Georgia's landmarks, memorials and legends, Volume II, Part 26

Author: Knight, Lucian Lamar, 1868-1933
Publication date: 1913
Publisher: Atlanta, Ga. : Byrd Printing Co.
Number of Pages: 1274

USA > Georgia > Georgia's landmarks, memorials and legends, Volume II > Part 26

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).

Here sleeps the revered old patriarch, JOHN QUAR- TERMAN, from whose loins have sprung twenty-two min- isters of the Gospel-four of them missionaries on the foreign field.

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Near the grave of Mr. Ward, in box-covered tombs, ranged side by side, sleep the parents of UNITED STATES SENATOR AUGUSTUS O. BACON. The Senator's father was a gifted young Baptist minister of the county, who died in less than six months after his ordination. He was closely followed to the grave by his youthful wife, the latter only 21, the former barely 23, leaving the future Senator an orphan, at the tender age of two years.

COMMODORE JAMES MCKAY MCINTOSH occupies a grave in Midway, the modest slab over which bears the fol- lowing inscription :

HON. JAMES MCKAY McINTOSH, a distinguished officer of the United States Navy. Born at Sunbury, Liberty County., Ga., Nov. 10, 1792. Died while in command of the navy yard at Pensacola, Sept. 1, 1860.

To the left of the main walk, near the east wall of the enclosure, there stands a handsome old monument which no one visiting the little burial ground should fail to observe. It marks the grave of JOHN LAMBERT. Ac- cording to tradition, he seems to have been a waif, found under a bridge on Lambert's Causeway, in South Caro- lina; hence the name Lambert which he bore. He was reared by an aged couple, who gave him a pair of chick- ens with which to begin life; and on this modest founda- tion he built a neat fortune. In 1838, the estate which he willed to the church, after making a number of lega- cies, was sold for $40,000, and the amount reinvested in securities. Mr. Lambert died in 1786, at the age of seventy years.

One of the largest live oaks on the coast of Georgia stands just within the north wall of the grave-yard. It

OUR MOTHER

...

Tomb of Senator John Elliott

Burial Place of Gen. James Sereven, indicated by headstone to the extreme left

Tomb of Gen. Daniel Stewart Ancestor of Ex-President Roosevelt

HISTORIC TOMBS IN THE OLD CHURCH YARD AT MIDWAY.

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OLD MIDWAY

is a majestic old monarch of the forest, measuring nine- teen feet in circumference and covering at least a quarter of an acre of ground. Several families of the Midway settlement sleep in the shadow of this single tree. Close to the trunk may be seen the tomb of DR. ABNER PORTER, a young physician, who took his own life, on February 6. 1808, by severing one of the femoral arteries. Dis- appointment in a love affair is said to have furnished the occasion for the rash act. He was only 34 years of age at the time of his death. The tomb has been lifted several inches by the increasing size of the roots.

Decidedly the most unique inscription to be found among the quaint epitaphs in this ancient burial-ground of the dead is the quatrain in which the Rev. Cyrus Gil- dersleeve has embalmed the many virtues of his beloved spouse. The inscription, chiseled upon the marble box, reads thus :

"She, who in Jesus, sleeps beneath this tomb, Had Rachel's face and Leah's fruitful womb, Abigail's wisdom, Lydia's faithful heart, And Martha's care, with Mary's better part."

Dr. James Stacy, the historian of Midway Church, calls attention in his book to some of the curious monu- ments in the cemetery, made of cypress wood, some of which are still standing in the ground after the lapse of more than a century of time. Says he : "I have a piece of one of them now before me that stood in the ground from 1776 to 1889-one hundred and thirteen years, the interior portion being still hard and firm. For the past fifty years, the preservation of these pieces has excited the wonder and astonishment of every one who visits the ground."

