Brooks-Colquitt-Lowndes County GaArchives Biographies.....Lawson, Ashley 1810 - unknown
************************************************
Copyright.  All rights reserved.
http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm
http://www.usgwarchives.net/ga/gafiles.htm
************************************************

File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by:
Joy Fisher http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00001.html#0000031 October 20, 2004, 3:01 pm

Author: William Harden
p. 862-864

   ASHLEY LAWSON. A life-long resident of Georgia. Ashley Lawson gained
distinction not only for the active part he took in the development of the
agricultural interests of the southern part of the state, but as a splendid
representative of those brave men of old, who out of the dense forests of what
is now Brooks county established for themselves permanent homes. A son of John
Lawson, he was born in 1810, in Lawrence county, coming, probably, of Scotch
ancestry. Lawson is a common and an honored name in all parts of the Union, many
members of the family tracing their lineage back to one Roger Lawson, who
resided in New York state during the Revolution, and was murdered by the Tories,
he having reared eleven stalwart sons, who, as they grew to manhood, separated,
settling in different localities in the north, south, east and west.

   Born and brought up in North Carolina, John Lawson came when young to
Georgia, traveling thither in his own conveyance. He located first in Laurens
county, later coming south, and settling in that part of Irwin county which was
subsequently converted into Lowndes county, and now forms a part of Brooks
county. Purchasing land in the part now included in the Barney district, he
began the improvement of a homestead. The wild and heavily wooded country
roundabout was habited by wild animals of many kinds, and Indians were still
numerous and troublesome. He began the pioneer labor of clearing the land, and
raised his first crop on soil that had previously been used for the same purpose
by the redskins. There being no railways in this vicinity for years after he
came to Georgia, all surplus productions of the land had to be hauled to either
Saint Marks, Georgia, or to Newport, on the Tallahassee, the general custom of
marketing the goods being for a few of the neighbors to combine, and start with
a number of teams loaded with produce, taking along with them provisions and
cooking utensils, and camp by the way, on the return trip bringing home the
household supplies needed. Having improved quite a tract of land, John Lawson
occupied it several years, but later in life removed to Colquitt county, where
he spent his declining days, passing away at the age of eighty-seven years. His
wife, whose maiden name was Rachael Green, was born in North Carolina, and died,
at a good old age, in Colquitt county. They reared four children, as follows:
Eliza, Ashley, Greene, and Daniel.

   The oldest son of the parental household, Ashley Lawson, began in his
youthful days to assist in the arduous labor of redeeming a farm from the
forest, sharing both the pleasures and hardships of frontier life. Little do the
people of this day and generation realize what they owe to those brave spirits
of old, who first uprooted the trees, ploughed the sod, and made a broad track
for the advance of civilization. As a young man, Ashley Lawson joined a company
organized for protection against the redskins, and was an active participant of
the wars of 1836, when the Indians made their last stand in this part of
Georgia. He was past military age when the war between the states broke out, but
in 1864 he was called to the front, and, with the old and the young valiantly
opposed the advance of the Federal army into Southwest Georgia.

   Soon after attaining his majority, Ashley Lawson purchased land in Lowndes
county, and on the farm which he reclaimed from its virgin wildness spent the
remainder of his four score and four years of earthly life. During his active
career he saw Lowndes county grow from a wilderness into a quite well developed
farming country, with a railway passing through his own estate. He married
Cynthia Folsom, who was born in Burke county, Georgia, a daughter of Lawrence A.
Folsom, and granddaughter of William Folsom, who was born in England, and who,
as far as is known, was the only member of his family to come to America. He
settled in Virginia, and having purchased land lying on the Potomac river there
spent his remaining years.

   Born on the Virginia plantation, Lawrence Armstrong Folsom spent his early
life with his parents. Lured southward as a young man, he lived for a time in
Burke county, Georgia. In 1815, accompanied by three other enterprising and
adventurous young men, James Rountree, Drew Vickers and Alfred Belote, he came
to that part of Irwin county now included within the boundaries of Lowndes
county, blazing his way through the wilderness on horseback. After exploring a
considerable portion of South Georgia the quartet invested in government land,
Mr. Folsom buying a tract about a mile from Little river; Messrs. Rountree and
Vickers located near by; and Mr. Belote purchased land that included the present
site of the village of Mineola. Going back to Burke county for their families,
these gentlemen returned to Brooks county with their wives and children, making
the overland trip in carts drawn either by horses or mules, following Indian
trails a part of the way, at other times making their own path through the
trackless woods. Whenever they came to a stream too deep to ford, they swam
their stock across, and built rafts on which to take their carts and household
goods across. Those four families were pioneers in very truth, being the first
permanent white settlers of Lowndes county, more especially of its northern
portion. There were no mills in that section of the country for several years
thereafter, all the grain being ground in mills operated by hand. They kept
sheep and raised cotton, and the women used to card, spin and weave the homespun
material from which she fashioned all the garments worn by the family. The wild
game found in the forests furnished the early settlers with a. large part of
their subsistence, while acorns, beech nuts and walnuts were so plentiful that
the only need of feeding hogs was to keep them from growing wild, an occasional
meal serving for that purpose. Very little ready money was then in circulation
in the south, and in the newer settlements few store goods were used, salt,
sugar and coffee being the principal articles brought in.

   In the development of the community in which he located, Lawrence A. Folsom
took an active part, and on the homestead which he built up spent the remainder
of his life, passing away at an advanced age. His wife, whose maiden name was
Rachel Vickers, was born in Virginia, and died on the home farm, in Lowndes
county. They were the parents of nine children, as follows: William; John;
Maston; Randall; James; Elijah; Cynthia, who became the wife of Ashley Lawson;
Rachael, and Betsy.

   Mrs. Ashley Lawson attained the age of seventy-two years, having reared a
large family of children, namely: William, John, Hardy, James, Hugh, Greene,
Nancy, Lawrence, Ivey, Martha, Irvin, Susie and Jane. Six of the sons, William,
John, James, Hugh, Greene and Lawrence served during the war between the states
in the Confederate army. Hugh and Greene died while in service, and Lawrence was
severely wounded in battle.



Additional Comments:
From:

A HISTORY OF SAVANNAH AND SOUTH GEORGIA
BY
WILLIAM HARDEN

VOLUME II
ILLUSTRATED
THE LEWIS PUBLISHING COMPANY
CHICAGO AND NEW YORK
1913

File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/ga/brooks/bios/gbs370lawson.txt

This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/gafiles/

File size: 7.7 Kb