Georgia's landmarks, memorials and legends, Volume II, Part 44

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

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Macon's First While stationed here Major Cook became

White Child. the proud father of the first child of white parentage born within the limits of the present city of Macon-Martha Pearson Cook, after- wards the much-beloved Mrs. Isaac Winship. There is ample authority for this statement .* But the premier honors in this respect are not Mrs. Winship's sole title 'to distinction. She was a tireless worker in the hospitals during the dark days of the Civil War; and, wherever an old soldier survives, the memory of this sainted woman is a fragrant recollection, sweeter than spikenard or myrrh. Three distinct Georgia cities witnessed her pa- triotic activities-each in the order named --- Atlanta, Grif- fin and Macon. In the first-mentioned place she headed the hospital relief corps. At Griffin she was instrumen-

*J. C. Butler, in History of Macon. Mrs. W. L. Peel, of Atlanta, in a statement made to the author. Hon. Philip Cook, Secretary of State.

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tal, as president of the Ladies' Memorial Association, in building the first Confederate monument in Georgia, and at Macon she was the moving spirit in the erection of the handsome memorial unveiled to the heroes of the South, in 1879. To quote the words of her granddaughter, Mrs. Martha Cook Flournoy: "She carried carloads of coffins to the battle-field of Jonesboro, and with colored help gathered up our dead from the trenches and caused the bodies to be buried decently in the cemetery at Grif- fin." This work was done with money raised by Mrs. Win- ship's personal efforts. Her last days were spent in Macon, the home of her girlhood. Mr. Isaac Winship was one of the founders of the celebrated iron works, with which the Winship family of Georgia is still iden- tified. Captain Emory Winship, a hero of the Spanish- American War and a well-known financier, is a lineal de- scendant.

Lost at Sea : the United States Senator Oliver H. Prince,

Shipwreck of who perished at sea on board the ill-

the "Home." fated steamship "Home," in 1837, was a resident of Macon. The particulars of the tragic disaster are thus narrated by Governor Gilmer:

"About the first of July, 1837, my wife and I left home, in com- pany with Mr. and Mrs. Prince, they for Boston and New York, and we for Western Virginia. The four of us had passed the time of the session of the Legislature of 1824 in the same public house, where we had our own private table and drawing-room. Mr. Prince and I had served in Congress together in 1834-35. We had acted together as trustees of Franklin College, and belonged for many years to the same bar in the practice of law. Mrs. Prince was an exceedingly pretty woman. Mr. Prince was a man of wit. We went by the way of Charleston to Norfolk. The ladies were ill most of the time. I had looked upon the ocean before, but had never been out of sight of land. Its vast expanse of ever-moving waters kept me so excited that I scarcely left the deck of the vessel until we reached port.

"Mr. Prince went to the North to have printed a new edition of his Digest of the Public Laws of Georgia. When the work was completed, he and Mrs. Prince left New York for Georgia in the steam vessel, the

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Home. The dreadful catastrophe which befell the ship, Mr. and Mrs. Prince, and almost all the passengers, made such an impression upon the whole country that the event is still freshly remembered by every one, whenever the bursting of boilers, the burning of steamers and the wreck of vessels are mentioned. Soon after the steamer left New York there arose a violent storm, which drove the vessel to the North Carolina coast in a sinking con- dition. All were stimulated to do whatever could be done to save the vessel and themselves.

"Mr. Prince took command of the hands at the pump, where his self- possession and strong strokes showed that he worked for a nobler purpose than fear for his own life. When exhausted by his efforts, he joined his wife, to devote himself to her safety. The self-sacrificing nature of Mrs. Prince would not yield to the temptation of clinging to her husband, when his exertions' might be necessary to the safety of others on board. She urged him to return to his efforts at the pump. Immediately afterwards she attempted to obey the advice of the Captain, to remove from one part of the vessel to another less exposed to danger.

"As she stepped out of the cabin into an open space, a wave passed over and through the vessel, and carried her into the ocean. When the storm subsided, her body was found deposited on the shore. Mr. Prince, resuming his labors at the pump, was spared the pangs of knowing the fate of 'his wife. To a young man who' lived to report the story, Mr. Prince said: 'Remember me to my child, Virginia.' If there was aught else the uproar of the ocean prevented its being heard. No account was ever given of the last struggle for life by those who worked at the pump. In a great heave of the ocean, the vessel parted asunder and went to the bottom."*

Mercer University.

Vol. I., Pages 313-314; Vol. II, Greene County.

Historic Old Wesleyan.

Volume I, Pages 200-203.