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To mention by name only the several ministers of the Gospel who sleep in the little cemetery, at Midway, the list includes : REV. JOHN OSGOOD, the pioneer Con- gregational minister, who came with the colonists to the settlement; REV. STEPHEN HOYT, a Congregationalist; ; REV. THOMAS S. WINN, a Baptist; REV. JAMES C. CROSBY, a Presbyterian; REV. AUGUSTUS O. BACON, a Baptist; REV. PETER WINN, a Presbyterian; REV. ROBERT QUAR- TERMAN, a Presbyterian ; REV. SAMUEL J. CASSELS, a Pres- byterian ; REV. HENRY J. STEVENS, a Baptist; REV. MOSES WAY, a Methodist; and REV. CHARLES C. JONES, D. D., a Presbyterian. The last-named minister devoted his life largely to evangelistic work among the negroes. He was the father of the distinguished antiquarian, historian and scholar, COLONEL CHARLES C. JONES, JR., of Angusta.

Old Cemetery, Louisville

Though Louisville was the State Capital for only ten years, there lived here in the early days a number of distinguished residents. In what is called the old ceme- tery of the town is the grave of a famous soldier and statesman, who, unhappily for his fame, became identi- fied with the notorious Yazoo Act, of 1795, by which Georgia, for a mere pittance, agreed to cede her western lands. The inscription on the tomb reads :

Here lies the body of BRIGADIER-GENERAL JAMES GUNN, who died on the 30th day of July, 1801, aged 48 years, 4 months, and 17 days.

His former colleague in the United States Senate and his bitter political adversary, GENERAL JAMES JACK- SON, who was chiefly instrumental in the repeal of the obnoxious measure, resided for a number of years in Louisville. The latter is buried in the Congressional Cemetery, in Washington, D. C., where he died in 1806,

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after resuming the toga. It may be said in justice to the memory of General Gunn that some of the foremost public men of the day were concerned in the Yazoo land deals, among them Patrick Henry, of Virginia; Thomas Glascock, of Georgia; and other patriots of the Revolu- tion. They regarded the transaction purely in the light of a business matter. There were no railroads in those days. It seemed hardly within the bounds of reason to expect any expansion of the State's populated area to a region so remote; and the lands for this reason were comparatively worthless.

In the opinion of Colonel N. J. Hammond, a noted lawyer and a former member of Congress, the course of General Jackson in assailing the Yazoo Act was in the nature of a play to the grand stand; but in the light of subsequent developments it made him a hero .* Gen- eral Gunn's death, in 1801, was probably hastened by the unpleasant notoriety to which he was subjected.

Just a few feet distant from the tomb of General Gunn lie the mortal remains of a noted jurist, who, in ad- dition to serving Georgia on the bench, illustrated the State in Congress. He was the first bearer of a name which three generations of his family have enriched with honor. Inscribed on this tomb in the old cemetery is the following epitaph :

Sacred to the memory of the HON. ROGER L. GAM- BLE, who died on the 20th day of December, 1847, aged Sixty years. Industry, Perseverance, and Integ- rity raised the deceased from the humbler walks of life to a position of eminence and usefulness. He served the country as a Commissioned Officer in the last war with Great Britain, as a prominent member of the Leg- islature of Georgia, as a Representative in the Congress of the United States, and as a Judge of the Superior Court of his native State. In the latter years of his life he served his Maker as an elder of the Presbyterian Faith in the church militant.

*Georgia Driftwood, a paper read before the Georgia Bar Association at Warm Springs, Ga., July 2, 1896, p. 17, pamphlet.

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New Cemetery, Louisville

Underneath a handsome shaft of Georgia granite, in the new cemetery at Louisville, so called to distinguish it from the ancient burial-ground in another part of the town, repose the remains of an honored citizen of Georgia, who served the State in the high office of Gov- ernor, in the Senate of the Confederate States, and on the Superior Court Bench. He was also a candidate, in 1860, for Vice-President of the United States, on the ticket with Stephen A. Douglass. The monument rests upon a mound, in the center of a lot enclosed by an iron fence; and inscribed upon the stone is the following simple record :

EX-GOVERNOR HERSCHEL V. JOHNSON. Born in Burke Co., Ga., Sept. 18, 1812. Died in Jefferson Co., Ga., Aug. 16, 1880.

His wife, whose maiden name was ANN F. POLK, sleeps underneath the mound beside him. She was a relative of President James K. Polk, and a lady of rare social charms. Mrs. Johnson was three years her hus- band's senior. She was a native of Somerset County, Md., where she was born October 10, 1809. Her father was the Hon. William Polk, of Maryland; but she was the widow Walker at the time of her marriage to Gov- ernor Johnson.

