USA > Georgia > Jones County > History of Jones County, Georgia, for one hundred years, specifically 1807-1907 > Part 24
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Jones County has given the state of Georgia many able men and the two governors were : William J. Northern, 1890 to 1894 and Chas. McDonald 1839 to 1843.
The Academy was an institution of English origin adapted to the needs of the Southern frontier and found in greatest number in the Piedmont regions. Planters who wished their sons to ac- quire the training of gentlemen, banded together to establish academies. These schools operated under state charters, were endowed by private subscriptions and governed by self-perpetu- ating boards of trustees drawn from the public spirited men of the community. Although they received some state aid, they de- pended primarily on student fees for current expenses.
They had few books and little equipmnt and the building vari- ed from a single large house to two-storied well built structures. Most of the teachers were college trained and the instruction was classical. The young men learned law and politics.
Records of the old days and some of the outstanding teachers, are most interesting. There was J. P. Barrow who taught at Clinton and lies in the old churchyard nearby. Born in Morgan Co. Nov. 1830 and died in Philadelphia, Pa. Sept. 3, 1856-Age
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26. On his monument is carved, "Remember friend as you pass by, As you are now so once was I, As I am now so you may be, Prepare for death and follow me". This Barrow was a brother to the Chancellor Barrow of the University of Georgia (Dr. David Crenshaw Barrow-1906) Another brother, Pope Bar- row, was a senator of the United States. Their father, James Barrow, was a native of North Carolina and a soldier of the Revolutionary War who fought at Valley Forge, Germantown, Brandywine and Savannah and settled in Baldwin Co. when it was opened. He died at 73 years. His wife was Patience Cren- shaw from Virginia.
Mrs. Parks was an outstanding teacher of Clinton and prom- inent in all educational activities of the county. Miss Sara Rock- well was listed as having exceptional ability. Mr. John Harris Chappell came to teach here when he was twenty years old, made a fine teacher and was later President of G. N. I. C. at Milledge- ville, Ga. (GSCW) He was originally from Columbus, Ga.
There is an account of Rev. Thos. Bog Slade of Clinton Acad- emy, in "Men of Mark".
Mr. Kellog from the north, and a Miss Ripley both note- worthy in education. After Mr. Kellog's death, Ed Waterman conducted the girl's school for several years,then moved to Macon. He had several children. One son, Ed. Jr., was an officer in the Macon Guard and was killed in battle. A son, John Wat- erman, went to Hawkinsville and edited a newspaper for many years. The first Watermans came from Maine to Sparta, Ga. Joseph married Caroline Morris and John T. was born in Clint- on and married Anna Brown. This family had many descendants, among them is Mrs. Ed Burke in Macon (Lora Waterman) .
Eugene Mitchell from Macon resigned to enlist in the army of the Confederacy. Mr. Tippett taught the boys' schools, and was considered an excellent teacher.
THE ACADEMIES OF JONES COUNTY By Wyatt Bonner
The word "academy" conjures before our eyes the era of white columned houses, girls in pantalets, boys with tight fitting suits,
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the teacher with the rod and the day of all days-the public ex- amination. It is with this era in Georgia History that this is writ- ten of and about. The schools of the black belt or middle Georgia were established much later than those on the tide water, but they soon arose to be their equals and rivals.
Jones County was formerly a part of Baldwin. An act pass- ed by the legislature of Georgia and signed December 10, 1807, authorized six new counties to be carved out of the counties of Baldwin and Wilkinson. The new counties were Morgan, Ran- dolph, Putmon, Laurens, and Telfair. A small hamlet known as Albany existed in Jones county a few years prior to 1809, when its name was changed and it became incorporated as Clinton (1816) in honor of Governor DeWitt Clinton of New York, who figured prominently in politics at that time.
Unlike other small towns, Clinton did not grow in a haphaz- ard manner. The village was laid out in 1811 with a square upon which the Court House was built, it being the County seat, and the town grew up around it. The lot of land on which Clinton was built, containing 2021/2 acres, was bought from Thomas Johnson by the Judges of the Inferior Court, and the sale of the lots paid for the Court House.1
Business and residence lots were laid off and some of the streets were named Pinckney, Pulaski, Madison, Washington, Jackson, Walnut and Liberty. Around the Court House square on the four streets which faced it, were dwellings, stores and places of business There were in the days of its prosperity, three large taverns, a hotel, cotton warehouses, a photograph gallery, churches, schools, many stables as well as shops of locksmiths, silversmiths and stores. Sherwood in his Gazeteer of Georgia in 1827 says that there were fifty-five houses and stores in the village.2 But the Clinton of yesterday is gone-there remains today a few houses of this once prosperous community-it is truly a deserted village.
