Ray City History Blog

A Boy Soldier in the Berrien Minute Men (continued)

March 9, 2024 at 5:31 am (Berrien Minute Men, Civil War)
Tags: Atlanta Campaign, Atlanta GA, Battle of Atlanta, Battle of Jonesborough, Benjamin A. Pickren, Berrien Minute Men, Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, Company G 29th Georgia Regiment, Confederate POW Parole Slip, Covington GA, Cuthbert GA, greyback, Lumpkin Hospital, Macon and Western Railroad, Reconstruction, Southern Pacific Railway Company, Tallahassee FL

Benjamin A. Pickren served in the Berrien Minute Men during the Battle of Atlanta, July 22, 1864.

Forty years after the Civil War, Benjamin A. Pickren reflected upon his time in battle with the Berrien Minute Men. During Reconstruction Pickren obtained a position with the Southern Pacific Railway Company and became a locomotive engineer in Texas. He faced train robbers, gunfights, and railroad strikes. He survived two train wrecks, in the second of which he “was mangled and maimed, but never lost consciousness.” Recuperation brought him back to the area of his boyhood home in Georgia, where he reflected upon his Confederate military service. Pickren had mustered into the Berrien Minute Men at the age of 16. The previous post related Pickren’s experiences in the Battle of Atlanta.

Historian J. D. Ricci, described the situation leading up to the Fall of Atlanta:

“A nearly eighty-mile retreat through the late spring and early summer brought Sherman and Johnston’s armies within twelve miles of the south’s last major logistical center by July 10, 1864. The operational capability to conduct warfare throughout the Confederacy faced grave danger. To lose Atlanta meant that the flow of ammunition, food, and clothing, not only to Johnston’s army, but to departments in Alabama and the Carolinas, would grind to a halt.”
The Fall of Atlanta

Benjamin A. Pickren’s follow-up letter to the editor of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers’ Monthly Journal recalled the role of the Berrien Minute Men in the final defense of Atlanta.

Experience of a Confederate Soldier.
(Continued from Previous Post.)
SPOONER, GA., Aug. 31, 1905. EDITOR JOURNAL: Immediately after the great battle [Battle of Atlanta] of July 22, 1864, the siege of Atlanta commenced and lasted about two weeks. During the siege there was no fighting to amount to anything between the two infantries, but some of the greatest artillery duels known to occur up to that time. I have lain in the trenches or breastworks and have had the earth torn from beneath me. We were in such close lines or quarters to each other that it was impossible to raise our heads above the top of the breast works on either side. We were even close enough to hello to each other from the breast works, and without the consent being given from headquarters, the boys on both sides agreed to cease firing on each other and we had a few days’ armistice. The two armies looked like a lot of birds, both sitting on top of the breastworks joshing each other and hunting their clothes for intruders, commonly called greybacks.

We were comfortably quartered until the morning of the 31st of August, 41 years ago today, when to our dismay the long roll began to beat; the sound was too well known to all of us, and the officers began to holloa out, “Fall in, boys!” We were soon in ranks, and immediately after being organized a forced march began, we knew not where nor for what purpose until we arrived at Jonesborough, Ga., I thought clear away from the fighting line of Sherman, but as soon as we were in the little town which was all in a bluster, the women and children running and screaming in every direction, we learned that Sherman had made a flank move from Atlanta and his forces were within two miles of the little city, so we were formed into line of battle, and General Hardy’s corps began to march out to meet our enemy. They were formed in line in one of the finest cornfields I ever saw. The corn was so high that neither side had much warning of the approaching danger until the roar of musketry began. It was a short fight, but destructive to both sides. I also fell in the fight, wounded on the top of my head with a fragment of shell and in the left hand with a ball from a musket, and when taken to the rear to the Division Hospital, I there saw several wounded ladies. Though they were not participants in the fight, they were so close to it that they were wounded by stray balls that were fired perhaps one and a-half miles from them. One of the ladies wounded then is now a resident of San Antonio, Texas. I met her there several years ago.”

During the Battle of Jonesborough on August 31, U.S. Army forces blocked the Macon and Western Railroad which was the last uncut railroad leading into Atlanta. With Atlanta’s railroad lifeline severed, the Confederate Army evacuated the city on the evening of September 1, 1864. Atlanta was occupied by U.S. Army troops the following day.

Confederate Military Service Records show that by Sept 13, 1864, Pickren was at Lumpkin Hospital at Cuthbert, GA, about 160 miles south of Atlanta. The hospital had been relocated to Cuthbert after its former location at Covington, GA was destroyed by raiders from U.S. general William T. Sherman’s army on July 22, 1864 during the Battle of Atlanta. The trains brought carloads of sick and wounded Confederate soldiers to the hospitals in Cuthbert. Some were dead on arrival.

“I was one of the disabled for a long time, and returned to the ranks only a short time before the surrender of General Lee, … “, wrote Pickren.

Confederate POW Parole Slip signed by Sgt. Benjamin A. Pickren, 29th GA Infantry at Tallahassee, FL on May 16, 1865.

After the final surrender of the Confederates, Benjamin A. Pickren signed a Prisoner of War parole slip, foreswearing any further engagement in insurrection against the United States.

His reminiscences continued, “…and shortly after that I commenced my career on a railroad.”

I have thought and dreamed of the part I took in the war, and wondered how it is, and for what purpose I escaped death up to the present time. I passed through seventeen battles and came home, and I also passed through two disastrous wrecks and am still alive. My last wreck came near ending it all, but today I am enjoying the benefits of a beautiful home and farm.

My good old mother tells me it was her prayers that brought me safely through and begs me to be a better boy. I was at a good old-fashioned Baptist general meeting yesterday, and heard the minister tell my feelings as though I had told him. I cast a glance at mother and she was gazing at me, and I almost felt condemned. There were two brothers and two sisters of mine at the meeting and all present seemed to enjoy the sweet benefits of a Christian spirit, and I, the oldest of the five, said wondering to myself, “Am I the scapegoat of the family, or am I deceived in myself?” I have the belief they have; I put more confidence, it seems to me, in the protecting hand of a just Ruler than they have any right to, because I have experienced more disasters and come through. Why should I not place more confidence than they, after passing through what I have? I know it is through His kind and loving hands I was spared -not for anything towards keeping His commands that I merited His protection, but it seems as though I had aroused His vengeance to such an extent as to have let me fall through with the rest of the trash. I believe in Him as strongly as the strongest, and put all my confidence in Him, but I have proof of it only in my word. I am not a member of the church, because I am not fit to be. I wish I were, but to join any church without feeling my worthiness I could not do, as I have conscientious scruples against such acts. Instead of bettering my condition, I fear I make matters worse, and before I commit myself I had better close this narrative.

With best wishes to the B. of L. E.,

I remain Yours fraternally,
B. A. PICKREN.

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A Boy Soldier in the Berrien Minute Men

March 2, 2024 at 5:33 am (Berrien Minute Men, Civil War)
Tags: Arthur Shaaf, Battle of Atlanta, Benjamin A. Pickren, Berrien Minute Men, Clement H. Stevens, Company G 29th Georgia Regiment, General William H.T. Walker, John F. Parrish, John Peeples, Josiah Law Holcombe, Rothschild Fortune, Rowland H. Griffin, Spooner GA

When Georgia seceded from the United States on January 19, 1861, Benjamin A. Pickren was just a boy of 13 on his father’s farm in Muscogee County, GA. By the time of the 1864 Census for the Reorganization of the Georgia Militia, he was 16 years, 4 months of age, and for a desperate Confederacy that was old enough to fight. He was a big lad at 5′ 11″, blond-haired and blue-eyed. Within two months, he was married and was soon in service in the Confederate States Army. He was mustered in as a private the Berrien Minute Men, Company G, 29th Georgia Infantry Regiment. Casualties were so high that by the time he was 17, he was promoted to sergeant.

Benjamin A. Pickren, of Muscogee County, GA mustered into the Berrien Minute Men and fought in the Battle of Atlanta at the age of 16.

From the late spring into the summer of 1864, the Berrien Minutemen and the 29th Regiment were in northwest Georgia with General Johnston’s Army of Tennessee. The Confederates had been forced to retreat before the relentless advance of General Sherman’s U.S. Army toward Atlanta. July 4, 1864 found the Berrien Minute in the line of battle at Marietta, GA. After dark, the Confederate forces fell back to the the Chattahoochee River. In a letter to his wife, John William Hagan wrote about the retreat and his confidence in the defensive earth works of General Joseph E. Johnston’s River Line. But again, the Confederates were forced to retreat to avoid encirclement. By mid-July with the loss of Atlanta imminent , General Johnston was relieved of command and General John Bell Hood took over. The Battle of Atlanta loomed.

The events of July 22, 1864 were still etched in Benjamin A. Pickren’s memory in 1905, even after four decades of work as a railroad engineer. In retirement, he wrote about his service in the Berrien Minute Men in a letter to the editor of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers’ Monthly Journal.

Experience of a Confederate Soldier.
SPOONER, GA., July 22, 1905. EDITOR JOURNAL: Today is the forty-first anniversary of the great battle fought between General Sherman, of the Federal army, and General Hood, of the Confederate army, near the city of Atlanta, Ga., in 1864, in which I was a participant in gray uniform. Perhaps this narrative may interest some and not others. However, I thought I would give you a small outline of my experience in war, as railroading has become a thing of the past with me, though I feel as deep interest, it seems to me, as I ever did.