The grave of JUDGE ROGER L. GAMBLE, a noted jurist, born 1829, died 1893, is marked by a substantial monu- ment. His father, who bore the same name, also a noted jurist and a member of Congress, sleeps in the old ceme- tery; while his son, who likewise bore the ancestral nanie, a distinguished occupant of the bench, died in 1912. Ho sleeps not far from his honored father.

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One of the most exquisite epitaphs to be found in any burial-ground in the State is inscribed upon a hand- some monument of marble erected here to HENRY GREG- ORY WRIGHT. He was a brother of MAJOR-GENERAL AM- BROSE R. WRIGHT and an uncle of Georgia's present Comptroller-General, WILLIAM A. WRIGHT. There was at one time an editorial writer on the staff of the Au- gusta Chronicle who bore the same name, but he was a nephew, General Wright's son. The epitaph reads :

HENRY GREGORY WRIGHT. Born July 9, 1830. Died May 3, 1904. Whatever of human fault was in him, leaned to virtue's side. His faith in the substance of religion never faltered. The shadows he never pur- sued.

On the opposite side :

Never husband or father loved more or was more beloved. In civic virtue he was of a chastity that an untempted vestal might have envied; and thus did he earn the right to be hardly less proud of the enemies he made than of the friends he cherishe !. Successful in affairs, every achievement of his life was accom- plished in the lofty spirit of Cato's noble words: " "Tis not in mortals to command success But we'll do more, Sempronius, we'll deserve it."

Town Cemetery, Milledgeville

For a period of sixty years, Milledgeville was the seat of government. Dating back to the year 1807, when the State Legislature here met for the first time, this noted old town has been the permanent home of some of Geor- gia's most distinguished citizens. Less than a quarter of a mile from the ancient Gothic structure, on Capitol hill, in which the law-making power of the State once assembled-today a hall of learning for the youth of Georgia-lies the little cemetery, on the outskirts of the

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GEORGIA'S LANDMARKS, MEMORIALS AND LEGENDS

town: and few strangers visit Milledgeville without taking the shaded highway of oaks which leads to God's acre, there to spend a quiet hour, communing with the State's illustrious dead and trying to decipher some of the quaint epitaphs upon the old tombs.

Perhaps the earliest memorial reared to a man of note is the monument which marks the last resting-place of GENERAL JETT THOMAS. for whom Thomas County in this State was named. It was originally a fine specimen of white Vermont marble. but the withering touch of time has long since turned the handsome column to a deep yel- low: so much so. indeed, that the almost completely obliterated inscription can hardly be read-

Sacred to the memory of GEN. JETT THOMAS, who was born May 1S, in the year of our Lord, 1776, and departed this life. Jan. 26, 1$17. Aged 40 years, 7 months, and 24 days.

General Thomas was the builder of the State Capitol at Milledgeville. He was given the rank of Major-Gen- eral for his bravery as Captain Jett Thomas in the War of 1812. The Legislature of Georgia also presented him with a Major-General's hat, sword, and sash. The last named article was worn by his grandson. Lieutenant Jett Thomas Howard. a gallant Confederate officer, through- out the entire war. from 1861 to 1865.

Only a few feet removed from the Thomas lot is a weather-beaten obelisk under which reposes the elder JUDGE L. Q. C. LAMAR. father of the renowned jurist and statesman, who bore the same odd name. Though still short of thirty-seven. at the time of his death, the dis- tinguished Georgian who sleeps here was styled "the

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great Judge Lamar." Inscribed on the monument is the following somewhat lengthy epitaph :

Sacred to the memory of LUCIUS Q. C. LAMAR, late Judge of the Superior Court of the Ocmulgee cir- cuit, who during a brief service of five years discharged the duties of that high office with probity, firmness, assiduity, and unquestionable reputation. The devoted love of his family, the ardent attachment of personal friends, the admiration of the Bar, and the universal approbation of his enlightened administration of jus- tice, attest the goodness and eminence of one arrested by death too early in the bright and useful career in which he had been placed by his native State. Born July 15, 1797. Died July 4, 1834.