The Last Hours of Justice Lamar.

Says a biographer of the great jurist : "In December, Mr. Lamar, with his wife,

left Washington, intending to visit again the Mississippi coast. On the day of his' departure he was attacked, while en route, with an acute pain of the heart, and was obliged to lie over for two days in Atlanta, where he was entertained by Hoke Smith, Esq. He

*George R. Gilmer, in Sketches of Some of the First Settlers of Upper Georgia.

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then left for Macon [Mrs. Lamar's old home], where there were great numbers of loving friends, and many reminiscences of his early manhood. Here he remained until the end came.

"For a while Mr. Lamar seemed to be improving. There were numbers who expected to see him within a few weeks resume his place on the Bench ; but the great jurist was already entering the dark penumbra. He and Mrs. Lamar* were not staying at the latter's home in Macon, but were visiting Captain W. H. Virgin, a son-in-law of Mr. Lamar's, in Vineville, a suburb. He made occasional trips to the city on the electric cars. On Monday, the 23rd of January, 1893, he called at the office of Captain R. E. Park, in company with Dr. Flewellen, a cousin of Mrs. Lamar's. They sat for perhaps a half hour with Captain Park, discussing various topics, and when they left he carried with him several magazines to read at night. He conversed freely with Dr. Flewellen while returning home on the car, and said that his exercise made him feel like eating a good meal. He dined with the family shortly after six o'clock and partook of his accustomed dishes with his usual appetite.

"Dinner over, he walked with the family into the sitting room, and during the conversation extended Dr. Flewellen a cordial invitation to visit him in Washington the approaching summer. About 7:30 Dr. Flewel- len left the house, commenting upon the apparent improvement in Justice Lamar's general health. But it was hardly fifteen minutes later when the jurist complained of symptoms of his old attack, also saying that his arms felt benumbed. He soon retired without any very unusual trouble; and the family were disposed to attribute his condition to exhaustion from the trip to town. After going to bed he complained of suffocation, and it then became impossible for him to breathe freely until he was placed comfort- ably in a chair near the fire. He grew worse, however, and it soon became evident that he was sinking.

"Captain Virgin boarded a street car and went at once for Dr. Parker, returning with the physician about 8:40. He was found to be speechless and unconscious, and to the physician evidently beyond the reach of help. His head hung almost limp in the hands of one of the attendants, who was relieved by Captain Virgin. In this position his life passed out with- out a struggle, and so quietly and peacefully that those about him did not know the exact moment at which the soul took flight. In frequent conver- sations he alluded to his condition, but said that he was not afraid of death. His chief wish was to visit his father's grave and some of the scenes of his earlier years; but this was denied him. The thought of his Creator was his great consolation, and he died enjoying the full appreci- ation of the revealed truth.

*Mr. Lamar's second wife was Henrietta J. Holt, widow of General William S. Holt, of Macon. His first wife was Virginia Longstreet, daughter of the celebrated Judge A. B. Longstreet, author of "Georgia Scenes," and at one time President of Emory College, at Oxford.

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"Every tribute was paid to his memory by State and nation. He was buried with civic honors in Riverside Cemetery, in Macon, on the banks of the Ocmulgee River, and thousands gathered beside the open grave to pay the last sad tribute of respect to the illustrious dead. In the fall of 1894 the remains of Mr. Lamar were removed to Mississippi and laid beside the wife of his youth and the mother of his children, in St. Peter's Ceme- tery, at Oxford."*

Sidney Lanier.

Vol. I, Pages 236-240.

Birthplace of Sidney Lanier. Harry Stillwell Edwards, one of the State's most brilliant men of letters, was only a lad when Sidney Lanier left Macon to find a permanent home in Baltimore, Md. But he well remembers the great poet. Before the Macon History Club, at its February meeting in 1913, Mr. Ed- wards read a charmingly written paper on the physical surroundings of Lanier's early life. As a contribution to our none too abundant knowledge of a man of genius whose place in the literature of song is now universally recognized, this paper will doubtless be preserved. It is · too precious a document to serve only a transient pur- pose; and if the limitations of space permitted us to do so we would gladly reproduce it in full. Mr. Edwards has greatly endeared himself to lovers of Lanier for this service to the poet's memory, the value of which even now is priceless. His description of the home in which Lanier first saw the light of day will be read by every one with deep interest. Says Mr. Edwards :

"On High street, near the Crutchfield's, is the cottage generally ac- cepted as the birth-place of Sidney Lanier. I remember its condition in 1869, when I left school and went away from Macon temporarily. As it now stands, it has a porch across the front, with dormer windows above. But originally it had only a little square porch, at the front door, with two small .square columns in front and two pilasters behind. Four or five steps led up to the porch, and a gravel walk cut to the gate, with ever- greens on both sides, and johnquils and spirea growing in the yard. The gate and fence were square pickets. The street was a favorite one with

*Edward Mayes, in Lucius Q. C. Lamar: His Life, Times and Speeches.

