USA > Georgia > Clinch County > History of Clinch County, Georgia, revised to date > Part 17
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CORNELIUS, BENJAMIN, was born in what is now Wayne County, May 11th, 1801. Early in life he was married to Miss Sarah Hopson, of Pulaski County, and by her had five children, viz .: George, Cintha, Sabra, Martha Ann, and Edward Cornelius. He lived in Pulaski County several years, and about 1826 removed to Lowndes County and lived there two years. After this he returned to Pulaski and lived there until 1832, when he returned to Lowndes County. He was elected a justice of the peace of the 66 1st district of Lowndes County in 1833, and served a few years. About 1840 he re-
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moved to what is now Clinch but then Ware County, and settled near the future Dame's mill-pond. Here he was elected a justice of the peace of the 970th district in 1841, and in 1846. After his wife died in 1845, Mr. Cornelius moved to the place now owned by Mr. S. D. Findley, near Homer- ville.
In 1850 Mr. Cornelius was elected tax receiver of Ware County and commissioned April Ist, 1850, but the election for county officers in the new county of Clinch coming on, he resigned and was succeeded by Daniel E. Knowles. He was elected the first tax receiver of Clinch County, in April, 1850, and by continuous re-election, held this office until 1874, with the exception of three years. During 1856-'57, Jesse W. Carter was receiver, and in 1862 the offices of receiver and collector were combined by Legislative Act, and Timothy Alderman elected to this office. In 1864 it was restored as it formerly was and Mr. Cornelius was re-elected. In his last race in 1872 he was opposed by J. R. Harris, but easily defeated him. Mr. Cornelius died of paralysis at his home near Homerville, June 26th, 1874, and was buried at Pros- pect Church. He was a member of the Primitive Baptist Church and had his membership at Prospect Church. Next to John C. Jones, Mr. Cornelius served the longest in one office of any officer in the county.
CORNELIUS, BENJAMIN WILLIS, was born in Clinch County, near Homerville, December 7th, 1878, the son of James B. and Martha E. (Gibbs) Cornelius, and a great-grandson of Benjamin Cornelius, tax receiver. He was raised on his father's farm and attended the DuBignon Insti- tute at Homerville. In 1904 he graduated from the Georgia Normal and Business College at Abbeville, and in 1905 from the Mercer Law School. He was admitted to the practice of law at Homerville and practiced here until 1913, when he removed to Sherman, Texas, where he is practicing law now. On November Ist, 1909, he was appointed by the Governor
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as judge of the County Court of Clinch County for four years from October 28th, 1909. When his term expired, Judge Cornelius did not seek a re-appointment. He was mar- ried May 25th, 1911, to Mrs. Alice Riddle, a member of an old Virginia family, who was previously a teacher of Elo- cution in DuBignon Institute.
CORNELIUS, FERMAN F., was born near Homer- ville, February 6th, 1883, the son of James B. and Martha E. (Gibbs) Cornelius. He was raised on his father's farm and attended the Homerville schools. In 1904 he was nomi- nated for surveyor of Clinch County over R. J. Jewell and D. J. Smith, and commissioned October 17th, 1904. He served by re-elections until January Ist, 1915, when he retired. Mr. Cornelius was married June 20th, 1905 to Miss Court- ney James, daughter of Rev. R. A. James, of this county, and has two children. For the past several years he has been holding a responsible position with the G. S. Baxter Co., at Fargo.