Judge Lamar died the tragic victim of melancholia, on a day celebrated with rejoicing as the anniversary of the nation's birth. His illustrious son is said also to have contemplated self-destruction, when depressed in spirit by conditions which followed the close of the Civil War; but a calmer mood at length prevailed, and he lived to become a United States Senator, a member of President Cleveland's first Cabinet, and finally an occupant of the Supreme Bench of the nation. This statement is made on the authority of the latter's son-in-law, Dr. Edward Mayes, former chancellor of the University of Missis- sippi .*

Marked by a handsome monument in this same part of the cemetery is the grave of DR. TOMLINSON FORT, a distinguished physician and former member of Congress.

Underneath a time-worn box of marble, in a lot not far removed from Dr. Tomlinson's sleeps a Governor of the State whose administration was tossed upon a

*Lucius Q. C. Lamar: His Life, Times and Speeches, 1825-1893, by Edward Mayes, LL. D., pp. 166-168, Nashville, 1896.

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troubled sea. But he acquitted himself with credit in this high office, and toward the close of his second term voluntarily relinquished the public service. Mitchell County was named in his honor; also Fort Mitchell, a stronghold erected during the Indian wars, on the Ala- bama side of the Chattahoochee River, near Columbus. Inscribed on the marble box is the following record :

In memory of DAVID BRYDIE MITCHELL. Sen- ator from the County of Baldwin and former Governor of Georgia. Born near Nuthil, Perthshire, Scotland, 22nd Oct. 1766. Died in Milledgeville, Ga., 22nd April, 1837. This stone is erected by vote of the Legislature of Georgia.

SEATON GRANTLAND, a noted editor and a former mem- ber of Congress, grandfather of the late FLEMING G. DUBIGNON, sleeps under a massive structure of stone, on which the following brief record is inscribed :

SEATON GRANTLAND. Born in New Kent Co., . Va., June 8th, 1782. Died at Woodville, Ga., Oct. 18th, 1864. "Mark the perfect man and behold the upright, for the end of that man is peace." Psalms 37: 37.

Near the Grantland lot, in a box-covered tomb, repose the ashes of a victim who came to his death in a singular manner. The inscription on the discolored marble top reads :

To the memory of JAMES D. ALLMAN, who died on the 16th of July, 1845, from the accidental dis- charge of a cannon at the funeral obsequies of General Jackson. Honest, mirthful, and beloved, he acquired tlie title of Crockett. It lives with his memory.

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TOWN CEMETERY

Underneath a massive granite headstone, handsomely sculptured, lie the mortal remains of a gallant officer who perished on the field of battle; but who attained while still a mere youth the stars of a Brigadier-General. Inscribed on the handsome block of granite is the following epitaph :

Erected by his old comrades of the 4th regiment of Georgia Volunteers, A. N. V., in honor of BRIGADIER- GENERAL GEORGE DOLES, killed in battle, at Cold Harbor, Va., June 2, 1864. Crowned with early fade- less laurels, he lies sleeping upon this sacred spot where love is keeping his honored dust.

One of the costliest memorials in the cemetery marks the last resting-place of LEONIDAS JORDAN, a wealthy ante- bellum planter and man of affairs. Another elegant shaft of marble adorns the grave of ZACHARIAH LAMAR, a dis- tinguished former resident of Milledgeville, the father- in-law of GOVERNOR HOWELL COBB. The list of noted dead who sleep here includes also JUDGE THOMAS P. CARNES, an eminent jurist for whom the town of Carnesville was named; JUDGE IVERSON L. HARRIS, a former occupant of the Supreme Court Bench; BRIGADIER-GENERAL BRYAN M. THOMAS, a distinguished Confederate officer; HON. NATHAN C. BARNETT, Georgia's secretary of State for nearly forty years; RICHARD MCALLISTER ORME, one of Georgia's pioneer editors, who, with Seaton Grantland, founded the famous Southern Recorder, and who re- mained for years at the editorial helm; AUGUSTUS H. KENAN, a member of the Confederate Congress and a noted lawyer; LIEUTENANT-COLONEL JOHN M. BROWN, who fell in the battle of Atlanta, a brother of Georgia's war Governor; DR. J. HARRIS CHAPPELL, the first president of the Georgia Normal and Industrial College; JUDGE DANIEL B. SANFORD, a distinguished jurist and soldier, long the ordinary of Baldwin County, in whose honor the