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myself and brother because Horace and Virgil Powers, our most intimate friends, lived just above the Lanier cottage, and there was a park place for play in front. But at no time during these years of which I speak did any of the Laniers live in the cottage described."*

BROOKS

Quitman. In 1858, by an Act of the Legislature, Brooks County was formed out of Lowndes and . Thomas Counties, and named for Hon. Preston S. Brooks, of South Carolina. The same Act authorized the Inferior Court judges to select a site for public build- ings, to be called Quitman. The town was incorporated by an Act approved December 19, 1859. Quitman is today one of the most progressive communities of South Georgia, occupying the center of a rich agricultural belt, with splendid railway connections, an extensive trade, both wholesale and retail, a strong local Bar, several properous banks, a public-school system unsurpassed in the State, and a citizenship, public-spirited, wideawake, enterprising, and united. The reader is referred to the preceding volume of this work for additional information in regard to Quitman.

BRYAN

Hardwick: One of the Lost

On the west side of the Ogeechee River, fourteen miles from the sea, are Towns of Georgia. the ruins of an old town, which was once expected to become the capital of Georgia. The movement to make it such was favored by two royal Governors, but the dream failed to mate- rialize, and today there are only a few pathetic frag- ments to tell where Hardwick once stood. The town was laid out, February 4, 1755, and was named in honor of Lord Hardwick, a kinsman of Governor Reynolds and a Lord High Chancellor of England. When Gov-

*This paper was published in the Macon Telegraph, February 16, 1913.

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ernor Reynolds visited the town, on his tour of inspec- tion, he was so delighted with the situation that he wrote to the Board of Trade in London, declaring it to be the only fit place for the capital.1 The choice was indeed in many respects an ideal one. The town was situated upon a bluff, at a point where the river formed an elbow and where there existed an earlier settlement, to which was given the name of George Town. At this time there were a number of serious objections offered to Savannah, among which-to quote the language of Governor Rey- nolds-were "the shoalness of the river and the great height of the land," making it inconvenient for the load- ing and unloading of ships. Its location, on the extreme edge of the province, was another ground of complaint. As soon as the project for removal was agitated, there- fore, an instant demand was created for lots in the new town. There were as many as twenty-seven sold, and land to the extent of 21,000 acres in the immediate vicin- ity was granted to various parties, who pledged them- selves to the success of the proposed scheme. But the home government failed to vote the necessary funds for making the transfer of the capital, and, notwithstanding an effort which was subsequently made by Governor Ellis toward the same end, the movement eventually col- lapsed. Deprived of the dignity upon which it counted, the town of Hardwick became scarcely more than a vil- lage, though DeBrahm reckoned it among the five sea- port towns, and recommended its fortifications.2 Gov- ernor Wright was never partial to Hardwick. He, there- fore, discouraged any attempt to revive the old agitation, on the ground that Savannah was conveniently located, both for trade with South Carolina, and for inter-

course with the Indians. He could see no advantage in moving the capital so short a distance, even if removal were deemed wise. The views of Governor Wright upon this subject were largely influenced by the fact that he

1 H. M. Public Records, London, Vol. 35, Georgia, B. T.

2 H. M. Public Records, London, Vol. 13, No. 14, Maps, B. T.

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was born in South Carolina; but his judgment was no doubt sound. When Bryan County was organized, in 1793, Hardwick became temporarily the county-seat, but it does not appear that any public buildings were ever erected; and as early as 1797 the General Assembly des- ignated as the site of the court-house, a point at or near the Cross Roads about two miles from Ogeechee Bridge. In 1829 Sherwood found the town of Hardwick only a cluster of houses .* In 1866 an effort was made to revive the town, but it bore little fruit. Thus passed into ob- livion an ambitious little town of the Georgia coast, which was favored by two royal Governors of the province, and which was named for an eminent Lord High Chancellor of England. The site of the old town is two miles from Genesis Point, a locality made famous by Fort McAllis- ter during the Civil War.