Major Arthur Shaaff (1831-1874) 1st Battalion GA Sharp Shooters. Image source: Maryland Center for History and Culture

On the day of the battle I was detailed on picket duty, which was an advanced line of skirmishers under command of Major Shoaff of the Second Georgia Battalion of sharpshooters [actually Major Arthur Shaaf, 1st Battalion GA Sharp Shooters].

The line of skirmishers was deployed in advanced line with a guide center march of nearly two miles through one of the greatest blackberry fields I ever saw. We had marched so far in fighting position and found nothing to fight until we became careless and commenced to pick and eat the delicious black berries.

At last, to our surprise, a gun was fired within fifty yards of our front, and one of our non-commissioned officers, Roland Griffin, fell dead within six feet of myself. [Rowland H. Griffin was a substitute who had been hired to take the place of John F. Parrish.]

At the same instance up jumped the boys in blue that had fired the fatal shot, endeavoring to reach their main line about one-quarter of a mile in our front, but they never reached it, as there were too many good marksmen in close range of them. The picket line was commanded to halt, lie down and shoot to hold the enemy in check until reinforcements came up from our rear. We did so, repulsing two picket charges. At the close of the second charge, we, the picket line, were ordered to hold our positions and not allow anyone to cross our line, unless wounded or a staff officer. I was at a loss to know what it meant, but soon after the order was given, my comprehension was clear. Looking back over the field we had marched and fought over, I saw a full line of battle advancing towards our enemy, although Major Shoaff and his pickets were between them. As soon as the advancing line reached our line and passed over it, the command was given to Major-General Walker to charge, and the heat of battle began. The booming of artillery, the rattling of small arms, and the yells of the advancing or charging line so enthused Major Shoaff that he also commanded the picket line to charge and the command was obeyed. There was a mill pond directly in front of our line which had been recently drained, and the men undertook to charge through it, and were mired down to their waists, and I had to give up the undertaking. The charge was successful both to the right and left of the pond; but we were repulsed on the center on the pond’s account, but were soon reinforced and surrounded the pond and gained possession in front of the battery of artillery that was direct in front of the pond that had slain so many of our comrades with grape and canister, together with our much beloved Division Commander, General Walker. We held the field of battle until dark, and in the shadow of the darkness the battlefield was evacuated, and a new line established back towards Atlanta in the edge of the woods we had previously marched through.

Poor me was detailed on vidette duty, which is the advanced part in hostilities. I was stationed in the midst of the battlefield, among the dead, still lying where they had fallen. Imagine, for a moment, the ghastly and horrible position I was placed in. I took a position upon my knees, so I could jump and run if necessary, with gun in hand, ready to throw it down and run, with my head near the ground in order to keep the light of the sky close down, so if the enemy did approach I could see them before they were upon me.

While in this position I took it for granted that my rear was guarded by my comrades, and had no fear of any rear approach; but here was my mistake, when I was spoken to by some one behind me that had crept up to me, but not looking for me, he was as badly frightened as I was. The first I knew of his approach was his addressing me, “Who is that?” I jumped up, wheeling around; with my gun in his face I demanded who he was. Oh, how it sounded when he told me his name, Richardson, of some Indiana regiment. He gave the number, but I did not care for it as he was my prisoner of war. He told me that he was hunting the body of a dead brother that had fallen near where he and I were, and begged me to let him go and hunt his brother, but at that time and place the Rothschild fortune could not have bought him from me, as the capture of a prisoner was the only excuse justifiable to allow a picket to leave his post, and I was determined to go clear to Atlanta with him if I could get there. So he and I started from the deadly battlefield to the rear.

We had gone but a short distance when I heard the familiar walk of Lieutenant Holcomb of General Stephen’s [Clement H. Stevens] staff, who had established the picket post and placed me where I was. I hailed him. [Twenty-five-year-old Josiah Law Holcombe was a native of Savannah and an alumnus of the Georgia Military Institute]. I knew his walk by the large rowels in his spurs tinkling on the gravel. He informed me that there was immediate danger of an attack from General Sherman and he was closing in the picket post and was glad he had found me. I have always thought only for me leaving the post with my prisoner, I would have been captured or killed where he had placed me, as I don’t think he would have ventured out to relieve me; but my hopes were all dismantled when he relieved me of my prisoner and directed me to a new post that had been established in the woods between the battlefield and General Hardy’s corps. He also said that the men were so fatigued that they had doubled the picket post; hence, he gave me directions to go and when about three hundred yards from where we stood, I must whistle. I did so and was answered.

When I reached the post under a large squatty oak I was glad to find one of my own company, John Peoples. He at once proposed to me to take turn about and one sleep at a time, as he was worn out. I told him he could sleep if he chose to, but my adventures up to that time had so enthused me I could not sleep if I tried. He removed his accoutrements and was soon snoozing to such an extent I had to keep prodding him. This was about midnight. I sat on the root of the big tree with my gun and back against it, listening with all my ears. At intervals I could hear commands given in the brush in front of me and they seemed so distinct at times, and so close, I was afraid to wake up John for fear the commands were imaginations as he was one of the greatest teases on earth. So I sat and listened. I could still hear the well understood commands-“Battalion, halt!” Heard it repeated down the line-could hear the command, “Attention, Battalion, guide center, forward, march!” At last the command to halt was so distinct and so close that I made up my mind to wake up my comrade, joke or no joke.

I had reached around the tree to where he lay asleep and given him a severe jerk; at that instant the pickets at our right line commenced a rapid fire down the line to the first one to our right. I threw down my gun at an angle of about forty-five degrees and fired, as instructed. Directly in front of me, not more than forty or fifty feet, I saw from the blaze of my gun in the dark bushes, a stand of U. S. collars and at least fifteen or twenty men’s faces. My comrade and I made for the rifle pit where the picket line was established. We had to face a regular fire of arms from our own comrades in going to the pits. Poor John had his right arm shot off when he reached the pit, or shot so badly it had to be amputated.

The Federals commenced digging and putting up fortifications where they were when the pickets fired upon them. The next morning rations were issued for the 29th Georgia Regiment for upwards of four hundred men, and I think one hundred and twenty-nine men drew them.

My company, G, was the largest in the regiment and ranked among the smallest after that day. I hope my brother soldier Richardson still lives and may read this article and verify the correctness of it.

Fraternally yours, B. A. PICKREN.
_{Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineer’s Monthly Journal, Volume 39}

In the Battle of Atlanta, July 22, 1864, near Decatur, GA the 29th Georgia Regiment was decimated. In the Berrien Minute Men Company G, Captain Edwin B. Carroll, Sgt William Anderson, 2nd Lieutenant Simeon A. Griffin, 2nd Lieutenant John L. Hall, Captain Jonathan D. Knight were among those captured. James A. Crawford was mortally wounded. Levi J. Knight, Jr. was wounded through the right lung but would survive. Robert H. Goodman was killed. In the Berrien Minute Men Company K, Wyley F. Carroll, James M. Davis, James D. Pounds, William S. Sirmans, and Jonas Tomlinson were captured. John W. Hagan was reported dead, but was captured and sent to Camp Chase. Among many other soldiers captured from the 29th Georgia regiment were Captain John D. Knight, 2nd Lieutenant John L. Hall, Jonas Tomlinson.

(To be continued).

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Dr. Woodard and the Charter of Adel, GA

January 13, 2024 at 5:38 am (Education In the Wiregrass, Remedies and Medicine)
Tags: Adel GA, Adel Telephone Company, Alonzo Augustus Webb, Arlington Ansel “Arlie” Parris, C. D. Shaw, Cauley Hammond Shaw, J. A. J. Parrish, J. L. Williams, James Thomas Wilkes, John Henry Kennon, Mark Shaw, R. R. Folsom, road duty, Stephen Alexander Juhan, William Clements

Dr. Woodard and the Charter of Adel, GA

Robert Crawford Woodard taught in the schools of Berrien County, GA. — Dr. R. C. Woodard was born and raised near Ray’s Mill (now Ray City), GA. He entered medical practice at Adel, GA. In 1900, he was elected to serve on the Adel City Council.

In 1900, Dr. R. C. Woodard was elected as one of the town councilmen of Adel, GA. Woodard, a native of Ray’s Mill (now Ray City), GA attended the Medical College at Augusta, GA and graduated from in 1899.

Adel News
Oct 19, 1900
Election Held Wednesday

The regular annual municipal election for the town of Adel was held Wednesday of this week, the entire ticket recently nominated being elected. There was a little scratching, but no organized opposition to the ticket. Forty-eight votes, all white, were cast and the following is the ticket elected:

For Mayor,
A. A. Parish
For Aldermen;
J. T. Wilkes,
S. A. Juhan,
Wm. Clements,
J. A. J. Parrish,
R.C. Woodard.

Mayor [John Henry] Kennon and Mayor-elect Parrish are both out of the city and the new men have not been inducted into office yet. As stated last week they are all gentlemen of strong capabilities and business qualifications and we look for the town’s affairs to be wisely managed during their administration.

Woodard was sworn into office on October 22, 1900. He served on the Adel City Council along with James Thomas Wilkes, Stephen Alexander Juhan, William Clements, and J. A. J. Parrish. Arlington Ansel “Arlie” Parrish was mayor. The council appointed Alonzo Augustus Webb as secretary and treasurer. J. M. “Mark” Shaw was appointed Marshal of the town; The Marshal was instructed to collect all rents and taxes owed the town.

