Hist orical Tiotes o{ ^^' Class. Book. Historical Notes of riilledgeville, Ga. BY UIvRICH BONNELL PHII.UPS, Ph. D. Instructor in History in the University of Wisconsin m PUBLISHED IN TAe Gulf States Historical Magazine November, 1903 HISTORICAL NOTES OF MILLEDGEVILLE, GA. By Ulrich Bonnp:i.l Phillips, Ph. D., Instructor in History in the University of Wisconsin. Milledgeville was a fairl}' typical iinprogressive village in Middle Georgia; a town iii the midst of a region where town life was overshadowed by the prominence of the plantation system. The merchants and the innkeepers and perchance the lawyers, twirled their thumbs or whittled soft pine through- out the spring and summer, until with the arrival of autumn the neighboring planters began to drop in and market their cotton, and the politicians began to arrive from all directions to spend a month or two and make the laws of the land. Milledgeville owed its existence to a State enactment of ^ 1803, which ordered its survey as a town and gave it its cum- ' brous name, when its site was still a wilderness but recentlj^ surrendered ,by the Indians. It owed such commercial im- portance as it came to have to its location at the head of navi- gation upon the Oconee river. It was a collecting point for cotton bound for the sea, and a distributing point for manu- factures from Europe and the North. But the Savannah and the Ocmulgee were greater streams, v^ath better navigation, and the merchants of Augusta and later of I\Iacon* were more enterprising. The commerce of Milledgeville, when once de- veloped, remained purely local and almost stationary. The town owed its political importance to an act of the Legislature in 1804, which selected it as the .seat of the State government before a dozen cabins had been built within its limits. But in 1S68 the capital was removed to Atlanta, and Milledgeville lost its political prop. The building of railroads, wdiich put an end to the river traffic, had alread}^ destro3-ed the commercial advantage which its location on the river bank had secured in the early period. The town accordingly stag- nated through Reconstruction and the following decades. Within ver}' recent years Milledgeville has unexpectedly * Macon was founded in 1822, forty miles west of Milledgeville, and quickly asserted a successful claim to a share of the commerce of the in- tervening: territorv. taken a firm hold upon itself and has done surprising things — surprising, at least, for Milledgeville. Eli Whitney's invention of the cotton gin, in 1793, moulded the subsequent history of Middle Georgia. The early settlers had lived as small farmers, raising corn and wheat and a little tobacco. But from 1800 the production of cotton grew so rapidly in importance that within a decade it over- shadowed all other forms of industry. The tide of immigra- tion was changed in character. Virginia and North Carolina planters left their tobacco lands for the more inviting cotton belt. They brought their slaves with them, and slave traders brought still others from the older States and the sea coast and sold them in the cotton region. By 18 10 the number of blacks in the vicinity of Milledgeville was about equal to that of the whites. As late as 1821 the Indian country was only a day's march to the west. Society in this region near the frontier was in the main primitive and rough; but a sprinkling of great planters gave here and there some atmosphere of dis- tinction and culture. Except for the great export staple there would have been little use for merchants or towns. But cotton had to be mar- keted, and Milledgeville was one of the centers. From the treaty of peace with England in 1815 to the great panic of 1837 there were flush times in the cotton belt. Planters and farmers and slaves fared well, and commercial towns grew with some rapidity; but the plantation advantages attracted the chief attention. Merchants and lawyers were fond of in- vesting their earnings in lands and slaves; for the profits in cotton were heavy, and, moreover, it was deemed more honor- able to be a planter than to follow any other calling. The towns could barely hold their own against the attractions of the country. Some of the townsmen who turned planters continued to live in town; but the ideal site for a home was thought to be in the midst of a grove upon the crest of a hill an hour or two's drive outside the town. The town, however, was on Saturdays and court daj-s and throughout the autumn the scene of nuich activity. Its .streets and shops and court house were places for the dissemi- nation of news and the forming of public opinion. The in- teraction between town and country sentiment and institutions was very close. And any insight into town conditions is to be valued as giving a glimpse of the life of the old South, now so difficult for the student to reconstruct with faithfulness. Milledgeville was incorporated by a legislative act of 1810. The town records, to be found in the town clerk's office in a state of neglect, extend from 18 16, with a few breaks, to the