Belfast: The Home One of the most substantial of the

of James Maxwell. old Colonial homes of Georgia was in this county, the residence of James Maxwell, on Bryan's Neck, a fertile stretch of alluvial land between the Midway and Ogeechee Rivers. He called it Belfast. Colonel Maxwell was a Scotch- Trishman. His ancestors moved to the north of Ireland from Maxwelton, on the Nith, in Dumfries, Scotland, and lived for some time either at or near Belfast, a cir- cumstance which accounts for the name which he gave to his elegant mansion on the coast of Georgia. It over- looked the Midway River, a tidewater stream, which is little more than an arm of the sea; and to judge from the blocks of tabby which still mark the site of the old historic Maxwell home, it must have been built upon ample proportions. Much of the social life of the period, when knee-buckles and powdered wigs were in vogue, found picturesque expression here in more than one gor-

*Sherwood's Gazetteer, p. 116, 1829.

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geous entertainment, which brought together the wealthy nabobs of the low country, many of whom were sworn officers of the Crown. Though an aristocratic seat, its doors were never barred against the stranger; and the ample feasts which were here spread, in the spacious days before the Revolution, set the pace for much. of the proverbial hospitality of later times. Miss Maria J. McIntosh. in one of her novels entitled: "Lofty and Lowly," has charmingly pictured the old Maxwell home, under the name of "Montrose Hall." Surrounded by magnificent live oaks and embellished with ornamental shrubs and plants of every kind, the grounds were lav- ishly in keeping with the fine old manor, and the whole atmosphere of the place evinced the gentle blood, the exquisite culture, and the large means of the thrifty owner.

James Maxwell was an early pioneer settler. To- gether with his brother, Thomas Maxwell, and several other residents of South Carolina, "most of whom were men of easy fortunes," he applied on December 12, 1747, for an extensive grant of land, lying on both sides of the Midway River. They wanted 6,000 acres ; but to deed such large bodies of land was not in accordance with the policy of the government at this time, and they were forced to be content with 500 acres each. James located near the point which is today occupied by an important lumber mill industry and which still bears the original name of the place-Belfast. Thomas located on the op- posite side of the river, at a point called Hester's Bluff. Another brother, Andley Maxwell, settled in St. John's Parish, at or about the same time, locating near the head of Midway River, at a place which he called Limerick. James Maxwell was one of the original trustees to whom was entrusted the work of laying out the town of Sun- bury. He was also a member of the first provincial Con- gress of Georgia. It is thought by some that the Lieu- tenant Maxwell, who fought with General Oglethorpe at the battle of Bloody Marsh, was James Maxwell. The

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records state that Lieutenant Maxwell was appointed an aide de camp, together with Hugh Mackay .* At any rate, it is certain that James Maxwell had a son of the same name who married Ann Mackay, a daughter of Cap- tain James Mackay, of Strathy Hall. The latter was a member of the King's Council and a very prominent man.

Elizabeth, one of the daughters of James Maxwell, married Thomas Young, who was styled the "richest Tory in Georgia," an epithet which was doubtless true to the facts, if exception be made of the royal Governor, Sir James Wright. McCall gives an account of a dinner which was given in 1777 by the owner to a number of British officers at Belfast, in honor of the King's birth- day, and while the guests were seated at the table, drink- ing his Majesty's health, a detachment of American sol- diers surrounded the house and made the British officers prisoners of war. "Buckland Hall," "Kilkenny" and many other places in Bryan County were originally old Maxwell homes. An engagement occurred at Belfast on the night of June 4, 1779, in which Colonel Cruger, of the British army, and some of his officers, were captured by Captain Spencer, commander of an American priva- teer then lying in the Midway. Learning that the offi- cers were that evening dining with a certain Tory named Thomas Young, at Belfast, Captain Spencer ascended the river in small boats, landed about eight o'clock with twelve of his men, surrounded the house and captured all present at the dinner. The prisoners were paroled the next morning, and Colonel Cruger was soon after- ward exchanged for Colonel McIntosh, who had been captured at Brier Creek. There is now a post village on the site of the old town.

*Letter of Oglethorpe, dated Frederica, July 30, 1742.

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BULLOCH.