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GEORGIA'S LANDMARKS, MEMORIALS AND LEGENDS

local camp of Sons of Confederate Veterans was named; and a host of others, including members of the General Assembly who died while serving the State at Milledge- ville, and to whom the State erected substantial monu- ments.

Rest Haven, Washington

Within a stone's throw of the gate, beneath a massive monument of white marble, perhaps the loftiest shaft in this beautiful city of the dead, sleeps the great Mirabeau of Secession : ROBERT TOOMBS. There is nothing in the way of an epitaph upon the monument, but at the base of the column, in large Roman letters, is chiseled a name forever radiant in the annals of Georgia :

TOOMBS

On the left side of the monument appears this inscrip- tion :

ROBERT TOOMBS. July 2, 1810. Dec. 15, 1885.

Beside him sleeps his beloved companion to whom, amid the turmoils of public life, he once wrote : "I begin to be more anxious to see you than to save the republic. The old Roman Anthony threw away an empire rather than abandon Cleopatra, and the world called him an idiot ; but I begin to think he was the wiser man and the world was well lost for love."

Just off the main driveway, not far from the Toombs lot, sleeps a pioneer resident of Washington, distinguish- ed for frequent commissions with which he was entrusted to negotiate with the Cherokee and Creek Indians and for his early championship of the cause of female education :

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REST HAVEN

DUNCAN G. CAMPBELL. One of the counties of Georgia bears his name; and, in after years, his son, Judge John A. Campbell, occupied a seat on the Supreme Bench of the United States. Col. Campbell died while still com- paratively a young man. He was first buried on his plantation, near Washington, but his body was after- wards taken up and reinterred in Rest Haven. On a hori- zontal grave·cover, resting upon a brick foundation, in the center of the lot, is inscribed the following epitaph :

To the memory of COL. DUNCAN G. CAMPBELL, who died July 31, 1826. Aged 41. His talents were given to his country, his property to his friends, his affections to his family, and his soul to God. Respected, beloved, and lamented, he lived and died an honest man, a true Patriot and a sincere Christian.

JUDGE GARNETT ANDREWS, who presided for years on the Bench of the Northern Circuit and who wrote a de- lightful little book entitled "Reminiscences of an Old- time Georgia Lawyer," a work of rare value, which throws some important side-lights upon the early history of this State, is buried in Rest Haven. The substantial monument which marks his last resting place is inscribed as follows :

GARNETT ANDREWS. Born Oct. 30, 1798. Died, August 13, 1873. Judge of the Superior Courts of the Northern Circuit of Georgia 24 years.

Besides the above mentioned Georgians, the list of distinguished dead buried in this cemetery includes : GEN. DUDLEY DUBOSE, formerly a Confederate Brigade Com- mander and a member of Congress, who married a daugh-

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GEORGIA'S LANDMARKS, MEMORIALS AND LEGENDS

ter of General Toombs; DR. MORGAN CALLAWAY, for years a professor of English at Emory College; DR. MARSHALL ANDREWS, a beloved physician of the town, whose monu- ment was erected by the people of Wilkes; ELIZA A. BOWEN, a noted educator and historian; NICHOLAS WILEY, a pioneer citizen of large means; FATHER JAMES O'BRIEN, founder of the Orphans Home for Catholic Children; and scores of others, including the Popes, the Hills, the Alex- anders, the Simpsons, and the Winns.

Smyrna Church-Yard, Eight Miles From Washington

Eight miles from Washington, on the old Lincolnton Road, stands Smyrna Church, in the rear of which there is an old burial-ground of rare historic interest. It con- tains some of the most precious dust of this State, reaching back to Revolutionary times, and there is hardly an equivalent area of ground north of St. Paul's Church, in Augusta, in which so many splendid old pioneers sleep. Smyrna Church was organized by the Presbyterians early in the last century; but with the decreasing numbers of this denomination it eventually became the property of the Baptists.