CORNELIUS, GEORGE, was born in Lowndes County, March 29th, 1830, the son of Hon. Benjamin Cornelius, tax receiver. He was raised in Ware County. He married in December, 1855, Miss Mary Ann Lee, daughter of James Lee, by whom he had thirteen children, viz .: James B., Franklin, Angeline, Mary, Lucy, J. R. E., Sallie, Bartow, Martha, Clara and Minnie, also a son, George Jr., who died in infancy. Mr. Cornelius settled in 1855 on the place now owned by Mr. J. R. E. Cornelius, where he lived until his death. His first office was that of justice of the peace of the 106Ist district, to which he was elected in 1853. He served about a year. In April, 1862, he enlisted in Co. "G" 50th Georgia Infantry, and served until the close of the war. Returning home, he went back to farming. In 1884 he was a candidate for ordinary, but was defeated by M. S. Corbitt by one vote. In 1888 he was again a candidate and defeated Mr. Corbitt by 32 votes. He assumed charge of the office in
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January, 1889. In 1892 he was re-elected, defeating D. H. Johnson in the priary 354 to 78 votes. In 1896 he was re- elected, defeating Elisha Moore, his nearest opponent, by 20 votes in the primary. In 1900 he was defeated for re-elec- tion by W. T. Howell by 134 votes. After his term of office expired Mr. Cornelius lived on his farm a few miles from DuPont, until his death, January 19th, 1907, age 77 years. He was buried at the North cemetery. He was survived by his wife and eight children.
CORNELIUS, GEORGE HOPSON, was born in Clinch County, near Homerville, June 20th, 1880, the son of James B. and Martha E. (Gibbs) Cornelius. After attending the Homerville schools, he went to the Mercer Law School at Macon, where he graduated. He was then admitted to the bar in 1903. In November, 1904, he was married to Miss Annie Jack, of Knoxville, Ga., by whom he has four chil- dren. In 1904, Judge S. C. Townsend resigned as judge of the County Court, and Colonel Cornelius was appointed to the vacancy July 14th, 1904. He served as judge until Octo- ber, 1905. In 1906 Judge Cornelius moved to St. Peters- burg, Fla., and later to Tampa, where he is located at present, practicing law.
CORNELIUS, MORRIS AUSTIN, was born in Clinch County, near Homerville, March Ist, 1888, the son of James B. and Martha E. (Gibbs) Cornelius. After attending the Homerville schools, he taught school in Clinch County and several other counties, subsequently taking a teacher's course at Valparaiso University, Indiana. In 1913 he was appointed clerk of the County Court, and in 1914 was elected county school superintendent of Clinch County, following the resig- nation of Flem C. Dame. His term will expire January Ist, 1917. In 1915 Mr. Cornelius married Miss Winona Roberts, of Celina, Texas.
COURSON, JOHN T., was born in Charlton County, March 22d, 1848, the son of John L., and Sarah Courson.
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When the Civil War commenced he was too young to go to the front but succeeded in enlisting in 1864, Co. "H" 6th Georgia Reserves. In 1865 his parents removed to Clinch County, and the next year he married Martha, daughter of Zachariah Lee, by whom he had ten children, eight of whom are living. In 1872 he was elected coroner of Clinch County, and served one term. In 1878 he was elected sheriff of the county and commissioned January 8th, 1879. He served one term of two years. He returned to his farm near DuPont, and was elected justice of the peace of the 1280th district in 1889, an office which he held about two years. He had pre- viously served as justice of the 1280th district, being elected in 1876. He removed about 1891 to Hahira, in Lowndes County, where he has since resided. Mr. Courson is a mem- ber of the Primitive Baptist Church, and is at present in the mercantile business.
COWART, CHARLES, was born in 1821. He lived in this county until about 1880 when he removed to Florida, where he died. His wife was Miss Nancy Tatum. They had several children, among them being Elizabeth, John, Phoebe, Eliza and Mary Cowart. In 1850 Mr. Cowart was elected the first sheriff of Clinch County and served about a year. On January 12th, 1857, he was commissioned tax collector of Clinch County, serving one year.
COON, JOSEPH B., was born in Bradford County, Fla., August 1Ith, 1867, the son of Dr. Isaac S. Coon. His father removed to Clinch County in 1873, and the son was given the benefit of the country schools. In 1898 he was elected surveyor of Clinch County, defeating J. L. Swearingen, his Populist opponent, by 229 votes. He was re-elected in 1900 and 1902. In the primary of 1904 he was a candidate for Ordinary but was defeated. Soon after the primary, the nom- inee for tax receiver, John C. Jones, was taken sick and died, Mr. Coon announcing for the vacancy in the nomination. He was elected over strong opposition. He assumed charge of
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the office January Ist, 1905, and has since been re-elected at each election. Mr. Coon was married to Miss Harriet Reg- ister, daughter of Hon. Guilford A. Register, March 25th, 1902, and by her has two children. He is a member of the Primitive Baptist Church.
