, the idol of her distinguished father, pulled the silken cord which released the long white veil. As it fluttered to the ground, the Gem City Band stationed near the monu- ment, played 'Nearer My God to Thee.' Prayer was offered by Rev. G. W. Duval, pastor of the First Method- ist church, of which Senator Clay was a member. Colonel D. W. Blair, the master of ceremonies, then introduced the first speaker of the occasion, Hon. Wm. G. Brantley, of Brunswick, who delivered a masterful address, review- ing the career of the illustrious dead and paying a well- deserved trbute to the noble character of Senator Clay. Next came Bishop Candler. The Bishop's address was extemporaneous, but impressively eloquent. Following the speech of Bishop Candler, Capt. Fred Morris grace- fully presented Miss Clay, who then drew the long cord which unveiled the monument."
Erected by popular subscription, the statue of Senator Clay represents the voluntary free-will offerings of his fellow-citizens. The funds were raised by a committee of 200 members, each of whom was an intimate personal friend; and aside from the donations made by the city of Marietta and the county of Cobb there were no large amounts sought or subscribed. Colonel D. W. Blair was chairman of the committee and Captain Fred Morris, secretary and treasurer. The statue is a splendid like-
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