Here, in an unmarked grave, lies JOHN TALBOT, per- haps the most extensive owner of wild lands in the State of Georgia. The land for the church, including a tract of five acres, was donated by this wealthy pioneer. On the eve of the Revolution, he acquired in this region of the State, a tract of land, embracing 50,000 acres. He came originally from Virginia, and was a scion of the aristocratic old Talbot family of England.

His son, MATTHEW TALBOT, became an honored chief executive of this State. There is a well-preserved monu-

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SMYRNA CHURCH-YARD

ment over the grave of Governor Talbot on which the following epitaph is inscribed :

Sacred to the memory of MATTHEW TALBOT, who was born July 24, 1795, and died March 14, 1855. Aged 59 years, 7 months, and 10 days.

Near by sleeps THOMAS TALBOT, an elder brother. The inscription upon his tombstone reads :

Sacred to the memory of THOMAS TALBOT, who died Sept. 1, 1853. Aged 86 years.

Two soldiers of the Revolution lie here buried: COL. DAVID CRESWELL, an officer on Gen. Greene's staff, and MAJOR FRANCIS TRIPLETT, of Virginia. The former mar- ried John Talbot's daughter, Phoebe; the latter his daughter, Mary Williston. COL. WM. JONES, an officer of the War of 1812, is also buried at Smyrna. He married Elizabeth Conway Talbot, a daughter of Thomas Talbot. SAMUEL BARNETT, cashier of the old branch bank of the State of Georgia sleeps in Smyrna church-yard under a handsome monument. There is also an ancient headstone which marks the grave of an early Congressman. It bears the following inscription :

WILLIAM BARNETT departed this life Oct. 25, 1834. Aged 86 years and 11 months.

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GEORGIA'S LANDMARKS, MEMORIALS AND LEGENDS

Presbyterian Cemetery, Lexington

In the Presbyterian Cemetery, at Lexington, occupy- ing the center of a square enclosed by a heavy iron fence, on the gateway to which is marked "Gilmer," stands a shaft of Italian marble, some ten feet in height. It rests upon a horizontal slab of granite, which covers completely the grave beneath, and the only inscription upon the monument is the one which follows, giving the name of the great statesman who here slumbers, together with the dates which tell when his career began and ended :

George R. Gilmer. Born April the 11th, A. D., 1790. Died November the 16th, A. D., 1859.

On either side of the monument there are two hand- some marble urns. To the right of the Governor's grave sleeps a kinsman, whose last resting-place is covered by a box of marble; while to the left there is a vacant space which was intended for Mrs. Gilmer, but the Governor's devoted wife survived him by a number of years, and, dying while on a visit to relatives in Virginia, was buried near the home of her childhood. Shrubs and ever- greens adorn the section, bespeaking the tender care which she bestowed upon it in by-gone days.

Several yards in front of the Gilmer lot, is another square enclosed in like manner, on the gateway to which is marked "Upson"; and the handsome shaft of Italian marble contains the following simple but sufficient in- scription :

Stephen Upson. Died August, 1824. In his 40th year.

There is a modesty refreshing to the reader in both of these epitaphs, neither of which in the slightest degree

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hints of the part which the illustrious dead played in the drama of events ; but when the muse of history is eloquent the marble needs no lengthened scroll. . The Upson lot is beautified by a number of rose bushes, which, throughout the summer months, burden the air with perfume; but in the annals of his adopted State the name of this lamented Georgian is not less fragrant. For dying at the early age of forty, without official prestige, there was enough to his credit in the way of solid achievement to justify the creation of a county in his honor.

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Georgia's landmarks, memorials and legends, Volume II, Part 26

Author: Knight, Lucian Lamar, 1868-1933 Publication date: 1913 Publisher: Atlanta, Ga. : Byrd Printing Co. Number of Pages: 1274

Author: Knight, Lucian Lamar, 1868-1933
Publication date: 1913
Publisher: Atlanta, Ga. : Byrd Printing Co.
Number of Pages: 1274