Carroll County GaArchives News.....One of the Oldest Settlers of Carroll County on the Past September 28 1887
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Candace Gravelle http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00023.html#0005680 September 11, 2004, 5:08 am

Atlanta Constitution Newspaper

The Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, Friday September 28, 1887 
THE STORY OF A PIONEER 

One of the Oldest Settlers of Carroll County on the Past 
From the Carroll GA Times 

The editor of the Times had a short but very interesting conversation with Mr. 
Appleton Mandeville one morning last week. 
He is one of our oldest and best citizens and it is very interesting to hear 
him tell of Carrollton and Carroll County half a century ago. 
Mr. Mandeville came to Carrollton in 1832 and has been right here since. He 
has seen and rejoiced in the county's prosperity and in the darkest hour of 
adversity he has stood by the town and county and helped to fight the great 
battle. Nearly all the men who were here then are gone and a rude pen or a 
simple tombstone marks their resting place. We can only call to mind a very 
few of these old pioneers. There is Honorable W.W. Merrell, Hon. Thomas 
Chandler, Rev. James Baskin, Judges Eli and J.C. Benson, and Henry R. 
Williams - - all the rest are gone. 
Mr. Mandeville did business here in copartnership with Mr. Sanford Kingsbery 
in 1832 and contined with him until 1837 when he bought Mr. K. out. He did 
business with the exception of a few years until he retired. When he came here 
there were very few houses where the city of Carrollton now stands. Where L.C. 
Mandeville's brick stores stand, there stood a resident house and two rude 
hotels were here, one where the Commercial now is, the other on the Benson 
corner. There were a few wooden storehouses  around the present square - -one 
where Rhudy & Spurlock's store now stands which was used by Mr. M. for a 
storehouse, one about where Simonton's brick store is and some few others. 
Where the present courthouse now stands there was a wooden structure where 
justice was dispensed to the very few people who inhabited the town and 
surrounding country. 
The Cherokee Indians had about all left for other climes, but few and far 
between were the white settlements. Mr. Mandeville says in going to Villa Rica 
about four or five settlements were about all that were passed. There was a 
small settlement where Judge V.B. McClure now lives and Rev. James W. Baskin 
occupied his present homestead near Concord M.E. Church. He says he traveled 
forty miles into Alabama and only came to six or seven settlements. Carrollton 
and Villa Rica were the only towns in the county and 
and Villa Rica at that time was the metropolis. The gold fever had broken out 
about 1830 and that had given Villa Rica a boon which had given her the start 
of Carrollton. Carrollton began to grow in 1850 at about which time the old 
seminary was built and from that time till 1857 when the excitement of the 
Savannah, Griffin and North Alabama railroad being built, Carrollton came up 
slowly. 
The anticipation of the railroad gave new life to the school boom that was 
given in 1850 and the town commenced her rise. 
This was cut off by the war and it was not till 1870 that Carrollton commenced 
in earnest to be a rival of the neighborhood citizens 
and towns. Mr. Mandeville has put in his money and worked to make Carrollton a 
city and now he rejoices to see her prosperity. 
Mr. Mandeville has a number of children who are classed with the best citizens 
of the state, county and town. 
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