Burke County GaArchives History .....HIstorical Collections of Georgia 1854 ************************************************ 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: Linda Blum-Barton http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00003.html#0000645 November 11, 2004, 4:10 pm Pg. 282 BURKE COUNTY. This county was laid out as St. George's Parish in 1758, and the name changed to Burke, in honour of Edmund Burke, the great champion of American liberty, in 1777. In 1793, a part was added to Screven; and in 1798, a part to Jefferson. Length, 32 1/2 miles; breadth, 32 miles. Area, square miles, 1,040. The Savannah separates this county from South Carolina, and the Ogeechee from Emanuel. Briar Creek flows through its whole length, and is celebrated for the rich lands upon its borders. The soil is generally very productive, peculiarly adapted to cotton, corn, & c. Extract from the Census of 1850: --1,017 dwellings, 1,017 families, 2,757 white males, 2,359 white females; 80 free coloured males, 72 free coloured females. Total free population, 5,268. Slaves, 10,832. Deaths, 326. Farms, 712. Manufacturing establishments, 41. Waynesborough is the seat of justice. It is 80 miles east of Milledgeville. Incorporated in 1812. Alexander is a village of recent date, on the road from Waynesborough to Savannah. Burke Jail is noted for a battle which took place in 1779, between the British, commanded by Colonels Brown and McGirth, and the Americans, under the command of Colonels Twiggs and Few, in which the latter were victorious. In this engagement, Captain Joshua Inman, of the Americans, killed three of the enemy with his own hand. Miscellaneous. A house of worship now owned by the Methodists, called the Old Church, is six miles southeast of Waynesborough, on the old Quaker road leading to Savannah. It was formerly an Episcopal Church, and had a glebe of forty-seven acres. In 1770 and 1772, Rev. Alexander Findlay was rector of this Church. In 1773, Mr. Findlay, finding the church and parsonage not finished, left St. George's and went to North Carolina. In 1774, Rev. Mr. Seymour and Rev. John Holmes had charge of St. George's Church. In 1776, 1777, 1778, Rev. Mr. Holmes, rector. In 1780, Rev. Mr. James Brown, rector. * (From the Minutes of the Society for the Propagation of Religion in Foreign Parts.) It is said that, after the location of Waynesborough for the county site, the Justices of the Inferior Court passed an order that the Old Church building should be torn down, removed to Waynesborough, and converted into a court- house; and that this would have been done, but for a lawyer by the name of Allen, who said that the passage of Scripture would be fulfilled, which says -- "My house shall be called an House of Prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves." Pg. 283 Revolutionary Paper Connected With The History of Burke County. Wednesday, Sept. 28, 1774. We, the subscribers, inhabitants of the Parish of St. George, in the Province of Georgia, do hereby publicly declare that we entirely disagree to the paper containing certain resolutions which were drawn up in the city of Savannah, by some persons met there on the 10th of August, 1774; because, although many of us gave votes that Mr. Jones and Mr. Lord should go to the said meeting, yet it was because we were told that unless we did send some persons there, we would have the Stamp Act put in force. By these and such like arguments, we were prevailed upon to do what we did; but as we find we were deceived, and that the said meeting was intended to draw up a paper that we think reflects very improperly upon our King and the Parliament, and may be of bad consequence to this Province, and can serve no good purpose, we therefore declare that we do not approve of the said paper; and we give our dissent in this public manner. Signed, George Wells Peter Shand James Dayle Shadrach Barrow Daniel Thomas Gideon Thomas John Thomas Robert Henderson Francis Lewis Feyer John Red James Warren James Williams Samuel Red Alexander Berryhill Edmund Hill Charles Williams Thomas Pennington John Rogers John Anderson John Catlett David Greene John Pettygrew William Callett John Ratten John Frier James Davis William Milner Elijah Dix Samuel Berryhill Thomas Red John Bledsoe James Rae Joseph Gresham William Dayle Joseph Tilley Jos Thomas Drury Roberts Joel Walker James Red William M. Norell John Kennedy Frances Stringer Paul McCormick Humphrey Williams John Greenway Robert Blaishard Hugh Irwin Thomas Carter James Brantley William Whethers William Moore William Godbe Richard Curton William Curtox Philip Helvrston Elias Daniel Ephraim Odom Benjamin Brantley Thomas Grey Jeremiah Brantley John Greene John Burnsides Starling Jordan Patrick Dickey Zechariah Wimberly Stephen Lamb Benjamin Warren Solomon Davis John Gray Francis Hancock Pleasant Goodall Wade Kitts Daniel Logan Myrick Davis John Roberts Robert Douglass, Sen. Jesse Scruggs Henry Mills Joseph Moore Amos Whitehead John Robinson Ezekiel Brumfield Jacob Sharpe Clement Yarborough James Hunt Barnaby Lamb Seth Slockumb Lewis Hobbs John Forth Nathan Williams Edward Watters John Stephens Frederick Francis Moses Davis Arthur Walker Amos Davis Jacob Lamb Allen Brown Joseph Allday James Douglis Landman Ashbury Charles Golightly John Howell Bud Cade James Moore John Whitehead John Sharpe Thomas Odom William Hobbs John Thomas, Sen. William Young John Tillman Caleb Whitehead Robert Cade Among some papers loaned us by the late Major Twiggs, we found the following, the insertion of which we believe will be interesting to our friends in Burke:-- A Return of the First Battalion of Burke County Militia, agreeable to order, with its present situation and rank, with the number of effective men in each Company, and the number of arms, shot-bags, and powder-horns, for the year 1792. Captains 1st Lieut. 2d Lieut. No of Men. No. of Arms. Shot-Bags,&c Samuel White Hopkin Dye John McGomery 44 23 23 Willis Watson Lark Robinson Martin Martin 68 50 30 Dill Sapp Wills Davies Henry Bryant 48 30 30 Daniel Evans Wm. Martin Basil Gray 38 20 20 Chas. Kilbee Lemuel Lasiter John Tredwell 48 27 27 John Buford Nich. Stregles John McCarroll92 68 68 Wm. Edwards John Roberts John Wright 55 15 15 Wm. Coursey Wm. Parrimore John Salter 34 20 20 Laban Thompson Elihu Thompson Wm. Dunn 37 15 15 Benj. Matthews John Fryar Mich'l McCormick82 41 41 Noah Williams James Rawles Aaron Justice 43 21 21 Tho. Lewis. Additional Comments: Historical Collections of Georgia: Compiled From Original Records and Official Documents. Illustrated by Nearly One Hundred Engravings of Public Buildings, Relics of Antiquity, Historic Localities, Natural Scenery, Portraits of Distinguished Men, Etc., Etc. By The Rev. George White, M. A., Author of the "Statistics of Georgia." New-York: Pudney & Russell. Publishers. No. 79 John Street. 1854 File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/ga/burke/history/other/gms537historic.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/gafiles/ File size: 7.6 Kb