Hog Law

The Adel City Council directed that the town ordinance against obstructing or littering the streets was to be strictly enforced, but enforcement of the Hog Law would be postponed until January 1, 1901. These two decisions were not unrelated. Under the Hog Law farmers were required to confine their stock. Loose hogs were taken to the pound, a corral or pen where livestock was held or “impounded” until the owners paid a fee to retrieve them. But in Tifton, the newspaper observed, a “town needs the services of those tireless scavengers just now when stale fruit and vegetables and other things deleterious to health are lying around loose. It is a fact that the hog law does the town more injury than good.” Leaving hogs free to eat the garbage in the streets, saved the cost and labor of having it carted away. On the other hand, free roaming and feral hogs were a major cause of the spread of Cholera, a disease which caused the loss of thousands of dollars a year in pork production. In Ray City, GA free-ranging hogs were a nuisance even into the 1930s. David Miley, lifetime resident of Ray City, recalled one particular swine that was notorious for stealing kids’ lunches at the Ray City School.

The Adel City Council declined to award the telephone franchise to R. R. Folsom and J. L. Williams. Ultimately, the telephone franchise went to the Adel Telephone Company, Inc., with William Clements, Arlington Ansel Parrish and C. D. Shaw as the principles.

The matter of a new charter for the town was taken up as the most important order of business.

According to the new city charter, the town council was responsible for provision public streets and grounds; establishment and assignment of “road duty” compelling citizens to participate or support road maintenance; food safety and inspections; building codes, building inspections and fire safety; regulation of the sale of “spiritous liquors”; and establishment of public schools under the supervision of a board of trustees.

“The authorities of said town shall also have power and authority to prevent injury or annoyance to the public or individuals from anything dangerous or offensive; to prevent dogs, hogs, cattle, sheep, horses, mules, goats, asses, and all other kind of animals and fowls from going at large in said town or any prescribed territory therein; to protect places of divine worship; to abate anything which in the opinion of the authorities is a nuisance; to regulate the keeping and selling of dynamite, gunpowder, kerosene and all other hazardous articles of merchandise; to regulate or prohibit the operation of blacksmith shops or other businesses that endanger the property of others in said town; to regulate the running of steam engines, whether for factories, mills, or any other kind of machinery propelled by steam engines; to regulate the running of any and all sorts of vehicles, however drawn or propelled, that may be used on the streets of said town; to establish quarantine and regulate the same, and to regulate the burial of the dead in said town.“

The town council was also the authority over municipal taxes,

…able to levy and collect a tax upon all and every species of property in said town subject to State and county tax; upon banking and insurance capital employed in said town; upon brokers and factors; upon each and every business, calling, trade or profession carried on in said town; upon billiard and pool tables, bowling alleys, bank, insurance, telephone, telegraph and express agencies in said town; to tax all theatrical performances, shows or exhibitions for gain or profit in said town; to tax all itinerant traders and peddlers, all venders of patent medicines, drugs, books, nostrums or devices of any kind; to tax all solicitors or canvassers selling wares or merchandise by sample at retail to consumers.

According to his memoirs, Woodard “convinced Adel’s electorate to support the establishment of a graded public school system, the first of its kind for a town of that size in Georgia.” The town council was responsible for the city schools and for the election of a board of trustees to oversee their operations.

The duties of said trustees shall be to establish two schools in the town of Adel, one for white children and one for colored children, which shall be entirely distinct and separate; to provide school houses by building, rent or otherwise; to employ teachers and provide the curriculum of said schools; to fix the salaries of teachers…to employ for said schools those teachers only who have a license to teach in the common schools of the state…that said schools shall be open for not lest than six, not more than twelve months in each year and shall be free, except a matriculation fee to be fixed by the mayor and council, to all children between the ages of six and eighteen years, whose parents or guardians reside within the corporate limits of the town of Adel.

Woodard opposed liquor sales in the town and voted to set the city liquor license fee at $10,000 dollars.

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R. C. Woodard Attended Medical College of Georgia

January 7, 2024 at 5:11 am (Education In the Wiregrass, Remedies and Medicine)
Tags: Adel Chamber of Commerce, Adel GA, Adel Institute, Augusta GA, Bessie Griffin, Cecil GA, Charles McDonald Brown Scholarship Fund, Charles X. Jones, Cross Creek School, Dr. H.W. Clements, Eugene Foster, Grand Bay Academy, Griffin School House, J. D. Patten, J. J. Roberts, James Alfred Weaver, James Marcus Patten, Jensie Nichols, Joseph E. Brown, Knight Academy, Leila Woodard, Marcus Sheridan Patten, Mary Jane Woodard, May Park, Medical College of Georgia, Milltown Academy, Neal McCranie, Paige Touring Car, Perry Thomas Knight, Pine Grove Academy, Pine Grove School, Ray's Mill Academy, Rev B. F. Elliott, Robert Daniel Woodard, Robert H. May, Roberts School House, Sallie Parrish, Social Circle School

R. C. Woodard Attended Medical College of Georgia

In 1896 Robert Crawford Woodard was presented with the opportunity to pursue a career in medicine. Woodard, who was born and raised near Ray’s Mill (now Ray City), GA, was then teaching in Adel, GA. His ambition to enter medicine may have been influence by a family connection to Dr. Crawford W. Long of Georgia, the first physician to use ether as an anesthetic in surgery.

The opportunity came in the form of a full scholarship to attend the medical college at Augusta, now known as Augusta University. In July 1896, Woodard learned that he would be a recipient of The Charles McDonald Brown Scholarship Fund, established at the University in 1881 by the late Hon. Joseph E. Brown, Civil War Governor of Georgia. Two white students from each Congressional District of Georgia were appointed annually by the Governor to receive scholarships, and R. C. Woodard was selected from the Second Congressional District. The scholarship was actually a loan, and recipients were expected to repay the endowment after graduation.

Thus, R. C. Woodard moved to Augusta, GA, in early October to study medicine at the Georgia Medical College. His wife and children followed on Saturday, October 31, 1896 to join him in Augusta.

In Augusta, the Woodards rented a home at 619 4th street near the corner of Watkins Street, about seven blocks south of the Savannah River and fronting on May Park. The Woodard’s place was just a six block walk from the medical college building at 558 Telfair Street. Also boarding with the Woodards was fellow medical student Henry W. Clements, of Ray’s Mill, GA (now Ray City). Another classmate at the medical college was Charles X. Jones, who established his medical practice at Ray City, GA and was influential in the incorporation of the town.

The Woodard residence in Augusta is long gone, the lot now occupied by the Richmond County Jail. It bordered on the Olde Town Historic District which still preserves many houses along 4th street and Watkins built in the late 19th century, homes typified by simpler elements and a lack of detail in comparison to the larger Greek Revival and Victorian townhouses closer to the river.

May Park, Augusta, GA photographed circa 1900. Dr. R.C. Woodard rented a residence across the street from the park during the period 1897-1899 while attending the Georgia medical college (now Augusta University). May Park was named after Robert H. May, mayor of Augusta during the Civil War and from 1879-1891. In 1898, the Augusta Herald described the setting, “This park was developed under his administration. It is noted for its beautiful large trees, lakes, flowers, hillocks, rustic houses and pavilions. Just across from May Park lies “the city of the dead,” the most beautiful spot in Augusta, whose broad avenues are lined with magnificent magnolia trees. The choicest flowers and shrubs the south can produce can be seen here. It is a vast flower garden – with gleaming white statues and shafts arising amidst its setting of green shrubbery and brilliant flowers. Many statues and tombs are works of art by the most renown sculptors of fair Italy.” – Augusta Herald, October 12, 1898

The medical college at Augusta was described in 1902 in the Standard Medical Directory of North America:

GEORGIA UNIVERSITY, Medical Department, Augusta; Dean Eugene Foster; Medical Academy organized 1829; suspended 1861-65; present title 1873. Admission: Certificate from high school or equivalent. Graduation: Age 21, attendance on three lecture courses of six months each, the last at this school. Fees: $100.00, examination $30.00. Faculty: Professors 10, demonstrator 1, instructors 7. Property $36,000.00. Recognition: I. S. B. H., U.S.N.Y. Matriculates last session 145.

Medical College of Georgia Dissecting Room, 1896-97 — Medical College of Georgia, dissection room, 1896-97.

Pathology Laboratory at Medical College of Georgia, 1896-1897.

Robert Crawford Woodard was elected class historian for the Class of 1899, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta, GA.
Augusta Herald, Nov 4, 1898.

In January 1898, the Tifton Gazette reported that Robert Crawford Woodard was the teacher at the Rays Mill academy. He apparently took the job at Rays Mill between courses of study at the Augusta medical college.

Tifton Gazette
January 21, 1898
There has been quite a changing of teachers in South Berrien this year. Prof. M. S. Patten is teaching at the Roberts school house, J. J. Roberts, Social Circle; R. C. Woodard, Ray’s Mill academy; Miss Sallie Parrish, Griffin school house; Miss Jensie Nichols, Pine Grove; J.M. Patten, Grand Bay; J. A. Weaver, Green Bay; P.T. Knight, Cross Creek, and J. D. Patten at Milltown.

R. C. Woodard and family left Adel on October 4, 1898 to return to Augusta so he could complete his final term of enrollment at the medical college.

Woodard received his medical degree in 1899. Throughout his life Dr. Woodard continued his medical education each year by taking graduate courses in medicine, even traveling to New York to attend some courses.

Following completion of his medical degree, The Adel News reported his return, “Dr. R. C. Woodard returned home Tuesday afternoon [April 11, 1899]. He has finished his medical course in Augusta and is now ready for practice. He deserves success, and we extend congratulations as well as best wishes for your future, Dr. Woodard.”