CRUM, ROBERT MALLETTE, was born in Camden County, June 6th, 1854, the son of Robert B. and Margaret M. Crum. In 1862 his parents removed to near Homerville, and Mr. Crum was a resident of Homerville until he died. During 1888-1890 he was associated with his father in the mercantile business in Homerville. In 1896 he was elected justice of the peace of the Homerville district and commis- sioned January 8th, 1897; he was re-elected in December, 1900 and December, 1904. The next year, 1905, he resigned to become judge of the county court, to which he was com- missioned October 19th, 1905, for four years. In 1909 Judge Crum was by the Governor appointed a state inspector of fertilizers, but a serious illness prevented him from taking up the duties of the position. He died at the Crum House in Homerville, December 18th, 1909, and was buried in the Homerville cemetery. Judge Crum was a Mason and an Odd Fellow. He was never married.
CULPEPPER, ALEXANDER HAMILTON, was born in Warrenton, Georgia, April Ist, 1852. His original name included the full name of A. H. Stephens, but he thought the name would be too long and consequently dropped the name "Stephens." He was admitted to the prac- tice of medicine in 1886 and practiced medicine in Atlanta until 1898. He removed to Homerville in March, 1898. Dr. Culpepper has served as town councilman a number of years and also as mayor of Homerville, in 1905. He was a candi- date for representative in 1910, but was narrowly defeated by B. A. Harper. In 1912 he was nominated by I I votes over M. H. Hilliard, his nearest opponent. He served through the sessions of 1913 and 1914. The doctor was first married to
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Miss Jennie Reviere, in 1874, by whom he had two sons and two daughters. After her death he married Miss Fannie Hardage, of Warrenton, in 1886. By this marriage there are five sons. Dr. Culpepper has served as county physician for the past eight years and for eighteen years has been local surgeon for the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Company. He is an active member of the Baptist Church at Homerville, and is a deacon of that church. He has also been Sunday School superintendent several years.
DAME, FLEM CHARLES, was born in Clinch County at the place now known as Lyken post office, February 14th, 1889, the son of George M. and Linnie ( Hargreaves) Dame. With his parents he came to Homerville at the age of six months. He completed the DuBignon Institute high school in 1905 and graduated from the Georgia Normal College at Abbeville in 1907. He taught in the public schools of Clinch, Montgomery and Irwin Counties, and in Florida for a period of several years, and in 1910 was elected county school com- missioner of Clinch County over four opponents. In May, 1911, Hon. W. T. Dickerson resigned as county school com- missioner, which term had not expired, and Mr. Dame was elected to the vacancy by the Board of Education. Mr. Dame's regular term commenced January Ist, 1913, for which he was nominated. He served until April, 1914, when he resigned to become post master at Homerville. He won the latter position on the merit of making the highest mark in a public examination in which there were a dozen competi- tors. He is at present postmaster, and is editor and owner of the "Clinch County News," a newspaper established in Homerville over twenty years ago. During the time he was county school commissioner, the title of the office was changed to county school superintendent by the Legislature. He also served two terms as mayor of Homerville, 1913 and 1914. Mr. Dame married Lillian Hughes, daughter of Jeptha and Catherine (Gibbs) Hughes, of near DuPont, in December,
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1910. They had two children, Chas. F., and Olive. He is a member of the Baptist Church at Homerville.
DAME, GEORGE APPLING, was born in 1826, in Montgomery County, Ga., the son of George Dame and Catherine (Carter) Dame. He married Sarah Thigpen, daughter of Melancthon Thigpen. To them were born five children, viz : Arlia, who married Harris Tomlinson; George M., William H., John T., and Charles E. Dame. Mr. Dame removed to Clinch County in 1864. In 1874 he was elected surveyor of Clinch County and commissioned January 14th, 1875 for two years. Mr. Dame died in 1882, and is buried at Prospect Church near DuPont. His widow is yet living.
