Tag Archives: Slavery in Georgia

Fergerson Cemetery, 1907, Guyton

Leave a reply

Fergerson Cemetery was established in 1907. Annie, Minnie, and Alice Fergerson gave the land to the city of Guyton to be used as a “colored” cemetery. There are nearly 500 marked graves. As is the case in many historic African-American cemeteries, there are many unmarked or poorly marked graves, but working with Lucy Powell, Pearl Boynes, Robert Hunter and Michael Garvin of the Fergerson Cemetery Committee, volunteer JoAnn Clarke has helped to document many of them.

Many handmade headstones can be found throughout the cemetery and these are important historical resources. I’ve documented a few random examples. I’ve attempted to edit them to make them more readable. Some turned out better than others.

Maria Dobson (1843-17 April 1934)

Maria Dobson was born in South Carolina, likely enslaved.

Willie Dobson (1878-1903)

Willie Dobson was the son of Maria Dobson (1848-1934).

Annabell McCloud (24 March 1878-4 February 1924)

Jimmie C. Griffin (5 September 1890-28 September 1940)

Jimmie C. Griffin was a Mason, indicated by the symbol on his memorial. He was the son of Will Griffin, a native of North Carolina, and Katie Dobson of Guyton. His wife was Amy Griffin.

James Macon (18 January 1881-1 May 1946)

James Macon’s memorial notes that he was a Mason and a deacon of his church.

Annie Eliza Bryant Cross (27 September 1860-23 September 1941)

This memorial appears to have been made by the same craftsman as James Macon’s, in the previous photograph. Though it’s difficult to see, there’s a star at the top. Her mother’s maiden name was Caroline Kent and considering her birthdate, Annie was likely born enslaved.

Beatrice Massey (5 June 1916-20 January 1939)

This marker has design elements in common with the previous two.

Rena Cuthbert (18 August 1889-24 April 1943)

Mrs. Cuthbert’s memorial features a star. This is a common motif in cemeteries, but is more often found in African-American cemeteries.

Claudie Cuthbert (?-18 October 1945)

Claudie Cuthbert was the husband of Rena Cuthbert. He was a deacon of his church and a Mason. This stone features a flower engraving, that’s difficult to see in the photograph.

James Ishmal Sheffield (1862-21 December 1929)

Mr. Sheffield was born to Abraham and Rosa Sheffield, both natives of Bulloch County. Considering the dates, they were probably all enslaved.

Ben Curry (17 December 1853-22 March 1905)

Mr. Curry was likely born into slavery and hopefully his memorial will be raised out of the ground so he won’t be forgotten. Thankfully, volunteers are working to restore all of these endangered markers.

Elgrie Hayes (9 April 1858-13 January 19170

Mr. Hayes was likely born enslaved, as well. Knowing these people’s names and when they lived is something that needs to be documented all over the state. Sadly, many are lost to time, so the surviving records, i.e. burial sites, must be remembered.

Samuel “Pop” Smalls, Sr. (1919-25 September 1997)

In contrast to the many vernacular memorials in Fergerson Cemetery is the crypt of Samuel Smalls, Sr., known as Pop Smalls. He was one of the most prominent members of Effingham County’s African-American community and served on the Guyton City Council. A World War II Navy veteran, he was the owner of Small’s Funeral Home and was involved in numerous social and civic organizations.

Greek Revival Farmhouse, Circa 1855, Twiggs County

Leave a reply

Ten years ago, this amazing house was hidden by saplings and one would have imagined its future to be uncertain. Luckily, someone has cleaned up the place and obviously appreciates its historical importance.

To me, it’s of a type house that I associate with the decade or so before the Civil War. In floor plan, it’s what is now called Georgian Cottage, but the Georgian Cottage is really just a “toned-down” evolution of the Greek Revival to me, and this house is certainly more Greek Revival than Georgian Cottage. In comparison to the Georgian Cottage I shared in the previous post, you’ll notice that this house is set on piers, has a much lower hipped roof, a wider layout, and not only a transom, but full-length sidelights, as well. The windows are six-over-six and there is a porch with square Doric columns.

As to farm house, it was certainly that. Considering the date, it was probably the center of a working plantation that was transformed into a tenant farm after the Civil War. And enslaved people would have surely been a part of the operation. Google Earth views from 2009 and 2013 show several outbuildings that have since been removed, likely due to poor condition.

It may have been associated with the Walker descendants or other area pioneers like the Griffins, Walkers, or Jordans. That’s just a guess and probably not even a good one. I’m just grateful someone cared enough to save it.

*- The 1855 date comes from real estate listings, and while such listings are often wildly inaccurate, I tend to think this one is correct.