Return to Adel

Even after entering into his medical practice Dr. Woodard remained actively engaged in Cook County civics and education. The announcement of Fall 1903 classes shows that he was then serving as president of the Board of Trustees for the Adel Institute.

It appears Woodard moved his parents about 1902 to a small house in Adel on Railroad Avenue, perhaps on the corner of Eighth Street. About 1910, Dr. Woodard purchased from his father a small house and lot in Adel, GA, but it appears this transaction may have been more about providing funds for his father than providing a property for Dr. Woodard. Dr. Woodard’s mother, Jane Crawford Woodard, died December 3, 1912 and his father, Robert Daniel Woodard, died January 7, 1914; both were buried at Woodlawn Cemetery, Adel, GA.

On Tuesday, May 3, 1904 tragedy struck the Woodard household with the loss of their little daughter, Jane Woodard. The Adel News announced the death. The little girl was laid to rest at Woodlawn Cemetery, Adel, GA.

Grave of Mary Jane Woodard (1902-1904), Woodlawn Cemetery, Adel, GA. Image source: Cat

Adel News
May 20, 1904

The Death of a Child

Little Mary Jane Woodard Died on Friday Night Last.

Mary Jane, the little nineteen-months-old daughter of Dr. and Mrs. R. C. Woodard, died on last Friday night. For two or three weeks the little one had been ill and several days before her death it was see that her case was a grave one. All that the skill of physicians and the tender nursing of loved ones and friends could do was done for the little sufferer but it continued to grow worse until its pur little spirit was transported to a fairer clime.
The little girl was a bright and attractive child and will be missed not only by the family, but by the neighbors as well, who were accustomed to seeing her almost daily.
The funeral services were held at the residence Saturday afternoon and were conducted by Rev. B. F. Elliott, who spoke tender words of sympathy and comfort to the bereaved ones. Some sweet songs were sung by the choir and the services were very impressive. The interment was in the city cemetery. The sympathy of all our people go out to the family.

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Professor R.C. Woodard

January 6, 2024 at 1:41 am (Education In the Wiregrass, Remedies and Medicine)
Tags: Adel GA, Adel Oil and Fertilizer Company, B. F. Hill, Berrien County Sunday School Association, Berrien County Teacher Institute, Bowling Green College of Business Administration, Cecil GA, Cecil School, Empire Garden Mid-Summer Fair, Fellowship School, Grand Bay Academy, James Madison Knight, James Rembert Anthony, Jonathan Perry Knight, Knight Academy, Lyman Byrd Lovett, Merritt E. Johnson, Milltown Academy, Nashville Baptist Church, O. H. Pafford, Peabody Institute, Perry Thomas Knight, Ray's Mill Academy, Robert Franklin Cary, Samuel Dowse Bradwell, William J Northen

Dr. Robert Crawford Woodard (1867-1949)

Robert Crawford Woodard’s early life was spent near Ray’s Mill (now Ray City), GA.

After studying at Bowling Green College of Business Administration Robert Crawford Woodard returned to Berrien County, GA. He became a teacher and was in charge of a school near Ray’s Mill (now Ray City), Ga by 1892.

On March 18, 1892, the Tifton Gazette reported, “From Ray’s Mill…Mr. R.C. Woodard has a school of sixty odd pupils at the Knight Academy two miles south of here. He is assisted by Mr. L. Lovitt [Lyman Byrd Lovett].” Meritt E. Johnson, a native of Ray’s Mill, later served as a Trustee of the Knight school.

The Ray’s Mill Academy was taught that term by Jonathan Perry Knight; The two men would later work together as state legislators.

In those days, few teachers were college educated. Most teacher training “involved a very important, now almost forgotten, American institution – teaching institutes. At these, teachers gathered for instruction in subject areas and teaching methods…Throughout the nineteenth century, most U.S. elementary school teachers received no special training. Those who completed eight elementary grades, or the few privileged to attend secondary-level academies, won teaching positions by passing state subject-matter exams.” In Berrien County, the annual examination of applicants for teacher’s license was held in the summer at the county seat at Nashville, GA.

For the convenience of the teachers, The Berrien County Teacher Institute sessions were held on Saturdays during the summer and locations were rotated to towns around the county. Sessions were taught by the more qualified teachers and sometimes by outside experts. R. C. Woodard was a frequent attendee, and presented on such topics as Methods for classwork in Arithmetic, and Capital letters and the rule for their formation. Among other well-known presenters at Teacher Institute were R.L. Patten, William Green Avera, Johnathan Perry Knight, and J.M. Guilliams.

“In theory, these institutes augmented the former training of teachers, bringing them up to date on new theories or new knowledge. In most of America, these short sessions provided the only contact elementary teachers would ever have with expertise in the developing profession of public school teaching. Teachers came to institutes to learn, to gain inspiration, and to develop a sense of professional identity. The larger public attended evening lectures. Parents gained pride in their schools, and young people committed themselves to teaching as a career. The gathered teachers enjoyed the fellowship with other teachers and the home hospitality offered by local families. Institutes were the camp meetings of the teaching profession, and the ablest, most sought-after instructors the evangelists of the public school movement.” – Peabody College: From a Frontier Academy to the Frontiers of Teaching and Learning

Like the public schools of the time, the Berrien Teacher Institute was for whites only. African-American teachers in Berrien County were required to travel to attend five days of separate, mandatory training at the Peabody Institute which was held on consecutive weekdays at a central location serving multiple counties.

For the fall term of 1893 Woodard took the teacher’s position at Milltown Academy.

Tifton Gazette
July 21, 1893
Milltown has a flourishing school now under the administration of Prof. R. C. Woodard.

In the spring of 1894, Woodard came back to Adel to act as associate principal in the South Georgia Normal School at Adel. The January 6, 1894 issue of Educational News reported that Woodard had entered a partnership with James Rembert Anthony, of Taliafero County, GA. ”Captain J. R. Anthony will leave Crawfordville, and, in conjunction with Mr. R. C. Woodard, will establish a normal and business school at Adel, Ga.“ J.R. Anthony was an early student of the University of Virginia and a Confederate veteran; At the close of the Civil War he had assisted former Confederate Secretary of State Robert Toombs on his escape to Cuba.

1895 advertisement for Tifton, GA’s big expo, the Empire Garden Midsummer Fair

When Governor William J. Northen and Education Commissioner Samuel Dowse Bradwell visited Tifton on June 4, 1894, they were received by Tifton Mayor Columbus Wesley Fullwood “and a select party of gentlemen,” Robert Crawford Woodard among them.

In the Summer of 1894, Woodard was back for a Teacher’s Institute convened at Sparks, GA. He co-presented with B. F. Hill on “Spelling – Old and new methods explained and illustrated.” While the Institute was in session the teachers held a little “competition to suggest a suitable name for a fair to be held at Tifton, GA. To make the contest interesting a five-dollar gold medal was offered to the one proposing the most suitable name for the fair. Among the rest was “The Empire Garden Mid-Summer Fair” suggested by Prof. R. C. Woodard, of [Adel], and this name was adopted and the medal was awarded to Dr. Woodard. The Prof. was elated at his success and valued the medal very highly.” The Empire Garden Mid-Summer Fair became a great success and by 1897 was drawing 5000 attendees annually.

Around this time, R. C. Woodard served a term as principal of the Grand Bay School near Ray’s Mill, GA. An appreciative pupil was James Madison Knight (1879-1953), a great grandson of William Anderson Knight who was the first pioneer to settle at Grand Bay. The Grand Bay School had been built by J.M. Knight’s two grandfathers, Jonathan Knight (1817-1886) and James Madison Baskin. The Grand Bay School was consolidated with the Milltown School in 1923.

In April, 1895 Woodard took the position of Principal of the school at Cecil, GA. In addition to teaching, he served as a vice president of the Berrien County Sunday School Association, which convened for its annual meeting at the Nashville Baptist Church.

Tifton Gazette
July 26, 1895

Prof. R.C. Woodard is now teaching the Fellowship School, two miles east of Cecil, with an attendance of about nintey pupils. He is ably assisted by Prof. R. F. Carey, late of Emory College. Prof. Woodard is a hustler in school work and is never out of the harness long at a time. He has been tendered the Cecil school for another year. – Adel News

That winter he returned to Adel.

Tifton Gazette
November 29, 1895
Prof. R.C. Woodard has moved into town [Adel] again and receives a warm welcome by all.

In the spring term of 1896, Professor Woodard was again teaching at the Cecil School. When the Berrien Teacher Institute met in Adel on Saturday, February 15, 1896 his students gave a performance. “At 9 a.m. the teachers and visitors were treated to a song by the Cecil School, ‘Sailing O’er the Sea,’ which reflects credit on Prof. Woodard, and his assistant, Mr. O.H. Pafford, and their pupils. This song, which is a very pretty one, is sung by the school every morning before entering upon the duties of the day.“

During this period Woodard tried his hand working in accounting and farming, as well as teaching.

In 1896, Robert C. Woodard was admitted to the Medical College at Augusta, GA.

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Dr. Robert Crawford Woodard (1867-1949)

January 1, 2024 at 7:27 am (Education In the Wiregrass, Remedies and Medicine)
Tags: Adel GA, Bowling Green College of Business Administration, Jane Crawford, Jane Woodard, Lilian Ida Parrish, Robert Daniel Woodard, William Pendleton Nunez

Dr. Robert Crawford Woodard, born near Ray City, GA in 1867, photographed August, 1920.

