Memoirs of Georgia; containing historical accounts of the state's civil, military, industrial and professional interests, and personal sketches of many of its people. Vol. II, Part 50

Author:
Publication date: 1859
Publisher: Atlanta, Ga., The Southern historicl association
Number of Pages: 1166

USA > Georgia > Memoirs of Georgia; containing historical accounts of the state's civil, military, industrial and professional interests, and personal sketches of many of its people. Vol. II > Part 50

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JOHN FRANKLIN BRANNEN, judge of the county court of Bulloch county, was born in the county which he now serves on April 8, 1853. He was the son of William A. and Jane A. H. Brannen. The father was a farmer and a brave soldier in the Confederate army and attained the rank of captain. They left eight children, four sons and four daughters. John F. was the oldest child. He attended the common schools in his boyhood and then entered the agricul- tural department of the university of Georgia. He left college in 1873 to engage in teaching school, and was employed in that avocation several years. He was married to Miss Lena Tullis, daughter of William J. Tullis, of Bulloch county, Nov. 29, 1883. This union has been blessed with the following children: Jessie Ewell, Lessie Alma, Clio (deceased), William A., Clifton, Ouida and Shelton. He read law under Co. J. A. Brannen, his first cousin, in 1890, and was admitted to the bar in the fall of 1890 by Judge Hines. He has practiced since that date, at the same time attending to the cultivation of his big farm near Statesboro. He was a member of the state senate in 1886-87 from the seventeenth senatorial district, composed of the counties of Bulloch, Screven and Burke, and served with distinction. He was recommended by the grand jury and appointed to his present position by Gov. Atkinson in the fall of 1894. He has always been identified with the democratic party, has been a member of the district committee and is prominent in the counsels of the party in the county and state. He united with the Primitive Baptist church in 1887, and was for a while clerk of the church. Mrs. Brannen is a member of the Missionary Baptist church. The administra- tion of Judge Brannen has been excellent and he has proven one of the best judges that ever occupied this bench.

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BULLOCH COUNTY SKETCHES.

JAMES ALONZO BRANNEN, of Statesboro, was born in Bryan county, Ga., Sept. 29, 1858, and is the son of James M. and Amanda F. Brannen. His father was a successful farmer and merchant, and represented Bryan county in the house of representatives in 1878-79. The family is an old Bulloch county one, Mr. Brannen's great-grandfather, William, having settled there in the last century. His grandfather John lived and died there. James A. Brannen was educated at the Bradwell institute in Liberty county, under S. D. Bradwell, late state school commissioner. In 1878 he was graduated from the law department of Mercer university. He located in Statesboro in 1879, and began the practice of his profession, and with the exception of five years' residence in Emanuel county, where he practiced, he has since been a resident of Bulloch. He was married to Miss Alice V. Williams, a daughter of Frederick S. Williams of Bulloch county, on Feb. 3, 1881, and they have five living children, viz .: Maud, Cecil W., Harvey D., Neta and Grover. Mr. Brannen was presidential elector in 1888, has been mayor of Statesboro, and is now chairman of the democratic executive committee of his county. He is active in the development of the resources of Bulloch county and takes much interest in upbuilding his town. Mr. Brannen's abilities as a lawyer are recognized by his brother practitioners as well as by the public in general, and he commands a large share of the legal patronage of the county.

JAMES AUSTIN BRANNEN, merchant and farmer, Laston, Ga., was born March 13, 1856, in Bulloch county, and is the son of John T. and Lavinia Lee Brannen. His father was an extensive farmer and a brave soldier in the Confederate army. He spent a year in a northern prison and when the war closed walked the most of the way to Augusta, Ga., from Elmira, N. Y., and there his wife met him. He was in the army of Virginia and under Gen. Joseph McAlister. When he returned home he found nothing left but his house and the bare farm, all the improvements being destroyed. He set to work with a will, however, and, as good a farmer as he was a soldier, he soon had his place in shape again. To John T. Brannen and wife were born four children, as follows: Wiley, James Austin, Janie, married to Bedford Everett of Bulloch county, and Edmond. The parents of James A. Brannen are both living. He attended the common schools, but very irregularly, for his service was required to help the family when the father was fighting in defense of his country, and to help his father when he returned to find his farm a desolate tract of land. He was married March 18, 1880, to Miss Carrie Durden of Emanuel county, daughter of Albert Durden. They have three children: Ethel Brannen, born Feb. 20, 1881; Lula Belle, born Oct. 18, 1885; Rollin, born June 30, 1887. James Austin Brannen worked for his father until twenty years old and then started out for himself. He spent six months in Florida, but on his return his father gave him a small farm, where he has been residing ever since, adding to it, and making improvements every year. Soon after his marriage he engaged in the mercantile business, which he has since followed with success. He has a farm now embracing about 800 acres of good land. In connection with his property it may be mentioned that he lost several thousand dollars' worth of property by fire a few years ago. He has now 175 acres of land in cultivation. He is a wide-awake, pushing citizen and one of the county's most progressive agriculturists.