DAME, GEORGE MELANCTHON, was born June 28th, 1856, on Cobb's Creek in Montgomery County, Geor- gia, the son of George A. Dame, Sr., and his wife, Sarah Dame. At the close of the war he moved with his parents to old Magnolia, in Clinch County. His education was obtained in public schools of the time. He taught in the pub- lic schools of Clinch County several years, and was married to Linnie Adiline, daughter of John C. and Parthenia Har- greaves, in 1881. Their children are: George Alva Dame, who married Rita de Muro; Herschel J. Dame, who married Luelle Drawdy; Lula, who married H. M. Peagler; Leland H. (single) ; Flem C. Dame, who married Lillian Hughes ; Olivia and Linnie Dame. His first wife dying in 1905, he mar- ried Mabel Claire, daughter of Rev. H. C. Brewton, in 1907. They have one child, Louise Dame. Mr. Dame was a farmer from 1881 to 1890 at Lyken post office, but in the latter year moved to Homerville, established himself in the mercantile business, which he runs at the present time, with his brother, the firm name being Dame Bros. He is a member of Homer- ville Baptist Church, a deacon of that church, and a Mason. For the past several years he has served as Chairman of the Democratic Executive Committee of Clinch County. He was twice a town commissioner of Homerville under the old char-
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ter and several times councilman under the new charter. He served as county surveyor from 1881 to 1895, and in 1896 was appointed to succeed Hon. R. G. Dickerson as county treasurer. He held the office about two months and in 1898 was elected treasurer, defeating P. A. Register, his nearest oppo- nent by eight votes. In 1900 he was re-elected treasurer, de- feating John G. Griffis by 89 votes in the primary. At the end of the last term, he retired and has not since aspired for office. He has been a director of the Bank of Homerville since its organization.
DAME, HERSCHEL JOHNSON, was born in Clinch County, May Ist, 1883, the son of George M. and Linnie (Hargreaves) Dame. He finished the DuBignon Institute in 1901 and graduated from the Georgia Normal College at Abbeville in 1903. In 1904 he graduated from the Mercer Law School, and was president of his class. He then com- menced the practice of law and practiced at Statenville and Homerville. He was elected cashier of the Bank of Homer- ville and served in this capacity until 1907. In 1908 he mar- ried Luelle Drawdy, daughter of C. C. and Bettie (Smith) Drawdy. They have one child, Elinor, living. Col. Dame was, in 1907, appointed solicitor of the County Court, and served one term of two years. After this he practiced law at Homerville until 1913, when he removed to Inverness, Fla. Here he was appointed county attorney and also became local counsel for the railroad company. In 1915 there occurred a vacancy in the office of school superintendent of Citrus County, and Mr. Dame was elected to fill out the unex- pired term. In 1916 he was elected by the people for the full term over two opponents by a large majority. Mr. Dame established the first local telephone system in Homer- ville, which he sold when he removed to Florida.
DAME, JOHN THIGPEN, was born in Montgomery County in 1864, the son of George A. and Sarah (Thigpen) Dame. In 1865 his parents removed to Clinch County. He
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was first married to Miss Olivia Brown, of Savannah, by whom he had two sons, Reva B. and Ray Dame. After her death, in 1895, he married Miss Kate Harwell, of Homer- ville, by whom he had two daughters, Alma and Mary Dame. His second wife dying in 1901, Mr. Dame married Miss Emma Smith, daughter of Jos. P. Smith, of this county, in 1904. They had three children, Olney, Emma and Hoke S. Dame. Mr. Dame was for several years a conductor on the old Plant System of Railways, but in 1890 came to Homer- ville and went into the mercantile business with his brother, George M. Dame. This business is still running. In 1904 Mr. Dame was a successful candidate for Ordinary, defeat- ing J. B. Coon and W. T. Smith. He took charge of the office January Ist, 1905, and in 1908 was re-elected, defeat- ing C. H. Smith, and in 1912, defeated N. N. Langdale. His term of office expires January Ist, 1917. Mr. Dame has served as a town councilman and a county registrar, and is a director of the Bank of Homerville.