Maynard-Cheeves-Childs House, Circa 1832, Monroe County

Leave a reply

The Maynard-Cheeves-Childs House is among the oldest in Monroe County. According to Jeunesse Millwood has been under resoration by the D. R. Millwood family since they purchased it in 1991. The wings were added in the 1920s, I believe. Jeunesse notes that her mother and late father have done a lot of research and meticulous restoration in what has turned into a long ongoing project. She says they have learned that the house either began or was completed in 1832. Originally by Thomas Maynard. His consort Sabrina died after giving birth to a daughter Susan and the baby a month later. Their graves remain on the property. Among other things it was used as a hospital during the Civil War as well as, we’ve been told, a hideout for escaping slaves. This would make sense as under the front foyer, there is a very large hole about 6ft x 6 ft. There was a trap door that once opened in the foyer but sadly, all the foyer flooring had to be replaced after the floods of 94 due to water damage. I believe the house eventually went to his son, Elijah, and then his daughter, Elizabeth Maynard Cheeves. Mrs. Flora or Florrie Childs, was a later owner. I’ll update when I learn more about the history.

This view from the west side is more akin to what the house would have originally looked like, even with the shed room at the back. With the Federal influence, there would not have been a porch of this configuration, either .

John Moore House, Circa 1827, Monroe County

Leave a reply

Though obscured by overgrowth today, the outline of the this early I-House, or Plantation Plain, is discernible. It’s one of the oldest houses in Monroe County and is also known as the Moore-Wright House. It was the center of a large working plantation and farm at one time. A shed portico with square columns was added to the facade in the 1950s but has collapsed, returning the house to its original appearance.

Saving the Adam Strain Building

6 Replies

When I heard in 2018 that the Adam Strain Building was slated for likely demolition, I felt anger, impending loss, and a sense of betrayal that a building with so many historical connections dating back at least 200 years could simply be allowed to go out like that. Despite being burned during the Civil War, it survived to become an unofficial symbol of Darien.

I was very aware of its endangered state, from photographs I made as early as 2009, a year after the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation brought attention to it by naming it a Place in Peril. And Darien friends who reached out over the years were cautiously optimistic, but mostly fearful, for what its future held.

I got an exciting message from one of those friends, Kit Stebbins Sutherland, in 2020. She was still cautiously optimistic, but said that the impossible had happened and the Adam Strain Building was going to be saved. Kit grew up in Darien with a mother who spent years creating an amazing photographic archive of its historic buildings and coastal landmarks, so her interest in her hometown is palpable. I breathed a sigh of relief.

Fast forward to the present and the restoration is in full swing. Milan and Marion Savic of Marietta are the new owners of the Adam Strain Building and the circa 1898 Bank of Darien [pink building to immediate left of Strain Building] and are doing everything right. They’ve emphasized the benefits of keeping everything as original as possible, especially protecting the tabby siding which is one of the distinct aspects of the Strain’s construction. It’s in the good hands of Ethos Preservation, Landmark Preservation, and Lominack Coleman Smith Architects. They’re doing the serious work of putting everything back into place and insuring the building is around for another 200 years. I hope to get more detailed photos in the near future, and will share them here.

West Darien Historic District, National Register of Historic Places

Dunwoody Cemetery, Darien

2 Replies
Rena P. Wilson (16 July 1869-17 August 1934). The text* on the stone is difficult to read, which isn’t an insult to the maker, but rather an indictment on the state of education available to black Georgians in the Jim Crow era. *Bon July 161869 -Di.d. Au 17 1934-Age 65 3-Mont 1 Day- At rest

The challenges facing African-Americans in tracing their ancestry have been widely publicized in recent years and among them is the absence of marked graves in cemeteries dating from the days of slavery well into the Jim Crow era. Groups like the Black Cemetery Network are working against time to research and document these important resources.

Dunwoody Cemetery, in a patch of palmetto and oak beside Interstate 95 near Darien, is a perfect example of such a place. The beautiful vernacular headstone of Rena P. Wilson, who was born just after slavery’s end, is the only memorial I could locate here. Most of the earlier markers were made of wood and are long lost to the elements.

The land where Dunwoody is located was originally part of a grant from King George II to Sir Patrick Houston dating to 1757. When the land was purchased by James Smith upon Houston’s death in 1798, it was named Sidon and became part of Smith’s network of profitable rice operations along Cathead Creek. A tabby plantation house, slave dwellings, and this slave cemetery made up the main part of the plantation, which was operated by Smith’s daughter, Elizabeth Dunwoody. All traces of the plantation are now gone, except this cemetery.

An Architecture All its Own: The Milledgeville Federal Style

2 Replies
The Homestead, Circa 1818.

Milledgeville is a great city to walk around, largely due to the architectural relics that populate its historic district. A standout is a local style considered so significant it was given its own name: Milledgeville Federal. This is meant to be a starting point for exploration and research.