JOSEPH SMITH CONE, one of Bulloch county's distinguished citizens, was born in that county April 14, 1843. His father was James Cone, a large planter and for years a justice of the inferior court of Bulloch county. He was a brother of Gen. Peter Cone, who for thirty years represented Bulloch county in the state senate. James Cone was a leading man in his day, and was a moving spirit in the

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Missionary Baptist church. He married Annie Smith, and to them were born eleven children, of whom Joseph was the eighth. His childhood days were spent on the farm, and after mastering the elementary branches of learning he was sent to the military institute at Marietta. Here he developed a strong and active mind, and entered into his studies and instruction with a zeal that augured well for his future. In the midst of his studies the war broke out and a call for volunteers was made. He left school in 1861 and enlisted as first lieutenant in one of the first Georgia companies, and thus began his remarkable army career. He first went to the coast and was stationed on James island, where he commanded the detachment that drew the first blood in South Carolina. There he was wounded in the leg, but he refused to go to the hospital and continued on active duty, going into North Carolina in 1862. From that point his command was ordered to Vicksburg, Miss., to join Gen. Johnston, and he was at Jackson, in which battle his regiment captured three flags. They then reported to Gen. Bragg at Chattanooga. Capt. Cone was in command of his regiment at the battle of Chickamauga, soon after which he was promoted to major. He was at the siege of Chattanooga and the battle of Missionary Ridge; and was with the army in the retreat to Dalton, and down to the Chattahoochee river. He was then sent to reinforce Gen. Sam Jones. He was in the fight on John's island and led his men with success against the Federal breastworks. His bravery here was reported to, and attracted the attention of, the Confederate government, and he was recommended for promotion, and was placed in command of the fort at Secessionville. He left Secessionville in November with his command to reinforce the army at Honey Hill, S. C., and there led the line of sharpshooters. In this terrible engagement he was three times shot, and badly wounded. He returned home, but as soon as able reported for duty at Augusta, where he was placed in charge of the reorganization of the troops at Hamburg. After Gen. Lee's sur- render his command disbanded in South Carolina. Major Cone returned home and was engaged in teaching for several years. In 1870 he was elected to the state senate, and re-elected in 1872. He served on important committees with distinction, and was regarded as one of the ablest and most useful members of the bodies with which he was connected. When his term expired he returned home and retired from politics; and though frequently urged to be a candidate for other honors, he has always declined. On April 13, 1870, he was married to Miss Ella Goodman, daughter of John Goodman, Esq., formerly a representative in the legislature from Bulloch county. This marriage has been blessed with three children, viz .: Sidney Johnston, Ella and Rufus. The wife died in 1880, and Maj. Cone has never again married. Maj. Cone is commander of the Confederate Veterans' association of his county, and takes much interest in the annual reunions held by the organization. He is a consistent member of the Methodist church, and belongs to the S. A. E. college fraternity. He resides on his handsome estate near Nellwood.

WILLIAM DANIEL DAVIS, inventor and manufacturer, Statesboro, was born in Bulloch county, May 6, 1857, and is the son of John Clark and Sarah Davis. He comes from families of mechanics, and it is not a surprise that his earliest predilection for work was in that line. His father and all his family were mechan- ics; likewise the same on the mother's side. William was the fourth child in a fam- ily of nine. He attended the schools in the neighborhood until he was sixteen years old, when he broke away from his books, and much to his delight entered the shop as a workman. He left his father's employ in 1878, when twenty-one years old, to go into business for himself, and opened a manufacturing and general repair establishment. He built and repaired buggies, wagons and agricultural

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BULLOCH COUNTY SKETCHES.

