Category Archives: Rocky Ford GA

Dixon Branch Missionary Baptist Church, Screven County

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A white building labeled 'Dixonbranch' with a porch and surrounding greenery, set against a backdrop of trees and a grassy area with visible grave markers in the distance.

Dixon Branch Missionary Baptist church is a historic Black congregation near Rocky Ford, organized by freedmen on 27 June 1871. The name refers to Dixon Branch, a nearby tributary of the Ogeechee River. There were many plantations in this area, and after emancipation, formerly enslaved people who had once been forced to worship with their enslavers desired their own places of worship. They likely met in a brush arbor for their earliest services but eventually built a formal church (circa 1900), which was a typical white clapboard structure, with a “wedding cake” steeple to the left. That structure was replace by the current building, but I haven’t been able to confirm a date.

A peaceful cemetery scene with several gravestones and flowers, shaded by a large tree, surrounded by green grass and trees in the background.

The small historic cemetery features a variety of memorials, ranging from vernacular to commercial, and many of the early families still have ties to the congregation. The examples presented here are completely random.

A weathered gravestone partially obscured by fallen leaves and surrounding foliage, featuring the engraved name 'F.J. Nelson.'
F. J. Nelson (birth and death dates unknown)

This simple marker memorializes someone who is now lost to history. I am always hopeful that someone will know these forgotten souls.

A weathered gravestone surrounded by tall grass and small plants in a cemetery.
Maud Singleton (21 May 1888-March 1897)

This memorial is of a typical vernacular style, featuring stenciled letters with a floral design. Maud Singleton was the young daughter of M. H. and G. A. Singleton.

A cemetery with several tombstones visible in a grassy area. In the foreground, a tall gravestone for R. Rease, born August 15, 1847, and died June 22, 1917, is prominently displayed next to a smaller stone marker.
R. Rease (15 March 1842-22 August 1907)

This commercial monument contains the sentiment: “A kind wife mourns in thee, a husband lost. The poor, a friend who felt, what friendship cost.”

Close-up of a gravestone with inscriptions indicating the date of birth and death, surrounded by grass and various flowers in the background.
Johnson Bradley (8 February 1868-9 March 1925)

Mr. Bradley, a Prince Hall Mason, was born in South Carolina to Joe and Nancy Bradley. His wife’s name was Lydia. His memorial contains the sentiment “There is rest in heaven”.

A gravestone for Deacon Arthur Oldredge, featuring an engraved image of a robed figure and inscriptions with his name, birth and death dates, and a biblical quote.
Deacon Arthur Oldredge Burke (27 December 1889-22 July 1964)

Deacon Burke was obviously an important member of Dixon Branch Missionary Baptist Church. His memorial may be the nicest in the cemetery. It features a Sacred Heart of Jesus relief, which is most often associated with the Catholic faith, though it has been adopted by Christians of all affiliations.

Gravestones of Rev. James and Ruby Cail in a cemetery, decorated with flowers and a small American flag between them.
Rev. James Cail (7 October 1931-30 November 2017) and Ruby Cail (28 July 1933-3 December 2015)

Rev. James and Ruby Cail led Dixon Branch Missionary Baptist Church for many years. A rosary adorns Mrs. Cail’s memorial.

A small building with a white exterior and a sloped roof, featuring a covered porch and double doors at the front. The sign above the entrance reads 'DIXONBRANCH'. Surrounding the building is a green lawn and some shrubs, with a reserved parking sign on the right.

Rocky Ford Landing & The Foy Railroad, Ogeechee River

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One of the first things you’ll likely notice at Rocky Ford Landing is this abandoned railroad trestle. Damaged by an Ogeechee River flood in 1902, it represents a tangible link to an era of South Georgia lumber barons who would do anything to distribute their product, even if it meant building their own railroads. A 10-mile “shortline”, it was constructed in the early 1890s by the E. E. Foy Lumber Company to connect his naval stores operations in Portal to the Central of Georgia line at Rocky Ford and was abandoned by 1905. The business was highly profitable but ultimately unsustainable. After extracting turpentine from the rich forests of the region, Foy cut the timber and sold off the property, but not before making a boomtown of Portal, still known today as the Turpentine City. A 1903 Statesboro News article noted: A quarter of a century ago, Bulloch was a great pine forest and majestic pines covered every hill and dale from the Ogeechee to the Canoochee. Enough pine timber was in the county to have built a modern New York…The turpentine men came first and the big and little trees were all boxed until today only a few tracks of virgin timber are standing and it looks like an oasis in a great desert. After the turpentine operations came the sawmill men and the standing timber was slain at an alarming rate, until now timber is a scarce article. The naval stores men are moving away to Alabama and Mississippi and the saw mills will soon have to follow them, yet it had its benefits in the way of opening hundreds of new farms and a great influx of population so that where the stately pines used to grow and sing their weird songs, cotton and corn now grow in wealth in their place.

It’s interesting to make a link to the history of the place while enjoying its natural charms. It’s a great spot to take a swim when the water is low enough and also a good put-in for a leisurely day of canoeing or kayaking.

Rocky Ford, Georgia

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After putting much of her personal wealth and energy into the restoration of her beloved hometown of Rocky Ford, Greta Newton is now offering its historic commercial core for sale. Without her passion for the history of this place, it would have suffered the same fate as so many of our forgotten small towns in Georgia.