present. They afford an excellent view of the range of the official action of the town authorities, and here and there they throw unexpected light upon the customs and circumstances of the people. Among these records the town census of 1828 is a treasure, for it not only gives the number of inhabitants but also indicates the occupations of the people, and shows the number of slaves held by each family. The total population in 1828 is given at 1,599. Total whites, 831, of which 197 were males below 18 years of age; 288 were males above 18 years, and 346 were females. Of male slaves under 18 years old there were 176; above 18 years, 159; total male slaves, 335; female slaves, 413; total slaves, 748; free persons of color, 20; of which 8 were males and 12 females. Of 167 white families, 41 had no slaves; 12 had i each, 17 had 2 each, 25 had 3 each, 9 had 4 each, 13 had 5 each, 10 had 6 each, 11 had 7 each, 6 had 8 each, 5 had 9 each, 6 had 10 each, 3 had 11 each, 2 had 12 each, 2 had 13 each, i had 14, I had 15, I had 17, i had 18, i had 19, i had 21. Among the whites, 12 were attorneys, 6 physicians, 21 merchants, 16 shopkeepers, 9 innkeepers, 21 printers, 26 house carpenters, 2 joiners, 5 blacksmiths, 6 boot and shoe makers, 4 silversmiths and 8 tailors. The fact that the town was the State capital accounts for the large number of innkeepers and printers. The white households of the innkeepers were large, and they were, as a class, the largest .slaveholders in the town. They had slave- holdings of 5, 5, 6, 12, 12, 14, 17, 19 and 21, respectively. The printers, a few merchants and several attorneys also had relatively large numbers of slaves. But, of course, the great mass of the slaves was upon the plantations and beyond the reach of this census taker's inquiries. Eighty per cent, of the white families in the town had slaves for domestic service. John Marlow is listed with 3 white men and 7 slaves, all of whom were carpenters. James Camak had 6 slaves, among whom one or two are apparently listed as printers. William Y. Hansell had lo slaves, among whom one was a carpenter, one a blacksmith and one a cobbler. All free negroes are listed under the names of their white guardians. Their occu- pations are not stated. The census taker, who was also the town marshal, pos- sessed an inquisitive turn of mind. Though it was not set down in his instructions, he made jottings of fifteen prost-i tutes, all of whom appear to have been white women. Of course there was, in addition, a considerable number of occa- sional prostitutes among the negroes and mulattoes; but the police regulations over the slaves were too strict to permit any of them to be openly professionals. The large number of the women of the town was due to the residence of the host of legislators and other politicians in the town during the annual sessions of the General Assembly. The minutes of the corporation of Milledgeville extend through nearly the whole lifetime of the town. They contain a record of the enactment and the enforcement of town ordi- nances, and the conduct of the town's finances and general administration. Here and there the}' give glimpses of the course of public opinion. The following notes are illustra- tive: Iteyn, July 30, 1822. An ordinance, (i.) No slave may live off the lot inhabited by his owner or employer. (2.) No .slave may hire his own time from his master or contract to labor for any other person. (3.) No person of color may keep spirituous liquors for sale, and none may keep any horse, cow or hog for his own use. (4.) No free person of color may live in Milledgeville except with a guardian living in the town and a certificate of character and a bond for good be- havior. Not exceeding four washerwomen at one time shall be exempt from the provisions of this ordinance, and they only when specially licensed. Item, August 22, 1822. An ordinance. Articles (i) and (2) of the above ordinance of July 30 are suspended until De- cember 15 in the case of slaves provided with certificates of character and covered by bonds for good behavior. Itcin, February i, 1823. An ordinance for a patrol. Or- dered that the marshal divide the whole list of citizens sub- ject to patrol duty into thirty squads, and that each squad do patrol duty for one night in each month. Exemption from patrol duty maj^ be purchased at $6 per year. Item, March 22, 1S23. Fines of $1 each are imposed up- on fifteen citizens for failure to perform patrol duty. Item, January 7, 1824. Treasurer's report. Amount re- ceived in 1823 in fines for failure to do patrol duty, $40.50, Item, January 12, 1824. An ordinance repealing the above ordinance of Februar}' i, 1823. Item, January 31, 1831. An ordinance providing a new system of patrol. Ordered that the marshal and three sar- geants with salaries of $100 a year shall command the patrol in succession. Five citizens are to serve each night. The patrol is to continue from 9 p. m. to 3 a. m. Persons failing to patrol or furnish substitutes are subject to fine from $1 to $5. Item, Februar}^ 2, 1825. An ordinance for organizing a town guard to replace the former patrol system. Citizens are permitted to volunteer and receive payment for services. The duty of the guard is to apprehend every slave between ten and sixty years of age found off his master's premises without a pass after the ringing of the market bell at night. Slaves apprehended are te be kept in the guard house till morning, and their owners notified. Each slave is to be released after twenty -five lashes on the bare back and the payment of $1 by the owner. 