Of the schools from 1810 to 1820 little is known. Colonel Telaman Cuyler of Jones County had in his collection of family papers and books some school books used between the years
1. R. H. Bonner, History of Jones County, "Jones County News", 1900.
2. Adele Sherwood, Gazeteer of Georgia, p. 44.
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1812 and 1815 by his great-grandfather, Peter Clower, in the schools of Clinton. But of the nature, subject matter taught and teachers, have no concrete data. However, in my files of old papers there is an apprentice's Indenture dated December 12, 1817 that mentions education. It was the custom in those days to bind out the young boys to a tradesman so that the youth would be prepared to take care of himself in future days. In this indenture the father, a Mr. Abraham Sexton, binds his son, James, out to Elmond Walton, a carriage maker of Clinton for a term of nine years. One of the stipulations was: " ... it is fur- ther understood that the said Walton is to have the said James P. Sexton instructed in Spelling, Reading, Writing, and Arithme- tic, as far as the rule of three."3
The State had passed an act in 1792 appropriating $1000 for the endowment of an Academy in each county. In 1817 $250,000 were appropriated to support poor schools and in 1821 $250,000 were set apart for the support of county academies.4 It was in accordance with these acts that the academies were es- tablished in Jones County.
The first academy to be incorporated by the Georgia Legisla- ture in Jones County was the Clinton Academy. The act said :
That from and immediately after the passage of this act, the Academy in Jones County, now known by the name of the Clinton Academy, shall be known and called by that name, and that James Smith, Gustaves Hendrick, Samuel Lowther, Charles J. McDonald, and Henry G. Lamar, and their successors in office, be, and they are hereby declared to be, a body politic and corporate, by the name and style of "The trustees of Clinton Academy.5
This same act also stated that this group of trustees would have control over all the property, gifts, donations, and grants of the institution. They were to elect new members if vacancies occurred and they were also given the authority to use a seal. This act was signed December 15, 1831 by Governor John Clarke.
3. (Note: The original is in the collection of Wyatt Bonner but it is also recorded in office of the Clerk in Jones County in Book G., Folio 115)
4. George White, Statistics of Georgia, pp. 69-70.
5. William E. Dawson, Laws of the State of Georgia, No. 10, pp. 7-8.
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Ten days later another act was passed appropriating the fines and forfeitures arising from criminal prosecutions to the use and benefit of the Academy. This act passed the 25th of December, 1821, required the County officials to turn over to the trustees of the Academy all money derived from forfeitures and fines. The trustees were required to make a report annually to the grand jury of all money taken in and expended.6 Thus we see that this first incorporated academy was supported by the State, county, and by the pupils.
Within the next five years three more academies were estab- lished by the Legislature in Jones County, namely, Fortville, Farmers, and Flat Shoals Academies. The Fortville Academy was authorized to be incorporated by an act passed by the Legis- lature and signed by Governor Clarke on December 9, 1822.7 The trustees of this institution were Robert Hutchings, John W. Gordon, Thomas Jefferson, William Harris and Robert Brown. The duties of this body were practically the same as those of the trustees of the Clinton Academy.
Farmer's Academy was created by an act passed December 19, 1822.8 The Trustees of this academy as stipulated by the act were as follows : Bailey Bell, Adam Carson, Kitchen P. Thweatt, James Locket, Cyrus Colton, Samuel Barron, and William Cowan.
On November 30, 1826 an act was passed by the Georgia Legislature and signed by Governor Troup establishing the Flat Shoals Academy in Jones County. The trustees of this school were Abner Davis, Jesse Cox, Peter Northern, Ichabod Cox and Joshua Bateman.9
Of these four academies the one at Clinton is best known. It was located in the county seat and therefore, it is natural to ex- pect that it would far out reach the others. There is also more data to be found on the Clinton Academy than on the other three.