implements. In 1881 he transferred his business to Statesboro, and added to it a plant for the manufacture of gins, mills, etc. All this time his mind was active as well as his body, and directed toward invention. The first result was a plow which was a success and found large sale. Then next came the famous Davis gin, which is so extensively used to gin the sea island cotton. It was a success from the start, and the improvements he has added to it have only bettered it. It is rapidly taking the place of other gins used for ginning that staple. It has more than doubled the facilities of any other gin used for the same purpose, and has reduced the cost to less than half what it was formerly. Mr. Davis is now operat- ing a planing-mill, and also manufactures and repairs all classes of machinery, gins, etc. He was married Sept. 30, 1880, to Miss Etta Brannen, daughter of U. M. Brannen, of Bulloch county. Three interesting children are the result of this union: Beulah, Wilmer and Lemuel. The wife died June 14, 1887, and Mr. Davis was the second time married on March 26, 1891, to Lula Preetorius, daughter of Charles Preetorius, of Bulloch county. They have two children-Alma and Wil- liam Diedrick. Mr. and Mrs. Davis are members of the Primitive Baptist church. Mr. Davis is another of those successful business men who have had to rely on their own exertions to achieve prosperity. When he started in life he had not money enough to buy tools. Industry and energy and a determination to suc- ceed, however, soon made him independent. He is the owner of a fine property in Statesboro.

R OBERT WILLIAMS De LOOCH, a well-known agriculturist and a leader in the democracy of Bulloch county, lives on his fine farm near Bloys. He was born March 25, 1843, and comes from an old and highly respected Bulloch county family. His father was John De Looch, a big farmer and for many years judge of the inferior court. John De Looch and Ardelia, his wife, were the parents of eleven children: James Hoyt, John Calvin, William H., Joshua D., George Wash- ington, Robert Williams, Zachariah Taylor, Julia, Sarah Jane, Emma and Amanda. All are living but Joshua and Washingon. Robert Williams is the tenth child. He went to the neighborhood schools, where he had secured a good education when he enlisted in the Confederate army. He was eighteen years old at the time he became a member of Company E, known as the Bulloch troop of the First Georgia cavalry. He entered the service in October, 1861, and served until the war closed. He was in several bloody engagements, and was at Noonday church, Stone mountain and at Atlanta, July 22, 1864. He was with the troops when Gen. Johnston surrendered in 1865, and returning home he went to work on the farm. Always active in the interests of his party, his friends determined to honor him, and he was elected in 1873 on the democratic ticket to represent Bulloch county in the general assembly. So well did he discharge his duties, and so satisfactory was his vote and course on all public questions, that he was returned in 1875 and again in 1877. He was a member when Ben Hill was elected to the United States senate and again when Thomas E. Norwood was elected that honorable body. He served on the most important committees and established a record for faithful service, industry, and close attention to business that distinguished him in the lower house. He was on the enrolling committee with Gov. Northen, and they became fast friends. After his retirement from the house Mr. De Looch has held no public office, but has served his party on committees, and takes much interest in its success. In connection with his farming Mr. De Looch has taken many large contracts for public works. He is now devoting his entire time to his farm interests. His estate comprises 360 acres, with a large and comfortable home, pleasantly situated near Bloys. He was married in December, 1866, to Miss Re- becca Frances Hodges, daughter of Joshua and Louisa Hodges, of Bulloch county.

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To this union have been born eight children, all of whom are living: Horace W .; Emma O., married to John A. Grovestein, of Savannah; James T .; Selima Estelle; Lorena R .; Robert Bloys; Lloyd Preston, and Yuba Olive. Mr. De Looch is a self-made man. He began life with very little means, but by industry and close application to business he has made himself comfortable for life, and surrounded by his interesting family he can spend his remaining days in the enjoyment of domestic bliss and contentment. He is postmaster at Bloys.