7/^;;/, June 14, 1825. An ordinance amending the above ordinance by exempting slaves from whipping for the first offense. Item, April 22, 1S31. Ordered that the Secretary serve a citation on Edward Gary and that the Marshal be directed to bring before this board a negro slave named Nathan belonging to the said Gary, on Monday next, to answer the charge of assault and battery, on one of the patrol of the town and show cause why punishment should not be inflicted. Item, April 24, 1831. In response to the above citation, Edward Gary appeared without the negro. He alleged that Richard Mayhorn had violated the ordinance of the town by transcending his authority as a Patrol. The evidence of witnesses was introduced to substantiate Gary's statement. The Board ordered that Richard Mayhorn be discharged from the service of the corporation. Item, July 13, 1831. A patrol reported riotous conduct on the part of a negro named Hubbard, and charged Hubbard with cursing, assaulting and bruising Billy Woodliff, (a slave of Seaborn Jones ?) at the door of Billy's shop. Billy Wood- liff, being sworn, related how Hubbard abused and bruised him with a rock. Robert Mercer and Mr. Winter also testi- fied. The fact was brought to light that Hubbard's attack upon Billy had been brought about by Billy having taken Hubbard's wife away from him. "The testimony being con- cluded, Mr. Wiggins addressed the Board in a speech contain- ing some lengthy, strengthy and depthy argument. Whereupon the Board Ordered that the negro man Hubbard receive from the Marshal Ten lashes moderately laid on, and be dis- charged." Item, February 12, 1830. Whereas, the Board has re- ceived information that Elijah H. Burritt has violated the statute of the last Georgia legislature by the introduction of certain insurrectionary pamphlets, resolved that the town marshall be directed to enter his name as prosecutor in the case, and that this Board will pay all expenses necessary to bring the offender to punishment. Item, September 13, 1831. Ordered that the marshall and deputies use increased vigilence with regard to our black population, and particularly that they do not fail to visit every place at which there is an assembly of negroes, and in the event of religious meetings to treat them as the law directs for unlawful meetings, unless there is present at least one white person accepted by the church to which the society be- longs. The rise of the abolition agitation in the North in 1829 and 1831, and the Nat Turner insurrection in Virginia, ac- count, of course, for the policy of the Board as indicated in the two items last noted above. Item, October 5, 1831. The negro man Nathan belonging to W. B. Hepburn, was brought before the board and exam- ined relative to a suspected insurrection among the blacks. Whereupon, after due consideratiou of all the circumstances, it was ordered that, as nothing criminal has been proved against him, he be immediately discharged. The yellow man Richard Rogers, a Preacher, was examined and likewise dis- charged. So also Aleck Reynolds, the Blacksmith, and Case- well, a blacksmith belonging to Peyton Pitts. The Board or- dered that, whereas, there has been considerable danger in the late excitement and alarm of an intention at insurrection, by firing guns "by persons carrying arms that were intoxicated," and by boys unable to bear arms, it be ordained that the mar- shall and patrols take away arms from intoxicated persons and boys and enforce the ordinance against firing arms in the streets. The examination of these negroes suspected of conspiracy in 1 83 1 and the trials of Nathan and Hubbard, noted above under dates of April 22 and 24 and July 13, 1831, appear to be the only instances recorded of negroes having been tried by the Milledgeville authorities for crimes or misdemeanors prior to the outbreak of the Civil War. Item, January 5, 1839. "On motion of Alderman Cook, Resolved, That the Marshal be and he is hereby required to pay over to the Council immediately after the passage of this Resolution, all monies received by him for superintending the Balls given by the colored people during the Christmas holi- days, and that he be instructed not to receive in future any compensation for such services. ' ' Item, December 19, 1839. Resolved, That the Board deem it improper to grant negroes the privilege of having balls at any other time than during the Christmas holidays, and then in the day time, and that no consent shall be granted ex- cept upon the application of the owners or guardians of the negroes. //