Statesboro. To find the beginnings of the present town of Statesboro, we must go back to an Act ap- proved December 19, 1803, by Governor John Milledge. In this Act a certain tract of land, conveyed by George Sibbald to the Inferior Court of Bulloch, containing 200 acres, is declared to be the site for public buildings in the new county, said town to be known by the name of "Statesborough."1 Hon. Peter Cone, an early pioneer, of Bulloch, whose home was in the neighborhood of Statesboro, was for years a dominant figure in the poli- tics of Georgia. Entering the State Senate in 1830, he was returned at each successive election continuously, with only one exception, until 1852, when he voluntarily withdrew from public affairs. Some of the early repre- sentatives of Bulloch in the State Legislature were : Charles McCall, John Rawls, Drewry Jones, Shepherd Williams, Samuel S. Lockhart, Allen Rawls, Michael Young, Malachi Denmark and Francis McCall, who served in the Senate down to 1830, when Peter Cone en- tered the arena of politics; and among the members of the House were: Andrew E. Wells, Lewis Lanier, Sam- uel Lockhart, John Burnett, Sherrod McCall, R. T. Stan- aland, Malachi Denmark, James Rawls, James Wilkin- son and Wm. H. McLean.

BUTTS.

Jackson. Jackson, the county-seat of Butts, was named for General Andrew Jackson, then President of the United States, and was incorporated as a town by an Act approved December 26, 1826, at which time the following commissioners were named, to-wit. : Samuel Lovejoy, Edward Butler, William V. Burney, John Rob- inson and Henry Hatley .? Besides these, some of the

1 Acts, 1826, p. 177.

2 Clayton's Compendium, 145.

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early pioneer settlers were: John Hall, Wiley Ferrell, John McCord, James W. Harkness, Flem Childers, John Goodman, James H. Stark, David J. Bailey and Fred Stewart. The first school building stood on what is now Oak Street, and the teachers were Mr. and Mrs. Hiram Clark, A. B. Florence and Algernon Fellows. The first mercantile firms were Hurd and Hungerford, and An- drews and Little; while the pioneer lawyers included David J. Bailey, afterwards a member of Congress; Rufus McCune, and James H. Stark.

In 1850, the Baptists built the first house of worship in Jackson. Rev. W. G. McMichael became the pastor of this flock, and for more than twenty years ministered to this congregation. In 1881, when the old East Ten- nessee, Virginia and Georgia Railway, now the Southern, was completed from Macon to Atlanta, the town received a decided impetus and became at once the most impor- tant station between the points above named. Jackson Institute was built in 1889, and among the first teachers was Rev. J. W. Beck, father of Judge Marcus W. Beck, of the State Supreme Court. Here, too, Miss Leonora Beck, afterwards Mrs. Ellis, began her brilliant career as an educator. Ex-Governor Hogg, of Texas, was a na- tive of Butts, in which county he spent his boyhood days. David J. Bailey and Henry Hendrick represented this county in the Secession Convention at Milledgeville, in 1861. The population of Jackson at the present time is nearly 4,000. It is a city of splendid banking institu- tions, of strong commercial establishments, and of beau- tiful homes .*

The Varner House. Mrs. A. H. Alfriend, Regent of the Piedmont Continental Chapter, D. A. R., and chairman of the General William McIntosh Memorial Association, is making what promises to be

*Authority: Mrs. J. D. Jones, Regent, D. A. R., Jackson, Ga.

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a successful effort for the purchase of one of Georgia's most historic shrines: the famous old Varner House at Indian Springs. To this end she has formulated a bill asking for an appropriation of $8,000 from the treasury of the State, and this bill is now pending in the General Assembly of Georgia. The Varner House was built in 1823 by the brave Indian chief, whose memory is today revered by every true and loyal Georgian. It was built as a hotel for the convenience of the great multitudes which even at this early day visited the famous Indian Springs. On the counter, which is still preserved intact, General McIntosh, in 1825, signed the fateful treaty which proved to be his death warrant. Loyal to the Indian, as well as to the white man, he obtained for his tribe, under this treaty with the government, a domain of territory equal in extent to that which was ceded, be- sides a moneyed consideration of approximately $5,000,- 000. But he was rewarded with death at the hands of his own people. As the result of this treaty agreement with the Creek Indians, Georgia acquired a vast extent of territory, embracing millions of acres, yet Georgia has never in any way shown her appreciation of this brave chief, to whom she owes a debt of gratitude which can never be repaid. Without an exception, the Varner House at Indian Springs is the most important unmarked historic spot in this State. The house stands today just as McIntosh built it, except for the veranda, which was formerly two storied, with large square columns. Two partitions have also been put into the lower floor. But the expenditure of a very small sum of money will suf- fice to make necessary alterations, so that the building can be used for conventions, public gatherings, etc., and to furnish accommodations at a minimum rate to per- sons of limited means anxious to obtain the benefit of the springs. Much of the original furniture still remains in the house, including books, pictures and trinkets of various kinds. The reader is referred to Vol. I of this work for a detailed story of the famous treaty which

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Georgia's landmarks, memorials and legends, Volume II, Part 44

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