Sunbury, Georgia
Sunbury, Georgia | |
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Sunbury is a ghost town in Liberty County, Georgia. Established in 1758, the town was mostly abandoned by the mid-1800s.
The town is located on the south bank of the Midway River, in an area that was first settled by Europeans in the 1750s. The town was established in 1758 and quickly became an important
History
Early history
The area that would become the town of Sunbury was first settled by Europeans in 1752 by the families of Benjamin and Samuel Baker, from the British
Establishment of the town
On June 20, 1758,
The new town was named Sunbury, most likely after Carr's ancestral English home of Sunbury-on-Thames.[1] Variant names for the town included "Sunbery" and "Sunbury Landing",[8] and the harbor that separated Sunbury from a nearby small island was known as the Sunbury Channel.[1] Additionally, a small tidal stream located several miles from the settlement is known as Sunbury Creek.[1]
Around the time of its establishment, the town had five wharves operated by local merchant companies, which purchased goods from Savannah and transported them to the town via sloops.[3] In 1761,[note 3] the town became Georgia's second port of entry and quickly rose in prominence,[6] soon rivalling Savannah in terms of economic importance.[1][3] Discussing the town in a 1763 letter to Lord Halifax, James Wright, the governor of Georgia, wrote the following:[9]
I judged it necessary for his Majesty's service that Sunbury, a well settled place having an exceedingly good harbor and inlet from the sea, should be made a port of entry; and have appointed Thomas Carr collector and John Martin naval officer for the same. There are 80 dwelling houses in the place. There are considerable merchant stores for supplying the town and the planters in the neighborhood with all kind of necessary goods; and around it, for about 15 miles, is one of the best settled parts of the country.
The town had a
American Revolution
The town of Sunbury was a hotbed of pro-American sentiment in Georgia during the
The town was protected by the nearby Fort Morris, which had been constructed in 1756 to protect the European settlers from Creek Indians.[3] During the American Revolutionary War, Colonel John McIntosh replied to a British order to surrender the fort with the slogan, "Come and take it".[3][15] However, in 1779, the fort and town were both captured by British forces, who maintained control over the surrounding area for the duration of the war.[16] The fort was one of the last strongholds against the British during the war, which the British later renamed Fort George and, later, Fort Defense.[3] During this occupation, George Walton, another signer of the Declaration of Independence, was held as a prisoner of war before eventually being paroled.[3] Around 1781, the town had about 1,000 residents and numerous businesses occupying 300 acres (120 ha) next to the river.[3] However, during the British evacuation near the war's conclusion, the town and the fort were both burned by the troops.[16]
Post-Revolution and War of 1812
Following the war, in 1784,[3][17] Sunbury became the first county seat for Liberty County.[15][3] In February 1788, the Sunbury Academy was authorized and established several years later in 1793.[1] The school, located in King's Square, operated for about the next 40 years and was considered one of the most famous schools in the southern part of the state.[1] It was headed by The Reverend Dr. William McWhir, who was a friend of George Washington.[15] The town was officially incorporated on December 8, 1791,[1] during a time when other cities in Georgia, such as Augusta and Brunswick were also gaining self-government.[18] In 1792, Sunbury Road was laid out,[1] which made it easier for farmers in the area to transport their crops to the port.[9] The road connected Sunbury to Greensboro, Georgia, and was the longest vehicular route established in the state following the Revolutionary War.[1] In 1793, a post office was established in the town.[19] However, in the late 1790s, the county seat was transferred to Riceboro.[note 4] In 1804, the town was hit by a strong hurricane, and by the early 1800s, it had lost much of its trade to Savannah.[12]
During the War of 1812, British
Later history
The town's destruction by the British seriously damaged its economic importance, as it left the town in ruins and impoverished.
Notable people
- James Hamilton Couper, planter and slaver (d. 1866)
- John Jones, major (1749–1779)
- Maria Jane McIntosh, writer (d. 1878)
- John Elliott Ward, politician and diplomat (d. 1902)[3]
See also
Notes
- ^ Also spelled Medway River.[2]
- The Georgia Historical Quarterly lists four men aside from Carr who were involved in the town's establishment: Kenneth Baillie, John Elliott, James Maxwell, and John Stevens.[4]
- ^ The year is given as 1761 in several sources,[6][1][3] but one gives the year as 1762.[7]
- The Georgia Historical Quarterly giving the year as 1797,[3][17] while the New Georgia Encyclopedia gives the year as 1798.[16]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Krakow 1999, p. 216.