The records in the office of the Clerk of the Superior Court show that the land on which the Clinton Academy was built was formerly owned by William Butler. Mr. Butler sold this lot, con-
6. Ibid., No. 14, p. 8.
7. Ibid., No. 10, p. 10.
8. Ibid., p. 11.
9. Ibid., p. 38.
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taining five acres, to Isaac Harvey. In 1820 Mr. Harvey sold this lot to Elias Bliss of Savannah, who in 1824 sold the same lot to Thomas B. Slade for $600. Mr. Slade built a dwelling and school on this lot.10
From all the records and facts it seems that Mr. Slade became the main teacher and attraction in the Clinton Academy. Dr. Lucian Lamar Knight, in one of his books, makes the following statement of him :
Ten years before Wesleyan Female College, at Macon, per- formed its historic act of conferring upon a woman her first college degree, there was a distinguished pioneer educator suc- cessfully conducting a school for girls in the town of Clinton. This blazing trails in an educational wilderness was Thomas B. Slade. - - - Professor Slade was born in North Carolina in 1800. For a while, he practiced law with his father, General Jeremiah Slade, in the Tar Heel State. But he was cast in the molds of a great educator, and, relinquishing Blackstone, he wended his way to Georgia, - - - to become a leader in the edu- cational field.11
The building that Mr. Slade constructed to house his school has been described by several old people to have been of the usual architecture of that period. Mr. S. H. Griswold, in a letter to the editor of the Jones County News in 1908, described the building as he remembered it as follows :
I mentioned the girls school in Clinton in one of my letters. This school was a boarding school, a large two- story frame building - - - it faced toward the court house square and its front yard was nicely terraced and planted with beautiful flowers. - - - The school room was on the ground floor and the sleeping rooms were on the upper floor. I think the school room was in the rear part of the house. The back yard and grounds were planted in fruit trees and were well kept.12
According to Miss Ellen May Bonner, who attended the Academy in the sixties, the building had never been changed from Mr. Slade's original school house. However, in later years,
10. Deed Book N. p. 44, Jones County.
11. Lucian L. Knikht, Georgia's Landmarker-Memorials and Legends, Vol. II, pp. 825-826. 12. S. H. Griswold, Jones County News, September 10, 1908.
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one of Mr. Slade's successors built a lake in front of the school. Traces of the dam may still be seen.
The Georgia Legislature passed an Act December 22, 1827 authorizing the Trustees of the Clinton Academy to raise by a Lottery five thousand dollars for the benefit of the Academy. This act appointed Robert Hardeman, Samuel Lowther, John Harvey, John Speir, James Billingslea and James George as commissioners to superintend and conduct the lottery.13 These men had the power to conduct the lottery any way they saw fit. After all the expenses of the lottery had been paid the remainder was to be turned over to the trustees of the Academy. This act was signed by Governor John Forsyth. The money that was rais- ed was probably used to equip the school and make other im- provements around the grounds.
The school grew and flourished under the care of Mr. Slade. It is said that he was never known to canvass for a pupil nor to reject one because she was unable to pay.14 his chief thought and desire was to give the southern girl adequate educational facili- ties. The following handbill printed in 1837 will give some idea as to the high standards of the institution.
CLINTON FEMALE SEMINARY RATES
Board, except candles and washing, scholastic year
$100.00
Tuition, including Languages and Sciences 32.00
Chemical Lectures I 10.00
Music 50.00
Drawing and Painting
20.00
Use of Piano
6.00
Wood and servant hire in school room 4.00
$222.00
REMARKS
The scholastic year will commence on the 2nd Monday in October, and terminate on Friday before the 2nd Monday in July following. The last three days of the scholastic year will be employed in a public examination of the pupils.
13. Williams, op. Cit., p. 48.
14. Knight, op. Cit., p. 826.
I
I
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To prevent future controversy, and insure peace and good order of the school, all persons who do not approve of it and its regulations, are requested not to patronize it, either by sending to school, or by board- ing pupils.
Half payment will be required in advance, and we hope some exertion will be made to comply with this condition; for delinquencies put us to much inconven- ience and loss.
No pupil received for less time than the scholastic year, and no deduction of tuition for irregular attend- ance.
The school will be supplied with all necessary appa- ratus ; and the Principal intends to avail himself of the ensuing vacation to visit some of the best Female Institutions in our country.
Attendance on Balls and Parties prohibited. Our aim will be to impart practical and substantial knowledge, and to inculcate those principles of integrity, and habits of industry, which will lay the foundation of future usefulness.
Thomas B. Slade, Principal15
Clinton, Georgia May 12, 1837.