Referring to The Homestead [above], architectural historian John Linley defined the style: [it] may well be the first house in America to utilize a narrow colossal-type portico with only two columns. Though never widely used, the style became so popular in the Milledgeville area that it is frequently referred to as the Milledgeville-Federal type of architecture. Also emblematic are cantilevered spiral staircases, side-gabled roofs and fanlight ornamentation. There are variations but these are central to the style, which is strongly rooted in Federal and Greek Revival architecture.

Blount-Parks-Mara-Williams House, 1818

The man most associated with Milledgeville Federal style architecture is John Marlor. Born in England, he came to Milledgeville by way of Charleston and was active from circa 1815 until his death in 1835. Daniel Pratt and Elam Alexander both apprenticed or collaborated with Marlor.

Dr. Charles Paine House, 1820

In Milledgeville, Georgia’s Antebellum Capital (Athens, UGA Press. 1978), James C. Bonner notes that most of Marlor’s construction labor was performed by seven enslaved men who were trained carpenters. This would have been common practice at the time. Most large houses built in the antebellum era can be attributed to slave labor.

Orme-Sallee House, Circa 1822

The Orme-Salle House is one of the finest illustrations of the style, due as much to its Palladian doors as anything else.

The Cedars, Circa 1822

The Cedars is a beautifully executed example of the Milledgeville Federal style. It serves as the Phi Mu sorority house today.

Brown-Stetson-Sanford House, Circa 1825

This structure once served as the Beecher-Brown Hotel and later the States’ Rights Hotel, hosting legislators when the body was in session. It has one of the most stylized porticoes of all the Milledgeville Federal style houses.

DeLauney House, Circa 1825

The DeLauney house is slightly less refined than other examples, but is definitely a work of the Milledgeville Federal school.

Isaac Newell House, Circa 1825

The portico on the Newell House is more Greek Revival than Milledgeville Federal, but it’s definitely an example of the style.

John Marlor House, 1830

This was the home of the architect himself. John Marlor built it as a gift for his second wife.

Masonic Temple, 1834

The only non-residential building of Marlor’s that survives is the Masonic Temple. It’s considered his finest work and, architecturally, of national importance.

The Milledgeville Federal style influenced other houses in the area, including notable examples: Rockwell [circa 1838], near Hardwick, and the Daniel Pratt-attributed Jones-Ross House [circa 1826] in Old Clinton, in Jones County.

Milledgeville Historic District, National Register of Historic Places

John Marlor House, 1830, Milledgeville

Leave a reply

An Englishman who came to Milledgeville via Charleston, John Marlor (1789-1835) developed the Milledgeville Federal style of architecture, of which this house he built for his wife Ann Carlton Marlor (1797-1845) in 1830 is a perfect example. These would have been among the most prominent homes in the capital when they were built and are still the pinnacle of domestic architecture in the city.

The house, now known as the John Marlor Arts Center, is one of four buildings which make up the Milledgeville-Baldwin County Allied Arts Center.

Milledgeville Historic District, National Register of Historic Places

Judge Alexander Speer House, Circa 1841, Forsyth

1 Reply

This home, one of the oldest in Forsyth, was built as a Greek Revival cottage by Judge Alexander Speer in 1841 [per 1990 Georgia Historic Resources Survey]. A.D. Hammond owned the house from 1857-1897. It was then sold to Judge H. L. Carson, who owned it until its purchase by Dr. John Oscar in 1906. It is believed that the Neoclassical porch and columns were added during Oscar’s ownership, circa 1910.

Willis Pentecost Menefee, Father of the Town of Palmetto

2 Replies

Major* Willis Pentecost Menefee (1814-1855) is considered the founder of Palmetto. His father, George Menefee (1762-1840), of Virginia, served in the Revolutionary War and was granted land in Jackson County, before moving to Talbot County. The elder Menefee is buried on the grounds of his plantation near Collinsworth Methodist Church in Talbot County. Willis Menefee established a plantation** in old Campbell County, near the site of present-day Palmetto and donated land for businesses, schools, parks and the Palmetto Methodist Church and gave all land necessary for the Atlanta and LaGrange Railroad. These gifts led to the creation and subsequent growth of Palmetto, part of Campbell County before its annexation into Fulton County.

This is actually the second resting place of Willis Menefee and his mother, Nancy Collier Menefee (1771-1852). They were originally buried on his plantation but re-interred in the Wayside City Park in downtown Palmetto in 1980.

*-I haven’t been able to locate a military record for Menefee, and therefore do not know whether the title of Major is an honorific or if it indicates actual service. Honorific titles were quite common among the upper class in the 19th century.

**-For descendants seeking slave records related to the Menefee family, I haven’t located any, but due to his status as a planter, he would have almost certainly been involved in this institution.