- ^ a b c Clarke 2005, p. 21.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa Love 2007.
- ^ Mallard 1918, p. 8.
- ^ a b Krakow 1999, p. 196.
- ^ a b c Coleman 1978, p. 13.
- ^ a b c Coleman 1991, p. 48.
- ^ Geographic Names Information System.
- ^ a b c d e f g Mallard 1918, p. 9.
- ^ Clarke 2005, p. 27.
- ^ a b Mallard 1918, p. 10.
- ^ a b c Clarke 2005, p. 22.
- ^ a b Coleman 1991, p. 66.
- ^ Smith 1900, p. 56.
- ^ a b c d Georgia Historical Society 2015.
- ^ a b c d Walker 2018.
- ^ a b Mallard 1918, p. 11.
- ^ Coleman 1991, p. 91.
- ^ "Post Offices". Jim Forte Postal History. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
- ^ a b c d e Smith 2014.
- ^ Coleman 1991, p. 102.
- ^ Liberty County 2014.
Sources
- ISBN 978-0-300-10867-5.
- Coleman, Kenneth (1978). Georgia History in Outline (3rd ed.). Athens, Georgia: ISBN 978-0-8203-0467-0.
- Coleman, Kenneth, ed. (1991). A History of Georgia (2nd ed.). Athens, Georgia: ISBN 978-0-8203-1269-9.
- "Sunbury". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. Archived from the original on November 14, 2021. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
- "Sunbury And Fort Morris". Georgia Historical Society. November 20, 2015. Archived from the original on April 7, 2022. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
- Krakow, Kenneth K. (1999). Georgia Place-Names: Their History and Origins (3rd ed.). Macon, Georgia: Winship Press. ISBN 0-915430-00-2.
- "Sunbury Cemetery". Liberty County. January 27, 2014. Archived from the original on January 17, 2021. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
- Love, Margie (October 16, 2007) [October 1, 2007]. "Sunbury: A once-thriving seaport". Coastal Courier. Archived from the original on April 7, 2022. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
- Mallard, John B. (March 1918). "Liberty County, Georgia: An Address Delivered at Hinesville, July 4, 1876". The Georgia Historical Quarterly. II (1). Georgia Historical Society: 1–21.
- Smith, George Gillman (1900). The Story of Georgia and the Georgia People, 1732 to 1860. Atlanta: The Franklin Printing and Publishing Co. ISBN 978-0-598-90282-5.)
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: date and year (link - Smith, Gerald Judson (September 25, 2014) [August 28, 2002]. "War of 1812 and Georgia". New Georgia Encyclopedia. Archived from the original on March 19, 2022. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
- Walker, Winston E. (August 2, 2018) [July 20, 2004]. "Liberty County". New Georgia Encyclopedia. Archived from the original on December 17, 2021. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
Further reading
- Jones Jr., Charles C. (1878). The Dead Towns of Georgia. Savannah, Georgia: Morning News Steam Printing House.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: date and year (link) - McCarthy, Kevin M. (1998). Georgia's Lighthouses and Historic Coastal Sites. Sarasota, Florida: ISBN 978-1-56164-143-7.
- Rhyne, Nancy (1994). Touring the Coastal Georgia Backroads. Winston-Salem, North Carolina: John F. Blair. ISBN 978-0-89587-111-4.
- Rogers, George A.; Saunders Jr., R. Frank (1984). Swamp Water and Wiregrass: Historical Sketches of Coastal Georgia. Macon, Georgia: ISBN 978-0-86554-099-6.
- Russell, David Lee (2006). Oglethorpe and Colonial Georgia: A History, 1733–1783. Jefferson, North Carolina: ISBN 978-0-7864-2233-3.
- Sheftall, John McKay (1977). Sunbury on the Medway: A Selective History of the Town, Inhabitants, and Fortifications. Georgia Department of Natural Resources.
- "Archaeological Investigations at Fort Morris State Historic Site, Liberty County, Georgia" (PDF). Southern Research, Historic Preservation Consultants, Inc. August 2003. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 24, 2011. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
- ISBN 978-0-608-39968-3.