The above material gives one not only an idea of the type of school but also an insight into the character of its principal, Thomas B. Slade. The school was well attended by young ladies from the counties of Twiggs, Hancock, Putnam and other counties.
On December 23, 1836 the Legislature of Georgia granted a charter to the Georgia Female College, thus establishing the first chartered college for women in the world. The college itself was not opened until January 9, 1839. Professor Slade had be-
15. From a photostatic copy in the Office of the Ordinary of Jones County. (Note: the original was found in Massachusetts by Mrs. Frank Jones of Clinton, Georgia. While on a visit to some friends in that state they showed her some old family papers. Amon gthem was letter written from a friend of the family who was teaching school in Clinton, Georgia. The above handbill was sent in the letter. Mrs. Jones brought the original copy to Georgia and had photograph copies made of it and then sent the original back to its owners.)
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HISTORY OF JONES COUNTY
come so well known in Middle Georgia as an educator that we find him installed as the first professor of natural sciences in this institution. Knight says :
He brought with him to Macon his own chemical ap- paratus for experiments and his own geodus for astro- nomical studies. Thirty of his pupils followed him from Clinton to form the nucleus of the Georgia Female College ; also, two of his music teachers, Miss Maria Lord, from Boston, and Miss Martha Massey, the latter a beneficiary pupil. Miss Lord was after- wards well known in Macon as Mrs. Boardman. - - He arranged the first curriculum and prepared the first diploma granted by the college, thus marking with his pen, a new epoch in the educational history of the world - - - He moved to Columbus in 1842 and contin- ued his duties as an educator. He died at an advanced age, in 1882.16
After Mr. Slade left the academy and went to Wesleyan a Mr. Kellog took his place. He was a Northerner, who was well edu- cated and quite a capable man. He conducted the Academy very efficiently and had a large patronage. According to Mr. Griswold he was loved by his pupils and the community. Mr. Kellog was a victim of consumption and died of that disease the day after giving his pupils a farewell lecture.17 The people of 17. Griswold, Op. Cit., p. 2.
Clinton out of love for the departed schoolmaster aided his wife to return to her people in the north. Mr. Kellogg's music teacher, a Miss Ripley, remained in Clinton as a governess in the family of Samuel Griswold.
Some of the pupils in Mr. Kellogg's school were : Misses Car- rie Billingslea, Corinne and Lizzie Drewry, Jane Thigpen and Carrie Etheridge of Jones County, Misses Harris, Hancock, and Carden of Twiggs County.18
At the end of the school term a public examination was given, consisting of tableux, charades, recitations of lessons, and the reading of compositions. This occasion was looked forward to by all the people with a great deal of pleasure and drew large
16. Knight, op. Cit., p. 826.
18. Ibid., p. 2.
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crowds. The musical program of the Clinton Academy was es- pecially attractive. The pupils exhibited their ability in both vocal and instrumental music. These occasions were usually fol- lowed by a grand ball given by the young men of the town for the young ladies and was held in the Gibson Hotel. Mr. Gris- wold describes very vividly these balls and he states that the music was furnished by Jack Weathers, a slave.
After Mr. Kellog's death Mr. Waterman, from Maine, took charge of this school and conducted it successfully for several years. When Sherman made his memorable "march to the sea", a detachment under General Stoneman visited Clinton and de- stroyed much property. The story is told that the school house was set fire to and would have burned if several slaves and young boys had not put it out. A few years after the war Henry Greaves bought this building and tore it down and used the lum- ber to construct a dwelling on his plantation. This house is still standing and is about five miles from Clinton on the road to Macon.
Education for young men was not lacking in Clinton. Although no date has been found as to when it was chartered or its trustees, it was probably created as a separate branch under the Act of 1821. The school building for the boys stood on a triangle in front of the Methodist Church. This building was blown down several years ago in a high wind and today only a few remains can be seen. (Called, "Day's Boys' School".)