REV. WARREN JEFFERSON DURHAM was born Dec. 4, 1861, in Green- ville, S. C., and is the son of W. B. and Malinda (Ponder) Durham. The father was a farmer, and moved to Georgia when this son was two years old. Both parents were members of the Baptist church and highly esteemed by all who knew them. They had born to them eleven children. Warren J. was the youngest child, and was reared on the farm. He prepared for college at Hearn institute, and in the fall term of 1887 he entered Mercer university, graduating in 1891 in the theological and literary courses. He was first engaged in teaching and assisting other pastors in their work, but in March, 1892, accepted a call to Statesboro, and took charge of Statesboro Baptist church and Fellowship church, and has had charge of those churches ever since. He is also pastor of the Baptist church at Pembroke. When he first came to Statesboro he served the Baptist church at Sylvania, in Screven county, and Island Creek church in Hancock county, but was obliged to give them up on account of the multitudinous duties his position places upon him. He united and was baptized into the Baptist church the fourth Sunday in August, 1876. He was made a master Mason in 1887, and is now worshipful master of Ogeechee lodge, No. 213. He became a royal arch Mason in 1893, and is king of the Statesboro chapter. Rev. Durham was married in 1881 to Emma, daughter of T. C. and Mary Hampton, of Floyd county. They have two children living: Beulah and Edward Ryals, and one dead, Otelia. In college Rev. Durham was distin- guished for his oratorical and debating powers, and in his junior year was champion debater from his college literary society, and in his senior year was anniversarian from same society. He was a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity, and held the position of eminent archon in this fraternity. He is moderator of the Millen Baptist association, and is secretary and treasurer of the South Georgia Baptist convention and a member of the mission board of the same. He was elected by the board of education to act as expert of the teachers' institute of Bulloch county in 1894. Mr. Durham is a hard and faithful worker. When he came to Statesboro his church had only sixty members, and now it has about 170. He is a very popular man, strong intellectually, and a power in the community.

BEDFORD EVERETT, farmer, Excelsior, was born July 7, 1855, and is the son of Jehu and Penelope Everett His father, a leading farmer and distin- guished citizen, died in July, 1875, and the mother still lives at the advanced age of seventy-three. The parents were faithful members of the Primitive Baptist church and reared a family of ten children. Bedford Everett was brought up on the farm, and attended the common schools where he picked up the elements of an education. When twenty years old his labor on the farm was allowed him by his father and he began business for himself. Four years later he had done so well that he found he was able to take care of a wife, and was married to Miss Sarah Jane Brannen, a daughter of John and Lavinia Brannen, neighbors of Mr. Everett. The wedding took place Dec. 16, 1880. This union was followed by five interesting children, all of whom are living: Joshua, John, Talulah, Penelope and Bernard. Mr. Everett is an enterprising modern farmer, and as such is reaping the bene- fits of progressive farming. He is a popular citizen and a man of wide acquaint-

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ance and many friends. Mr. and Mrs. Everett and family belong to the Primitive Baptist church. He lives on his fine farm near Excelsior, where they possess a neat home. Mr. Everett raises varied crops, but of one thing he can boast, he never bought a bushel of corn since he started on his farm. He is a straight- forward man, whose integrity is never questioned and who enjoys a high reputa- tion for square dealing and industry. . . 1

JASON FRANKLIN, farmer, Excelsior, was born Dec. 26, 1845, in Bulloch county, and is the son of Pernel and Susan Franklin of Bulloch county. The father was an old planter of this county and both parents were active church members and respected citizens. There were born to these good people nine children, viz .: Wealthy Ann, wife of Henry Parrish; Mitchell, who enlisted in the Sixty-first Georgia regiment, Confederate army, and was under Gen. Lee in the Virginia army, and who died while in service, leaving a family; Alderman Frank- lin, a soldier in the Fifth Georgia regiment cavalry, married and engaged in farm- ing in Bulloch county; Hiram, a lieutenant in the Sixty-first Georgia regiment, who was wounded while in service, and is now a farmer, married and living in Bulloch county; Remer was a member of the Sixty-first regiment, and was in the army of Virginia, and is now farming in Bulloch county; Hardy was a member of the Sixty-first regiment, and died in service; Jason, Emily Jane, married to Capt. Stephen H. Kennedy, of Bulloch county. He was captain of Company D, Sixty-first Georgia regiment; Jasper S., a farmer, and a member of the legislature from Bulloch county for one term. It will be seen that Pernel furnished six sons and a son-in-law to the cause of the Confederacy, and two of these sons gave up their lives in defense of their home and country. Three of these sons were officers. Jason enlisted in the Twenty-second battalion, and served one year in the field near Savannah. He was then seventeen years old. His education had been con- fined to the common schools, but he had been a quick learner, close observer and a tireless reader; when the war closed he was competent to teach, and spent a couple of years as a pedagogue. Then he turned his attention to farming and this has been his life occupation. He was married to Miss America Roundtree, a daughter of John and Nancy Roundtree of Emanuel county in January, 1866, and to this union have been born eleven children, all living except two, who died in infancy-nine sons and two daughters. They are: Julia Annabella; Virgil E .; Hirschel V .; J. Russell; Oscar J .; George B .; Rufus C .; Paul G .; and Minnie Lou. Mr. Jason Franklin and wife are members of the Primitive Baptist church. Mr. Franklin served as clerk of the superior court two terms, from 1880 to 1884. He lives on a fine farm near Excelsior. He takes much interest in politics, not as a candidate, but in the success of the democratic party, with whose interests he is identified.