DAUGHARTY, JOHN F., was born in Clinch County November 7th, 1872, the son of Frank and Emily Daugh- arty. He was married May 8th, 1900, to Miss Emma Pat- terson, daughter of Isham Patterson. He entered the turpen- tine business and in this and other lines, has been very suc- cessful. He was elected representative in 1904, defeating S. C. Townsend and S. A. Pierce. He served through the ses- sions of 1905 and 1906. He did not offer for re-election. Mr. Daugharty lives at Edith on the Suwannee River, and has extensive holdings in Clinch County.
DICKERSON, CHARLES H., was born in Clinch County, November 4th, 1871, the son of Daniel and Mary Ann Dickerson. He was raised on his father's farm near Homerville, and married Miss Lelia R. Eatman, September 8th, 1892, by whom he had five children. After her death he married Miss Mattie Smith, a daughter of Lyman Smith and a great-granddaughter of Lawrence Smith, a pioneer
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of Clinch County. By his last marriage there are four chil- dren. In 1908 he was elected tax collector of Clinch county, defeating L. R. Register for re-election. In 1910 he was re-elected, defeating John G. Griffis by 232 majority. In 1912, 1914 and 1916 he was re-elected. Besides being tax collector, Mr. Dickerson is a farmer. He is a Mason and a Woodman of the World. His oldest son, H. C. Dickerson, is assistant cashier of the Bank of Homerville.
DICKERSON, DANIEL, was born in Ware, now Clinch County, December 27th, 1847, the son of Robert G. and Vicy (Newbern) Dickerson. He was raised on his father's farm not far from where Homerville now is. He married Miss Mary Ann Strickland, daughter of Charles and Lucre- tia (Sirmans) Strickland, July 15th, 1868, and to them was born one son, C. H. Dickerson. In 1874, Daniel Dickerson was elected coroner of Clinch County and commissioned Jan- nary 14th, 1875 for two years. In the Civil War Mr. Dick- erson joined Co. "C" 22d Georgia Artillery in 1864, although only a youth. He died at his home near Homerville, Septem- ber 14th, 1906, of paralysis, and was buried at Arabia Church. He is survived by his widow and son.
DICKERSON, FRANKLIN, was born in Clinch County, September 12th, 1855, the son of Robert G. Dickerson and Vicy Dickerson. He was raised on his father's farm a few miles north of Homerville, and at the age of twenty married Miss Delilah Fiveash, daughter of Matthew Fiveash. He was married December 23d, 1875. They had six children, the oldest of whom is Isaac D. Dickerson. In 1888 Mr. Dickerson was elected sheriff of Clinch County, over the incumbent, B. E. Mattox. By continuous re-elections he served until January Ist, 1897. He did not seek re-election. Previous to his election as sheriff he was a farmer, but about 1895 he entered the turpentine business with James M. Smith. Their still was located about ten miles south of Homerville. After a year or so of business, the partnership
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was mutually dissolved and Mr. Dickerson removed to DuPont, where he spent the remainder of his life, dealing principally in horses and mules. His death occurred at his home in DuPont, January 31st, 1910, of Bright's disease. He is buried at Arabia Church.
DICKERSON, JAMES RANSOM, was born in Ware, now Clinch County, December 8th, 1845, the oldest son of Robert G. and Vicy (Newbern) Dickerson. He enlisted in Co. "I" 4th Georgia Cavalry in 1863 and served until 1865. He was married May 7th, 1867 to Miss Martha Smith, daughter of John and Elizabeth (Studstill) Smith. They have five children. Mr. Dickerson was elected coroner in 1868 and served three years. In 1872 he was appointed the first ex-officio J. P. of the 1061st district and served five years. In 1879 he was elected justice of the 1061st district and served five years. In 1885 he was elected the first justice of the 1389th district and served eight months. In 1887 he was re-elected justice and in 1889, but resigned December 3d. In 1892 he was elected as a county commissioner and served on the board until it was abolished. He was chairman of the board during his term. In 1902 he was appointed ex- officio J. P. of the 1389th district, which he held until 1915. Mr. Dickerson is a member of the Primitive Baptist Church and was clerk of Providence or Camp Branch Church twen- ty-five years. He is a Mason. He also has served in other minor capacities, such as constable and jury commissioner.