Dr. Robert Crawford Woodard (1867-1949)

Early Life

Robert Crawford Woodard was born in 1867 near Ray’s Mill (now Ray City, GA). He was a son of Robert Daniel Woodard (1831-1914) and Jane Crawford Woodard of Berrien County GA. He was one of the Medical Men of Ray’s Mill and became an important figure in medicine and education in Wiregrass Georgia.

His father, Robert Daniel Woodard, was a Confederate veteran. R. D. Woodard enlisted as a private in Company E, 54th Georgia Regiment on May 6, 1862. Among R. D. Woodard’s Confederate company mates were J.D. Evans, H.M. Talley, Littleton Albritton, William J. Lamb, Jehu Patten, Stephen W. Avera, Matthew Hodges Albritton, James M. Baskin, Samuel Guthrie, George Washington Knight, Jesse Lee, John Lee, William H. Outlaw, Rufus Ray, and Benjamin Sirmons. Woodard was on special detail as a teamster for most of the Civil War and served in coastal Georgia, South Carolina, and Mississippi. According to available service records and pension applications, he was on duty until about the first of April 1865 and was on furlough at home when the war effectively ended with the surrender of the Confederate Army on April 9, 1865. Woodard’s application for a Confederate pension would later be denied by the State of Georgia on the grounds that he was not present with his unit at the time of surrender. On July 30, 1867, Robert Daniel Woodard swore the Oath of Allegiance to the United States and was again permitted to register to vote. (Through the act of secession, the US citizenship of Georgia residents had been renounced.)

Robert Crawford Woodard, the subject of this sketch, was born December 6, 1867, during Reconstruction. In his autobiography, R. C. Woodard reflected that his family had lost nearly everything in the devastation of the Civil War. But the Georgia Agriculture Schedules for the Census of 1870 show his father still owned a one horse farm near Ray’s Mill, GA (now Ray City) with 390 acres, 30 acres under cultivation and 360 acres in unimproved woodlands. His father kept milk cows and beef cattle, sheep and chickens, and cropped corn, oats, and sweet potatoes.

A synopsis of Woodard’s autobiography provides the following:
Woodard recounted his early enthusiasm for hard work and thirst for education. In his teens, he resolved to get a better education than the school afforded in his home county, so he made application and was accepted at the present Bowling Green College of Business Administration, Bowling Green, KY. Studying there for several years, he then returned to South Georgia and became a teacher.

In 1886, the Bowling Green College of Business occupied the building of the former Bowling Green Female College, which had closed a year earlier. The school taught typical business skills such as bookkeeping, shorthand, telegraphy, pensmanship, and typewriting. A five month course in business was $45. The college’s eight typewriting machines were of the double keyboard type, which had only been invented in 1884. No typewriter instructor and no text were used; the method of touch typing had not yet emerged.

Bowling Green College of Business occupied this building on College Street, Bowling Green, KY in 1886. Robert Crawford Woodard attended the college in the late 1880s.

After returning to Berrien County, R. C. Woodard taught in the common schools of the area.

On August 25, 1892, Robert Crawford Woodard married Lillian Ida Parrish. She was the eldest daughter of Susan Mathis and John A. Parrish of Berrien County, and granddaughter of Primitive Baptist elder Ansel Parrish. The wedding ceremony was performed by Primitive Baptist minister William Pendleton Nunez, a Confederate veteran who with other men of the area had served in the 26th Georgia Regiment.

Marriage certificate of Robert C. Woodard and Lilian Ida Parrish

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War of 1812: Bowling’s Detachment

December 2, 2023 at 5:24 am (Uncategorized, War of 1812)
Tags: Artificer, Bowling's Detachment, David Clarke, Dred Newbern, Etheldred Dryden Newbern, Henry Harrison Hand, Jacob Best, John Baggs, Laird B. Fleming, Peter Cone, Peter Cone's Company of Georgia Militia, Reuben Boatright, Richard Manning, Robert Bowling, Roger L. Gamble, Samuel Stone, Sunbury GA

War of 1812: Bowling’s Detachment

Etheldred “Dred” Newbern was a pioneer settler of Old Berrien County, Georgia.

During the War of 1812, while still residing in Bulloch County, GA, Dred Newbern was mustered into a Georgia Volunteer Militia company organized by Peter Cone. In the spring of 1814 Peter Cone’s Company was deployed on the coast of Georgia, first at Savannah then sent with Bowling’s Detachment (reconstructed roster below) to the seaport at Sunbury, GA. Sunbury, and other Georgia ports were then under blockade by the British fleet.

Peter Cone’s Company of Georgia Militia organized at Paramore’s Hill and marched to Savannah where, along with other Georgia militia companies they were mustered into a U.S. Army regiment commanded by Colonel Richard Manning. They were enlisted on March 26, 1814 and issued equipment.

From Manning’s Regiment, a detachment of three companies was formed and placed under the command of Major Robert Bowling. The three companies were led by Captain David Clarke, Captain Roger L. Gamble, and Lieutenant Peter Cone.

Bowling’s Detachment was ordered to March to Sunbury, GA south of Savannah to take up a station on the Midway River for the defense of the town. The maritime trade from Sunbury was threatened by the British frigate HMS Lacedemonian, which was anchored off Cumberland Island. Sunbury residents often saw the Lacedemonian’s armed launches in St. Catherine’s Sound, where they captured and burned American coastal vessels.

