Brooks-Liberty County GaArchives Biographies.....Chapman, David Fleming 1840 - living in 1913
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Joy Fisher http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00001.html#0000031 October 23, 2004, 10:46 pm

Author: William Harden
p. 933-935

   DAVID FLEMING CHAPMAN. A resident of Brooks county whose career of usefulness
has extended through many years is David Fleming Chapman, now living in Barwick
village. At the beginning of his career he was a soldier of the Confederacy, has
served more than forty years as a justice of the peace and for shorter periods
in other office of honor and trust, and has spent many profitable years in
farming or in business.

   Mr. Chapman was horn in Liberty county, Georgia, April 5, 1840, and
represents one of the oldest families of this state. Of the original stocks that
settled in Georgia during the colonial period, the Scotch-Irish contributed many
fine qualities of industry and civic ability, and it was to this racial stock
that the Chapmans belonged. Mr. Chapman's great-grandfather was born in the
north of Ireland, where the Scotch-Irish originated, and was one of seven sons.
The oldest got the ancestral estate and all the other six emigrated to America,
two settling in New York and the others in the Carolinas and Georgia. The
greatgrandfather located in McIntosh county, Georgia, and from there volunteered
his service to the forces fighting for the cause of independence, and lost his
life in a battle that occurred two miles from Savannah. He was twice married,
having three sons by his first wife, and by his second had one, named Francis,
who was an infant when his father was killed in battle.

   Francis Chapman, the grandfather, was born in McIntosh county, and after
reaching manhood's estate became one of the pioneer settlers of Liberty county,
where he secured a large tract of land and was engaged in farming and stock
raising until his death which occurred when he was seventy-two years of age. He
kept a number of slaves and was one of the prosperous planters of his time. He
married Mary Leigh, who was born in Tattnall county and who died in Liberty
county aged eighty-six. She had ten children, all of whom grew up, and their
names were Keziah, John, Mary, Jemima, Emily, Nancy, James, Nathaniel, Sheldon
and Rosina. The descendants of Francis and Mary (Leigh) Chapman are now
scattered through various localities of Georgia and elsewhere. They formerly
held occasional reunions.

   John Chapman, one of the children of Francis and Mary Chapman, was born in
Liberty county, April 15, 1810, and was reared on the home farm in that county.
He possessed a genius for mechanics, and with his own hands fabricated many of
the tools used on his farm, and did all his own blacksmithing. He took up state
land and also bought large quantities until at one time he was the owner of
upward of six thousand acres. With the aid of his slaves he carried on general
farming and stock raising on an extensive scale. He was eighty-six years old
when he died. The maiden name of his wife was Elizabeth Delk, who was born in
Liberty county and died at the age of seventy-five. Her father, David Delk, a
native of Scotland, came to America and at the age of fourteen enlisted in the
continental army as a drummer boy, serving seven years in the struggle for
American independence. Among other campaigns he was present at the siege of
Quebec. John Chapman and wife reared thirteen of their fifteen children, named
as follows: Martha, Francis, John, Samuel N., Thomas J., Mary, Columbus,
Elizabeth, Sheldon W., Ferdinand, Ann Eliza, Clifford, Talulah and David F.

   Reared and educated in his native county, David F. Chapman began his career
by teaching school for three terms. He had barely attained his majority when the
war broke out, and on the 14th of August, 1861, he enlisted in Company I of the
Twenty-fifth Georgia Infantry. He served in the coast defense of this state
until honorably discharged on account of ill health. Returning home he was for
some time station agent and express agent and also postmaster at Ludowici
station in Liberty county. In 1866, having resigned from these positions, he
moved to Brooks county and went into the merchandise business with his
father-in-law and later by himself at Okapilco. He held the office of postmaster
there for the long period of twenty-four years, and during that time was also
engaged in farming. His residence at Okapilco con-tinned until 1906, in which
year lie moved to Barwick, his present home. In 1868 Mr. Chapman was elected a
justice of the peace. During a few months' residence in Quitman he had resigned
this position, but with that brief exception has served continuously as a
justice for the past forty-four years. In 1900 and 1910 he was census enumerator
for his district, and has taken the census for three decades, having been
substitute enumerator in 1890. He is a Democrat in politics and has long been
one of the influential citizens of his community. He and his wife are members of
the Primitive Baptist church, with which he has been identified for a period of
thirty-seven years.

   Mr. Chapman married in 1866 Martha Frances Wade. She was born in Dooly
county, Georgia, and her parents, Judge Elijah and Elizabeth (Reddick) Wade, who
were natives of Screven county, moved from Dooly county to what is now Brooks
county in 1854, settling on a farm in Dry Lake district, where they spent the
rest of their lives. After the death of Mrs. Chapman's mother, her father
married for his second wife Mrs. Mary Peacock, widow of Dr. Peacock. Mrs.
Chapman's brothers and sisters were named as follows: Mary, Lucy, Philip,
Mitchel, Wesly Beaureguard, and her children named: Cornelia, John W., Mary J.,
David S., James E., William Francis, Samuel N., Henry V. and Anna C. All are
married with the exception of two sons, and all are doing well.


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

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