DICKERSON, MARCUS D., was born in Clinch County, February 12th, 1880, the son of David and Malinda (Sir- mans) Dickerson. He attended school as Jasper, Fla., and at Abbeville, Ga., and graduated in June, 1901, from the State University. After being admitted to the bar he settled at Douglas for the practice of law and formed a law part- nership with Col. W. C. Lankford. This partnership ex- isted for several years. He was appointed Solicitor of the City Court of Douglas in 1902 and elected in 1904, and
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served until 1908. He was married January 18th, 1905, to Miss Ethel Frink, at Douglas, by Rev. T. B. Stanford. In 1910 Colonel Dickerson was elected first solicitor-general of the Waycross Circuit, and was, in 1914, re-elected without opposition. Colonel Dickerson is the first son of Clinch to occupy this office.
DICKERSON, ROBERT G., was born in South Caro- lina, August Ist, 1817. His parents died while he was yet a child, and he was brought to this section and reared by Ben- jamin James. When the Indian war came on, Mr. Dicker- son participated in it as a volunteer. He married in 1844, Miss Vicy Newbern, a daughter of John and Argent (O'Steen) Newbern. They had eleven children, viz .: James R., Daniel, David, Franklin, Robert H., Thomas B., George L., Mary Ann, who married Jonathan O'Steen; Elizabeth, who married George L. Newbern; Rachael, who married B. G. James, and Sarah Ann, who married H. J. Solomon. Mr. Dickerson was elected justice of the peace of the 584th dis- trict of Ware County in 1845, and commissioned June 11th, 1845. In 1852, he was elected tax collector of Clinch County, and held this office one year. In 1861 he was elected a justice of the Inferior Court of this county and held it four years. On January 16th, 1869, he was commissioned the first ex- officio J. P. of the 1224th district (Homerville) and served until 1872. He qualified as a member of the Board of Edu- cation May 5th, 1875, and served one year. He died Octo- ber 2 Ist, 1884, and was buried at Arabia Church.
DICKERSON, ROBERT G., JR., was born in Clinch County, October 27th, 1871, the son of David and Malinda (Sirmans) Dickerson. The elder Dickerson died when the son was eleven years old, and he worked on the farm until he was sixteen, when his mother re-married. He obtained his primary education in the local schools and after his mother married, he taught school about five years and took a course in the Florida Normal College at White Springs, Fla. In
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1892 he was appointed enrolling clerk in the Georgia senate. The next year he read law in the office of Hon. W. M. Ham- mond, of Thomasville. While thus studying law, the treas- urer of Clinch County, A. J. Caswell, died, and Mr. Dicker- son came back home and announced for the office. Although opposed by Chas. F. Hitch, a strong and popular man, he was elected by a majority of 307 votes. This was in 1893. Soon after this he was admitted to the bar in Thomasville. In 1 894 he was re-elected treasurer for the full term. He opened a law office in Homerville, and has since practiced there. He was nominated for representative in the primary of 1896, and resigned the treasurer's office October 12th, 1896. The same day he was elected representative, defeating M. S. Corbitt, his Populist opponent by 255 votes. In the sessions of 1896 and 1897, Colonel Dickerson served on the Finance, Educa- tion, Penitentiary and General Judiciary Committees of the House. It was during this session that he made a state-wide reputation on the public school and convict questions. His work on the finance committee in behalf of the public schools is considered one of the best managed pieces of legislation that has come before that committee. By hard and enthu- siastic work he impressed every member of the committee with the fact that the public schools of the State lacked money to make them sustaining, and his labors were rewarded with an additional appropriation of $400,000 for the common schools. In 1898 he announced for the Democratic nomina- tion for State senator, and was nominated by a majority of 442 votes over his nearest opponent, Col. S. L. Drawdy. In the following general election he defeated W. A. Ecord, his Populist opponent, by 232 votes. In 1901, when the County Court of Clinch County was created, he was appointed solic- itor and served by re-appointments until 1907. In 1902 he was a member of the State Democratic Executive Commit- tee, and has been chairman of the county executive commit- tee several times. In 1912 he was a member of the Georgia delegation to the National Democratic Convention, which
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