The teachers who presided over this school were men of strong nerve and character for in those days the rod played a large part in the education of young boys. Mr. Griswold makes the following comment on one of the teachers of this school :
I have no knowledge as to who first taught this school before the time of Mr. Tippett, whom I recollect. He was a thick set, stout built man, not very tall, with sandy hair, of ruddy complexion, a large head with a massive and strong looking jaw. He walked the floor a good part of the time and woe to the boy he caught whispering or making mischief during study hours. Before he knew it Mr. Tippett was behind him
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and with a blow from his fist would knock him from the bench. I think he was a Scotchman or of Scotch descent.19
Some of the scholars who attended this school were : Harrison Barron, Hugh and Frank Tye, Jeff and Flew Williams, Jack and Tom Hardeman, Bud Blount, Pate Pitts, and Jim Blount.20
Besides Mr. Tippett, Mr. Barrow, Mr. Florence, Eugene Mitchell, Z. D. Harrison, and Z. Thigpen were some of the teachers in the boys' school. The lack of space prevents us from relating many of the stories and tales handed down.
Having completed a study of the academies in Clinton let us examine the progress of some of the others. Of the remaining three, Farmer's, Flat Shoals, and Fortville, Farmer's is the most outstanding.
The Farmer's Academy was located in the northern part of Jones County near the present village of Wayside. The name of this school was changed from Farmer's to Planter's by an act of the legislature passed December 20, 1823.21 One of the early teachers in this school was a Mr. Wilson Whatley. He like most teachers of this era, was a good disciplinarian. He had a gruff voice and was a very fine teacher. Some of the other teachers of this institution were William Whatley, Joe Carson, J. R. Jenk- ins,, J. A. Bowers, James F. Barron and Jack Barron.
This Academy burned and instead of building it back, it was decided to build a new one on the Macon road. The teachers and the pupils of the old Academy moved to this new site and re- sumed their scholastic duties. Mr. Griswold attended a public ex- amination at this school and he states that a large bush arbor had been built to the school house with logs, and at intervals under it, planks were placed across the logs for seats and a stage was built up against the school house. From this stage the pupils were examined in their studies, the girls read compositions and the boys delivered elegant speeches. After the examinations were over a barbecue and basket dinner a la Jones County style was served. These events attracted large crowds.22
Of the Flat Shoals and Fortville Academies there is no data available at the present. Two more Academies were established
19. Griswold, Op. Cit., p. 2.
20. Ibid., p. 2.
21. Dawson, Op. Cit., p. 18.
22. Griswold, Op. Cit., p. 10.
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in Jones County between 1830-1835, namely, Union Hill Male and Female Academy, and Blountsville Academy.
The Academies were attended by the children of the large planters and wealthy farmers. The children of the small farmers and persons of small income, who could not afford to send their children to the academies, were educated by the poor school fund. This fund was in operation from about 1827 to 1861 in Georgia. The trustees of this fund were appointed by an act of the legislature passed December 18, 1827. They were John R. Moore, Peter Northern, Anderson Rice, William S. Middle- brooks and Peter Clower.28 The Ordinary of the county held this fund and he received 21/2% for collecting and paying out of this fund.
Harriet C. Ticknor, mother of the famous Georgia poet, Francis Orray Ticknor, was a teacher in the poor schools of Jones County. The pay of the poor school teachers was small. Mrs. Ticknor received $18.3114 for the instruction of eight pupils for a quarter in 1832.24 Rev. George White in his Statistics of Georgia, published in 1849 said “ Education in Jones County is highly appreciated. There are twenty-five schools in the county.25 Evidently most of these schools must have been poor or Old Field schools.
The education trends in Jones County up to the Civil War were excellent and turned out some outstanding pupils. Some of them were Francis Orray Ticknor, author of the well-known Civil War poem, "Little Giffen"; Jane Thigpen, who contributed poems to several leading magazines under an assumed name; James H. Blount, who was Congressman from his district for 18 years. There was Jesse L. Bunkley, whose case of mistaken identity is famous in the annals of law. These are just a few of the many outstanding citizens of the state who were products of these institutions.
I have endeavored to show how a well developed system of education had evolved in Jones County before 1860. All evi- dences of these once popular schools have vanished long ago, but their traditions and ideals are still alive in the hearts of many
23. Op. Cit., pp. 47-48.
24. Note : This paper is in the collection of Wyatt Bonner of Gray, Georgia.
25. George White, Statistics of Georgia, pp. 354-356.
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Jones Countians. It is the ambition of the educators of today to live up to their rich background and to prove themselves worthy to follow in the footsteps of their predecessors.
FORTVILLE ACADEMY
On Jan. 1, 1835, there is a beautifully written report of this Fortville Academy, now to be seen in the Department of Archives and History in Atlanta. There is a list of 39 pupils, Days absent, studies taken and grades. The following is a list and the age; Richard Hutchings, Chr.
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