JAMES A. FULCHER, merchant, Statesboro, was born Oct. 9, 1847, in Rich- mond county, and is the son of William and Ann Fulcher. The father was a farmer and both parents belonged to the Missionary Baptist church. William and Ann Fulcher had born to them four sons and three daughters, and of these two sons and one daughter are living. James A. was the youngest son. He attended the common schools and joined the Confederate army when he was sixteen years old. He enlisted in Company D, Twenty-second Georgia battalion artillery, and was wounded in the battle of Bentonville. He had two brothers in the army. His oldest brother commanded Company I, Ninth Georgia infantry. After the war Mr. Fulcher took just such work as presented itself and for a while was engaged in cutting timber. In the fall of 1869 he was employed as clerk in a store at Scarboro, Ga., where he remained until April, 1872, when he became a

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partner. After a partnership of eleven years Mr. Fulcher bought the whole busi- ness, and in 1893 he located in Statesboro. Mr. Fulcher was first married to Miss Alifra J. Heard, in March, 1876. She was the daughter of George Heard of Screven county. There were born to them three children: Willie J., Charles G. and Annie F. The wife died Sept. 10, 1881, and he was married the second time to Miss Mollie Rabun, daughter of Gen. J. W. Rabun of Screven county, June 6, 1883. They have two children, a son and a daughter, viz .: Nina Rabun and Robert E. Mr. Fulcher has been a member of the Methodist church for twenty-six years, and a steward of the church for twenty-five years. He was made a Mason at Millen in 1872. Mr. Fulcher is a member of the board of directors of the States- boro bank, president of the Dover and Statesboro Telegraph company, treasurer of Statesboro, and superintendent of the Methodist Sunday school. Mr. Fulcher is an alert, enterprising and sagacious business man-one of the most proficient financiers of the state. He has been actively engaged in business since a boy, and has acquired an experience and knowledge which places him in the front rank of the practical business men of the south. With this, an enterprising spirit and indomitable industry, he is a valuable acquisition to the business circles of any community.

DANIEL REISER GROOVER, attorney-at-law, Statesboro, was born in Bul- loch county, Aug. 19, 1851. His father was Samuel E. Groover, an extensive planter and eminent citizen of his day, and his mother was Martha Cone, a mem- ber of the distinguished family of that name. They had born to them seven children, of whom Daniel was the third. He was brought up on the farm, attended the common schools, then a preparatory course at Rock college at Athens, and in September, 1870, entered the sophomore class of the university of Georgia. He graduated from the law department in the spring of 1873, and located in Savannah, where he entered the law office of Jackson, Lawton & Bassinger. He stayed there until 1875, when he returned to his home, and there practiced his profession and farmed for thirteen years. In 1888 he moved to Statesboro, and has since devoted his entire time to the practice of his profession with success. He is regarded as

one of the ablest lawyers in the county, and has been a successful business man. He was married in November, 1878, to Miss Talulah R. Rawls, a daughter of Col. Morgan Rawls. They have four children, three sons and one daughter,

. viz .: Daniel R., Annie, George Toombs and Frank M. Mr. Groover has belonged to the masonic lodge for nearly twenty years, and has attained the rank of a royal arch Mason. He is president of the Bank of Statesboro, which was organized in January, 1894, and is a member of the law firm of Groover & Johnston. The firm are attorneys for the bank and for the Dover & States- boro railroad. Mr. Groover is related to the Denmark and Groover families of Brooks and Thomas counties. On his father's side he descends from one of the Salzburgers, who settled in Effingham county in 1735. He is the grandnephew of Peter Cone, who for thirty successive years represented Bulloch courty in the legislature.

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Memoirs of Georgia; containing historical accounts of the state's civil, military, industrial and professional interests, and personal sketches of many of its people. Vol. II, Part 50

Author: Publication date: 1859 Publisher: Atlanta, Ga., The Southern historicl association Number of Pages: 1166

Author:
Publication date: 1859
Publisher: Atlanta, Ga., The Southern historicl association
Number of Pages: 1166