Bowling’s Detachment

Name	Rank	Induction/Discharge
Bowling, Robert	Major	Induction: Major, Discharge: Major
Clarke, David	Capt	Induction: Capt, Discharge: Capt
Gamble, Roger L	Capt	Induction: Capt, Discharge: Capt
Bower, Benanuel	1st Lt	Induction: 1 Lt, Discharge: 1 Lt
Cone, Peter	1st Lt	Induction: 1 Lt, Discharge: 1 Lt
Meriwether, Alexander	1st Lt	Induction: 1 Lt, Discharge: 1 Lt
Burke, Michael	2nd Lt	Induction: 2 Lt, Discharge: 2 Lt
Marks, Leon H	2nd Lt	Induction: 2 Lt, Discharge: 2 Lt
Rawls, John	2nd Lt	Induction: 2 Lt, Discharge: 2 Lt
Clarke, James	3rd Lt	Induction: 3 Lt, Discharge: 3 Lt
Gamble, John	3rd Lt	Induction: 3 Lt, Discharge: 3 Lt
Hall, Thomas	3rd Lt	Induction: 3 Lt, Discharge: 3 Lt
Elias, [Blank]	Servant	Induction: Servant, Discharge: Servant
Hannibal, [Blank]	Servant	Induction: Servant, Discharge: Servant
June, [Blank]	Servant	Induction: Waiter, Discharge: Servant
Lettuce, [Blank]	Servant	Induction: Waiter, Discharge: Servant
Boyd, James	Sgt	Induction: Sgt, Discharge: Sgt
Burns, William	Sgt	Induction: Sgt, Discharge: Sgt
Conner, James G	Sgt	Induction: Sgt, Discharge: Sgt
Gordon, James	Sgt	Induction: Cpl, Discharge: Sgt
Hagan, Joseph	Sgt	Induction: Sgt, Discharge: Sgt
Ladler, John	Sgt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Sgt
Lamp, Michael	Sgt	Induction: 1 Sgt, Discharge: Sgt
Langston, Seth S	Sgt	Induction: Cpl, Discharge: Sgt
Moore, Etheldred	Sgt	Induction: Sgt, Discharge: Sgt
Raifield, Alexander G	Sgt	Induction: Sgt, Discharge: Sgt
Rutledge, John	Sgt	Induction: Sgt, Discharge: Sgt
Shirley, William S	Sgt	Induction: Sgt, Discharge: Sgt
Stanaland, Richard	Sgt	Induction: Sgt, Discharge: Sgt
Waldron, John	Sgt	Induction: Sgt, Discharge: Sgt
Welch, Isaac	Sgt	Induction: Sgt, Discharge: 1 Sgt
Bigham, James	Cpl	Induction: Cpl, Discharge: Cpl
Bryan, Redding D	Cpl	Induction: Cpl, Discharge: Cpl
Fields, Miles	Cpl	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Cpl
Fokes, Shadrach	Cpl	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Cpl
Goodman, Henry	Cpl	Induction: Cpl, Discharge: Cpl
Grant, Thomas	Cpl	Induction: Cpl, Discharge: Cpl
Hichcock, Joseph	Cpl	Induction: Cpl, Discharge: Cpl
Hitchcock, Joseph	Cpl	Induction: Cpl, Discharge: Cpl
Jones, Tandy C	Cpl	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Cpl
Lamp, Lewis	Cpl	Induction: Cpl, Discharge: Cpl
Scott, James	Cpl	Induction: Cpl, Discharge: Cpl
Stewart, Alexander	Cpl	Induction: Cpl, Discharge: Cpl
Chambers, John	Ensign	Induction: Ensign, Discharge: Ensign
Lovett, Cuyler	Ensign	Induction: Ensign, Discharge: Ensign
Crossley, Andrew	Artificer	Induction: Artificer, Discharge: Artificer
Darsey, Joseph	Artificer	Induction: Artificer, Discharge: Artificer
Kirk, Joseph	Artificer	Induction: Artificer, Discharge: Artificer
Marshall, John	Artificer	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Artificer
Moore, Caswell	Artificer	Induction: Artificer, Discharge: Artificer
Salter, Edward T	Artificer	Induction: Artificer, Discharge: Artificer
Sample, James	Artificer	Induction: Artificer, Discharge: Artificer
Woods, John	Artificer	Induction: Artificer, Discharge: Artificer
Hall, John	Musician	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Musician
Hendley, Thomas	Musician	Induction: Musician, Discharge: Musician
Miller, Seborn	Musician	Induction: Musician, Discharge: Musician
Sasser, Joseph	Musician	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Musician
Sheppard, John B	Musician	Induction: Musician, Discharge: Musician
Starling, Starling	Musician	Induction: Musician, Discharge: Musician
Arrington, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Arrington, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Askew, Robinson	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Baggs, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt; Gamble’s Company
Baggs, William	Pvt	Induction: Cpl, Discharge: Pvt
Bailey, James	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Baker, Asa	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Bandy, Samuel	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Bennet, James	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Berryhill, Thomas	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Best, Jacob	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt; Cone’s Company
Best, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Birch, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Bird, Jas	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Bird, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Birt, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Boatright, Reuben	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt; Clarke’s Company
Boget, James	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Bothwell, John W	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Bowles, David	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Bowles, David	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Boyd, Baniah	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Boyd, Stephen	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Bracket, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Bragg, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Bryan, David	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Butler, Charles	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Carter, Jacob	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Cato, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Caulie, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Caulie, Reason	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Cobb, H	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Cobb, James	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Cobb, Rash	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Cochran, Robert	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Coleman, Isaac	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Coleman, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Coleman, Wade	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Colliday, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Conner, Isaac	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Conner, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Cook, Henry	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Cook, John R	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Cooper, Phineas	Pvt	Induction: Sgt, Discharge: Pvt
Coursey, Allen	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Coward, J	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Coward, J	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Cravey, James	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Crops, Samuel	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Cunningham, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Curle, Wilson	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Davis, Joseph	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Davis, Moses	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Deal, Ferney	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Deloach, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Dokes, Campbell S	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Donaldson, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Drawdy, James	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Drew, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Driggers, Simeon	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Emanuele, Amos	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Evans, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Ferrell, Charles	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Fisher, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Fleming, Laird B	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt; Gamble’s Co.
Floyd, Joseph	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Ford, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Ford, Samuel	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
French, Charles	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
French, Rease	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
French, Robert	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Gaines, Theophilus	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Gardner, Aaron	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Glass, Levy	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Gooden, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Gooden, Stephen	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Gooden, Wiley	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Goodman, Dennis	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Goodman, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Goodwin, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Green, Daniel	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Green, Elisha	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Green, Lewis	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Gregory, Samuel	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Hadbury, Wilson	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Ham, Aaron	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Hammond, Daniel	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Hand, Henry Harrison	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt; Cone’s Company
Handbury, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Handley, Thomas	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Havens, Andrew	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Hendrix, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Herrington, Moses	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Hiers, Solomon	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Higgs, Jesse	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Hilton, Jeremiah	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
House, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Humphrey, Daniel	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
James, Mikel	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Jeffers, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Johnston, Elias	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Johnston, Jared	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Johnston, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Jordan, David	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Jordan, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Kelly, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Kemp, James	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
King, Wilson	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Kirkland, McCullers	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Lamb, Abraham	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Lang, Robert	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Lankford, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Lee, Levi	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Lewis, Nimrod	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Long, Robert	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Lovett, Thomas C	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Mallory, James	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Mallory, Thomas	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Mason, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Mathers, Isaac	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
McCullough, Jacob	Pvt	Induction: Artificer, Discharge: Pvt
McNelly, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Metts, Redding	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Miller, Joseph	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Mims, David	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Mitchell, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Moore, Aldridge	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Moore, Augustus	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Morris, Moses	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Morrison, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Moy, Edwin	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Nates, Zachariah	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Newborn, Dred	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Nobles, James	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Norman, A. B.	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Norman, James M	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Norris, James	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Olive, Benjamin	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Olive, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Overstreet, Stephen	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Owens, Jesse	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Parker, Starling	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Patterson, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Pierce, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Pipkin, Uriah	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Pomeroy, Samuel	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Pye, James	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Raiford, Robert	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Rawls, Joseph	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Reddy, David	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Register, Josiah	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Roberts, J	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Robinson, Abram	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Ross, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Rowland, Nathan	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Sample, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Sanderlin, Owen	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Scarbrough, Jackson	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Scarbrough, Reddick	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Schley, Michael	Pvt	Induction:1 Sgt, Discharge: Pvt
Scott, J	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Scott, Robert	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Shepherd, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Simonson, Isaac	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Smith, Daniel	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Smith, Norris	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Spence, Isaac	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Spence, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Stephens, Benjamin	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Stone, Henry	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Stone, Samuel	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt Clarke’s Company
Stone, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Streetman, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Stringfellow, E	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Sugs, Moses	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Thornton, Redick	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Trimble, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Tyre, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Tyre, Lewis	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Vickery, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Walden, Samuel	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Walters, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Walton, Daniel	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Walton, David	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Waters, George	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Waters, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Webb, Willie	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Wester, Henry	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Whiddon, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
White, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Wilde, David	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Wilkerson, James	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Williams, John	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Woods, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Wren, William	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt
Wright, Moses	Pvt	Induction: Pvt, Discharge: Pvt

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Etheldred Dryden Newbern: March to Sunbury

November 25, 2023 at 5:32 am (Uncategorized, War of 1812)
Tags: 8th Infantry Regiment US Army, Bermuda Island, Bryan Church, Casimir Pulaski, Colonels Island, Daniel McGirt, Daniel McGirth, Ecunnaunuxulgee, Fort Morris, Georgia Militia, Gunboat No. 68, James Holmes, James Oglethorpe, John Stevens, Kings Ferry, Lewis Green, Midway Church, Midway River, Milledgeville GA, Ogeechee Lime, Ogeechee River, Ogeechee Tupelo, Ossabaw Island, Peter Cone's Company of Georgia Militia, Robert Bowling, Savannah GA, Savannah Post Road, St. Catherine's Sound, St. Catherines Island, Sunbury GA, Sunbury Road, Washington Navy Yard, William Cone, William Doughty, Yuchi Indians

Georgia Militia Called Out in the War of 1812

Etheldred “Dred” Newbern, a pioneer settler of Berrien County, GA, was a veteran of the War of 1812. His service in the Georgia Militia is documented in War of 1812 Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files. Newbern and other men in his district were mustered into Captain Peter Cone’s Company of Georgia Militia in the spring of 1814. The company rendezvoused with Captain Cone at Paramore Hill in Liberty County, GA, and marched 80 miles to Savannah, GA.

Bowling’s Detachment

At Savannah, Cone’s Company was placed into Major Robert Bowling’s Detachment of the 8th Infantry Regiment, United States Army, along with companies led by Captain David Clarke and Captain Roger L. Gamble. A compilation of War Department records in the National Archives informs a reconstructed roster of 255 men assigned to Bowling’s Detachment.

In this series:

Etheldred Dryden Newbern: War of 1812
Etheldred Dryden Newbern: Rendezvous of the Georgia Militia
Etheldred Dryden Newbern: March to Sunbury

To Sunbury, GA

About April 10, 1814 Major Bowling formed up his unit at Savannah for the march to their assigned duty station at the port of Sunbury, GA. From Savannah, the land route to Sunbury was by way of the Post Road, which ran from Savannah to Darien via Midway.

Bowling’s Detachment started the 50 mile march with their complement of officers, non-commissioned-officers and soldiers, company musicians, artificers (combat engineers), and African-American “servants.” Private Lewis Green, disabled from an injury sustained while the company was quartered in Savannah, rode on one of the two wagons transporting the detachment’s baggage.

Bryan Church

About three miles south of Savannah, the post road passed by Bryan Church, the meeting house of the only congregation of enslaved African-Americans in Georgia and perhaps the first such congregation in all of North America. April 10, 1814 was Easter Sunday, but that was of little consequence as Easter was not celebrated in America until after the Civil War. If Bowling’s troops passed the church that morning, we can only wonder what the black congregation and the white militia men with their enslaved black servants might have thought of each other.

Kings Ferry

Eighteen miles south of Savannah, the troops reached Kings Ferry over the Ogeechee River. The name of the river came from the language of the native Creek people and is thought to mean “river of the Uchees”, referring to the Yuchi tribe who inhabited areas near it. The Creeks of Georgia also had a name for the white settlers – the “Ecunnaunuxulgee” – meaning those “people greedily grasping after the lands of red people” (Wunder, 2000.) In April, when Bowling’s Detachment crossed on the ferry, the Ogeechee Tupelo trees (Nyssa ogeche) lining the river were in full bloom. The small white blossoms are highly attractive to bees, and their nectar is the source of the renowned Tupelo honey. The tree is commonly referred to as Ogeechee Lime, on account of the acidic juice derived from its fruit which can serve as a substitute for lime juice.

As Bowling’s Detachment approached the ferry, the thoughts of the men no doubt turned to the American victory over the British there in 1779, when Casimir Pulaski and his Legion caught up with the loyalist Lt. Col. Daniel McGirth (also known as McGirt) and his band of outlaw raiders. Pulaski’s Patriots captured 50 Loyalists, their livestock and enslaved people. In another incident, the slippery McGirth narrowly escaped death at the hands of William Cone, grandfather of Levi J. Knight, pioneer settler of Ray City, GA.

Midway Church

Another 15 miles march to the south brought Bowen’s Detachment to Midway Church, which during the American Revolution had been a hot bed of rebel dissenters. The British had burned the church in 1778, but it was rebuilt, with the construction of the present church completed in 1792. A U-shaped balcony in the interior was used to seat African American worshipers who were enslaved by the white congregation.

From Midway, the detachment could take Sunbury Road toward the coast. Sunbury Road, “one of the longest vehicular thoroughfares of post-Revolutionary Georgia,” ran 200 miles from the port city to the state capitol at Milledgeville, GA (LibertyCounty.org).

Sunbury, GA

The site of Sunbury was idyllic. James Oglethorpe visited the locality in 1734 where he saw “a bold and beautiful bluff, which overlooking the placid waters of the Midway river and the intervening low-lying salt marshes, descries in the distance the green woods of Bermuda Island [now known as Colonels Island], the dim outline of the southern point of Ossabaw, and across the sound, the white shores of St. Catherine.” Dr. James Holmes (1804-1883), a native of Sunbury, observed, “In its palmy days, Sunbury was a beautiful village with its snow-white houses, green blinds, and a red roof here and there. From the fort to the point was a carpet of luxuriant Bermuda grass shaded with ornamental trees on either side of its wide avenues.“

Sunbury in its heyday. Sunbury Historic Marker.

Sunbury “once rivaled Savannah as the major seaport in this area. By all geological rights it should have been what Savannah became; after all, it is the deepest natural harbor east of the Mississippi. It has direct access to the ocean with its necessary winds, much shorter to get to from the high seas, while Savannah offered only a winding, often difficult silted river to navigate” (LibertyCounty.org). Sunbury was once the home port to 94 sailing ships; “The main resources shipped from Sunbury were lumber, rice, turpentine, and animal skins, which sailed to ports around the Atlantic, mainly in the Caribbean but also to England, the northern colonies, and even main land Spanish ports” (Dilk, S.D.) Button Gwinnett (1735-1777) and Lyman Hall (1724-1790), signers of the Declaration of Independence, had been citizens of Sunbury.

As a military post, Sunbury had played its role in the War of Jenkins’ Ear (1739 to 1748), the French and Indian War (1754–1763), and the American Revolution (1775–1783). At the beginning of the American Revolution, a fort had been built at Sunbury to guard the port and St. John’s Parish; Fort Morris was a low enclosed earthwork in the shape of a quadrangle. Surrounded by a parapet and moat, Fort Morris contained a parade ground of about one acre. The fort had been defended by more than 25 pieces of ordnance of various caliber. Fort Morris and Sunbury were attacked by the British in 1779 and captured after a single day of battle. During the years following the Revolution, the fort fell into disrepair.

In the War of 1812, Sunbury, like Georgia’s other ports, was yet again under threat from the British Fleet. For years leading up to the war, the U.S. War Department had contemplated the placement of gun batteries to defend Sunbury. But the State of Georgia failed to grant any land for a site and the federal government had been unable to secure ownership of suitable land for such defenses.

Naval Defense

To allay the imminent threat of British attack, in early 1812 the US Navy sent six armed boats built at Charleston to Sunbury, Georgia. The design of these small gunboats is uncertain. They may have been row galleys similar to those built in 1813 at the Washington Navy Yard by naval architect William Doughty, about 50 feet in length and 12 feet in the beam, with a depth of 3 feet, 6 inches. Sunbury resident John Stevens recalled “it was a beautiful sight of a clear day to see them sailing down to the sound and back again.” At least some of the American gunboat fleet were sloop-rigged for sailing, such as Gunboat No. 68, which at times escorted American merchantmen crossing St. Catherine’s Sound off of Sunbury.

At Charleston, these boats had been commanded by white officers and manned by a crew of enslaved black sailors, typical of “the common use of slaves in maritime pursuits in the South.” But the US Navy Commander at Charleston wrote, “They are slaves belonging to this port… and not to be taken out of the State [of South Carolina].” (The Naval War of 1812, Volume 1, Chapter 2). The experienced African-American sailors were replaced with white crews pressed into service.

The gunboat officers and their new crews were ill-qualified as sailors. At Sunbury, discipline was non-existent and the navy men frequently deserted. The little fleet was struck by sickness and death. One sailor’s hand was blown off when his gun exploded while he was “firing at negro hutts in a drunken frolic.” Another man was killed in a brawl. The boats were short of gunpowder and equipment. “After six months on station with little or no supplies, the barges and their crews departed from Sunbury” (Smith, G. J., 1997). Historian Gerald Smith observed, “Unfortunately for the government and the people of Sunbury, the expedition came to a disappointing end because of poor planning, negligent leadership, and a serious lack of supplies. The failure of the Sunbury expedition left the Georgia coast open for British attack.” (New Georgia Encyclopedia)

Now it was up to the Georgia Militia and men like Dred Newbern to defend the port of Sunbury.

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Berrien Minute Men, Whisky & Harlots

September 2, 2023 at 1:20 am (Berrien Minute Men)
Tags: 29th Georgia Infantry Regiment, Ann C.W. Moore, Anna Edwards, assignation house, Assistant Commissary of Subsistence, Berrien Minute Men, Betty C. McLain, Camp Tattnall, City Council of Savannah, Fannie Fall, George S. Webb, gonorrhea, Guyton Hospital, Hetty Sabatti, house of ill-fame, John Carroll Lamb, lewd house, Mary Powers, Mary Thorpe, Prostitution, Robert P. York, Savannah GA, Savannah Hospital No. 1, Syphilis, Thomas County Volunteers, Washington Franklin Stark, William Sanger

Two companies of men sent forth in the Civil War from Berrien County, Georgia were known as the Berrien Minute Men. For the most part, both companies of Berrien Minute Men traveled with the 29th Georgia Regiment and kept the same campfires, although occasionally they had different stations. The campfires of the Berrien Minute Men were made for most of 1862 at coastal defenses around Savannah, GA.

In February 1862, Berrien Minute Men Company D, and other companies of the 29th GA Regiment were ordered to Camp Tattnall, near Savannah, GA. The Captain of Company D was John C. Lamb, he having been elected to that position October 14, 1861. The camp was south of Savannah and east of the White Bluff Shell Road. It was named in honor of old Commodore Tattnall, who was ‘the hero of the age” and the senior officer of the Navy of Georgia.

Many happenings at Camp Tattnall were recorded in a wartime diary kept by Washington F. Stark (1829-1897), Assistant Commissary of Subsistence for the 29th Georgia Regiment.

Washington Franklin Stark, Assistant Commissary of Subsistence for the 29th Georgia Regiment.

Stark had initially joined the 29th Regiment as a private in the Thomas County Volunteers, but as Assistant Commissary of Subsistence he held the rank of Captain. The Commissary Department was in charge of all food or subsistence supplies at a military post. Subsistence supplies were divided into two parts: subsistence stores, consisting of rations, such as meat, flour, coffee, candles, etc., and commissary property, which was the necessary means of issuing and preserving these stores, such as stationary, forms, scales, measures, tools, etc.

Stark’s diary frequently included his observations on men whose service was lost to illness and occasionally on those lost to vice. In the spring of 1862, he briefly ruminated on the fate of an unnamed soldier of Captain John Carroll Lamb’s company of Berrien Minute Men.

[Camp Tattnall] April 15th [1862]
…One of Capt. Lamb[‘s] men got on a spree the other day, Visited some house of ill fame, got the venereal disease and was carried to the Hospital where he jumped out at the window and broke his leg which has to be amputated. There is not much chance for him to recover. He was one of the stoutest men that he [Captain Lamb] had. So much for Whisky & harlots.
Diary of Washington F. Stark, Assistant Commissary of Subsistence, 29th Georgia Regiment

Another soldier of the 29th GA Regiment from Captain Turner’s company, Berry Infantry, was sick in the hospital with Gonorrhea, first at Hospital No. 1 in Savannah, then transferred on April 7 to Guyton Hospital at Whitesville, GA.

Prostitution in Savannah

Historian Tim Lockley observes in his study of Savannah, “The large numbers of Confederate soldiers in the city…no doubt increased demand for the services of prostitutes,” while the disruptions of families and economic distress caused by the war forced more women to prostitute themselves for survival.

“Prostitute” was listed as the occupation of some Savannah, GA women in the Census of 1860. Enumerators were more apt, at least in some cases, to list known prostitutes under the guise of residents of “ladies’ boarding houses.”

Prostitution [was] a profession that was well established in Savannah. In 1808 the local Grand Jury abhorred “the various houses of ill fame in our city from which issue many of the mischiefs that interrupt our peace. it is here our youth are corrupted. It is here that the sacred ties of marriage are forgotten, and the foundation of diseases laid, which shall continue to be felt to the third and fourth generations.”
As in many other port cities Savannah’s prostitutes found a ready clientele in the crowds of visiting sailors who spent their wages while on shore for a few days in the bars and brothels of Bay Street and Yamacraw.” The city authorities seem to have been fairly phlegmatic about prostitution. In 1855 the chief of police noted in his annual report that the easternmost wards of the city were home to “five large houses of ill fame, besides numerous small ones” while the western part of the city contained “four noted houses of ill fame.” Nothing in his report suggested that the chief of police intended to take action against these establishments. The following year the mayor replied to a request for information on prostitution in Savannah from New York physician William Sanger. He reported that ” In this city there are fifteen houses of prostitution, three assignation-houses, ninety-three white, and one hundred and five colored prostitutes.”
“Survival Strategies of Poor White Women in Savannah, 1800—1860.”

In July 1861, George Webb and other citizens of Savannah petitioned the City Council of Savannah to take action to remove brothels from the town.

Clipping from the Savannah Daily Republican July 17, 1861 regarding a petition to the city council requesting removal of a brothel.

Petition
Of George S. Webb and others, stating to [Savannah City] Council that the occupants of the house of ill fame in State Street, between Drayton and Abercorn streets, have not been removed, and asking Council to take action in the matter. On motion, the above was referred to the Marshall for action in the premises.
Savannah Daily Republican, July 17, 1861

…It seems clear that brothels often masqueraded as ladies’ boarding houses. Mary Thorpe and Fannie Fall, for instance, were both indicted for “keeping and maintaining a lewd house” by the Superior Court in 1860, yet the census listed them as operating ladies’ boarding houses…The Grand Jury complained in 1864 about “the intrusion into the more public and respectable streets of the city, of houses of ill fame…subjecting our families to sights and scenes which disgrace their presence and outrage their feelings.”
“Survival Strategies of Poor White Women in Savannah, 1800—1860.”

Over the course of the Civil War, sexually transmitted infections reduced the effectiveness of fighting units in the US Army and the Confederate States Army.

Syphilis and gonorrhea, infections spread through sexual contact, were almost as dangerous to Civil War soldiers as combat. At least 8.2 percent of Union troops would be infected with one or the other before war’s end—nearly half the battle-injury rate of 17.5 percent, even without accounting for those who contracted a disease and didn’t know it or didn’t mention it—and the treatments (most involved mercury), when they worked, could sideline a man for weeks.
THE CIVIL WAR, A Smithsonian magazine special report

The incidence of sexually transmitted disease among Confederate soldiers is not known.

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Malaria at Clements Sawmill

August 5, 2023 at 1:17 am (African American, Clements Family, Remedies and Medicine)
Tags: Clements Lumber Company, Clements Sawmill, Dr. H.W. Clements, Dr. Mannie Alamanza Fort, Gambusia, Georgia Division of Malaria Control, Georgia State Board of Health, Malaria, Melvin W. Rivenbark, miasma, Mosquito Minnow, mosquitoes, Pandemic, Quinine, Quitman GA, Southern Farmer's Burden, Standard Treatment for Malaria, U.S. Public Health Service

Ray City Employer Orders Mandatory Treatment for Malaria

In 1920, practically every employee of the Clements Lumber Company sawmill at Ray City, GA was sick with Malaria. In April 1921, the superintendent of the sawmill ordered that every resident of the company town must take the mandatory treatment for Malaria or leave the town. The timing was significant because the usual, annual epidemic of malaria began in May. The Georgia Board of Health report on malaria advised, “There is little variation from year to year in the beginning of the malarial epidemic. Anti-malarial measures should be adopted in the early spring when the mosquitos begin to hatch. To wait until summer means an increase in the mortality from that disease.”

The ‘sawmill town’ had grown up on the outskirts of Ray City to house the sawmill workers and their families. The Sawmill Census of 1920 shows there were 78 households with 313 residents living in rented homes at the sawmill; more workers lived in the surrounding area and in the town of Ray City. Sixty-five percent of the sawmill laborers were black. The superintendent of the mill was Melvin W. Rivenbark. The local physician supervising the treatment, Dr. H.W. Clements, reported outcomes in a letter the Georgia Board of Health.

“Southern Farmer’s Burden” poster about the Georgia State Board of Health’s efforts against malaria among African American rural workers, United States Public Health Service, 1923. Southern Farmer’s Burden depicts a white farmer toiling under the load of carrying his cotton bale while a lethargic black worker rides on top, sick from the bite of a Malaria mosquito. In response to high rates of malaria among rural blacks, the Georgia State Board of Health appealed to white farmers to provide adequate housing to their African American workforce. Black laborers in the South typically lived in poor quality housing near swampy land – a perfect breeding ground for malaria-carrying mosquitoes.
Courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, MD, photo no. 90-G-22-4

Malaria in Ray City was just a tiny part of the world-wide malaria pandemic that killed millions of people. Few Americans today can recall the devastating effects of malaria, since a massive public health effort eradicated the disease from the United States in the 1940s. Today, the CDC estimates annually there are still 241 million cases of malaria worldwide and 627,000 people die from malaria every year, mostly black children. Throughout history, malaria has been responsible for more human deaths than any other disease.

Malaria is a mosquito-borne disease caused by a parasite in the blood. People with malaria often experience fever, chills, and flu-like illness. Left untreated, they may develop severe complications and die. The term malaria originates from Mediaeval Italian: mala aria—”bad air”, a part of miasma theory; the conventional wisdom prior to germ theory was that all diseases were carried by “miasma” vapors, which were believed to emanate from marshy areas. The disease was sometimes called ague or marsh fever due to its association with swamps and marshland. In earlier times malaria caused the abandonment of entire Georgia towns. The state capitol of Georgia was moved from Milledgeville to Atlanta because of malaria. In the Antebellum South, malaria accounted for almost eight percent of all deaths.

Malaria is commonly associated with poverty and has a significant negative effect on economic development. Poor quality housing without screening and situated in or near mosquito-infested areas combined with lack of access to effective treatments or healthcare significantly increased risk of the disease. The effects of malaria on Southern blacks were disproportionate since they were more likely to live in these conditions. In fact, in 1920 blacks were twice as likely to die from malaria as whites. (For similar reasons, contagious diseases in general had a disproportionate effect on blacks. In 1900, black laborers suffered an outbreak of smallpox in Berrien County.)

People with malaria can usually expect a complete recovery, if properly treated. However, severe malaria can progress extremely rapidly and cause death within hours or days. In the most severe cases fatality rates can reach 20%, even with intensive care and treatment. The death rate among children is three times that of adults. Over the longer term, developmental impairments have been documented in children who have had episodes of severe malaria. Studies (Hong, 2008) have shown that survivors were significantly shorter in adulthood, as a result of malnutrition driven by childhood malaria infections. Because of an immune system disrupted by malaria infections, they were more susceptible to other contagious diseases. Adults infected with malaria were more likely to develop chronic health conditions later in life. “For children, malaria could reduce attendance at school and deteriorate their learning ability by impairing cognitive development, performance, and behavior. For adults, it could reduce productivity at work and hinder economic development through its impact on wages and profits”

Malaria eradication in the U.S was largely due to the U.S. Public Health Service’s campaign for mosquito control and malaria treatment. Mosquito control used indoor and outdoor residual poisons, largescale drainage projects, improved housing conditions including window screens, and introduction of mosquito-eating Gambusia minnows into open bodies of water. In the 1920s, a “Standard Treatment” for malaria was developed, involving an eight week course of daily doses of quinine.

Dr. Mannie Alamanza Fort, a physician from Quitman, GA was serving as Director of the Division of Malaria Control for the Georgia State Board of Health reported the following in the 1921 bulletin of the U.S. Public Health Service:

In the spring of last year [1920] we secured an order from the superintendent of a big mill at Ray City, requiring every man, woman, and child in the town to take the standard treatment or move. The following from the local physician tells the result: 

Correspondence from Dr. Clements, Ray City, GA

Dr. M. A. FORT, Atlanta, Ga.
Replying to yours of September 26, will say: In 1920 we had at Clements Lumber Co.'s mill some 300 cases of malaria. Beginning in April of 1921, after we had had some 30 cases, we applied the eight weeks treatment universally. The malaria subsided suddenly. I moved from Ray City August 7 of this year, and up to that time there had not been a case of malaria, and if there had been any since I would have heard of it. There is only one thing to do along these lines, and that is the eight weeks treatment. Thanking you for your help in this matter, I remain,
Yours respectfully,
(Signed) H. W. CLEMENTS

U.S. Public Health Service poster: "Quinine kills malaria germs" 9 September 1920 — U.S. Public Health Service poster: “Quinine kills malaria germs” 9 September 1920

No observations were reported on the contribution of environmental factors in the transmission of malaria at the Clement’s sawmill: proximity to stagnant water, poor quality housing, or lack of window screens. The sawmill was about 1 mile north of Ray City, situated along the boggy margin of Batterby Creek and adjacent to an impoundment pond covering approximately 11 acres. Given the rates of infection it seems unlikely that the rental houses in the “sawmill town” were provided with screens. The 1921 report of the Georgia State Board of Health observed “In the malarial belt the laborer living in a rented house whose landlord will not furnish screens becomes at once a menace to the public health and also a municipal burden.” Surely, they meant “The landlord who will not furnish screens creates a menace to the public health….”

U.S. Public Health Service malaria poster: "Keep mosquitoes out, and avoid malaria" promoting the use of window screens for protection against malaria-carrying mosquitoes. — U.S. Public Health Service malaria poster: “Keep mosquitoes out, and avoid malaria”

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Ray City History Blog

A Boy Soldier in the Berrien Minute Men (continued)

A Boy Soldier in the Berrien Minute Men

Dr. Woodard and the Charter of Adel, GA

Dr. Woodard and the Charter of Adel, GA

Hog Law

Professor R.C. Woodard

Dr. Robert Crawford Woodard (1867-1949)

Early Life

War of 1812: Bowling’s Detachment

War of 1812: Bowling’s Detachment

Bowling’s Detachment

Etheldred Dryden Newbern: March to Sunbury

Bowling’s Detachment

To Sunbury, GA

Bryan Church

Kings Ferry

Midway Church

Sunbury, GA

Naval Defense

Berrien Minute Men, Whisky & Harlots

Prostitution in Savannah

Malaria at Clements Sawmill

Ray City Employer Orders Mandatory Treatment for Malaria

Ray City History

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