TAYLOR- Dooly CO., GA

Dooly County was created on May 15, 1821 by an act of the General Assembly. Dooly, Houston, Monroe, Fayette, and Henry County were created in that order by the Georgia Land Lottery Act of 1821, which was enacted at a special session of the General Assembly four months after the Creek Indians ceded lands between the Ocmulgee and Flint rivers on Jan. 8, 1821 in the first Treaty of Indian Springs.

Dooly County was organized by an act of the legislature approved Dec. 24, 1821. Later, portions of Dooly County were used to create the following counties: Worth (1853), Wilcox (1857), Crisp (1905), and Turner (1905).

Georgia's 48th county was named for Col. John Dooly (1740-1780), who commanded a regiment at the the Battle of Kettle Creek in 1779 and was killed at his home by Tories in 1780. The County Courthouse burned in 1847 destroying all records

Cities and Towns Includes the cities of Byromville, Dooling, Lilly, Pinehurst, Unadilla and Vienna. See Extended History for More information.

TAYLOR- "Webster's Blue Backed Speller"

Title Page




Noah Webster

As a teacher, he had come to dislike American elementary schools. They could be overcrowded, with up to seventy children of all ages crammed into one-room schoolhouses. They had poor underpaid staff, no desks, and unsatisfactory textbooks that came from England. The heating system was also a problem with one side of the room that was too cold and the other side that was too hot. Webster thought that Americans should learn from American books, so he began writing a three volume compendium, A Grammatical Institute of the English Language. The work consisted of a speller (published in 1783), a grammar (published in 1784), and a reader (published in 1785). His goal was to provide a uniquely American approach to training children. His most important improvement, he claimed, was to rescue "our native tongue" from "the clamour[10] of pedantry" that surrounded English grammar and pronunciation. He complained that the English language had been corrupted by the British aristocracy, which set its own standard for proper spelling and pronunciation. Webster rejected the notion that the study of Greek and Latin must precede the study of English grammar. The appropriate standard for the American language, argued Webster, was, "the same republican principles as American civil and ecclesiastical constitutions", which meant that the people-at-large must control the language; popular sovereignty in government must be accompanied by popular usage in language.

The Speller was arranged so that it could be easily taught to students, and it progressed by age. From his own experiences as a teacher, Webster thought the Speller should be simple and gave an orderly presentation of words and the rules of spelling and pronunciation. He believed students learned most readily when he broke a complex problem into its component parts and had each pupil master one part before moving to the next. Ellis argues that Webster anticipated some of the insights currently associated with Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development. Webster said that children pass through distinctive learning phases in which they master increasingly complex or abstract tasks. Therefore, teachers must not try to teach a three-year-old how to read; they could not do it until age five. He organized his speller accordingly, beginning with the alphabet and moving systematically through the different sounds of vowels and consonants, then syllables, then simple words, then more complex words, then sentences

TAYLOR- Houston CO., GA

Houston County (pronounced "how-stun") is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. It was created on May 15, 1821, as one of five huge counties, later reduced in the formation of Bibb, Crawford, Pike, Macon and Peach counties.

Houston County, in central Georgia just south of Macon, was created on May 15, 1821, through a treaty with the Creek Indians. Named for Governor John Houstoun, the spelling of the county later evolved to "Houston." The pronunciation, however, remains to this day "howston." Perry, the county seat, was incorporated in 1824. Warner Robins, the largest city, was incorporated in 1943, when a major military base was established nearby during World War II (1941-45). Centerville was incorporated in 1958.

Houston County was carved from the wilderness by an act of the state legislature as one of five huge counties.

The geographic center of the county was given the name Wattsville, which was later changed to Perry. Land was lost to the formation of Bibb, Crawford, DeKalb, and Pike counties. Later, more land was lost to Macon and Peach counties. Early settlers, mostly winners of the land lottery of 1821, came from the Georgia coast and from the Carolinas and Virginia to grow corn, wheat, potatoes, and garden vegetables in the rich sandy loam that makes up most of the county. Proximity to the Ocmulgee River made the exporting of cotton and the importing of manufactured goods a reality. Log cabins gave way to sturdy white farmhouses and plantations. Many of the settlements previously mentioned appeared and flourished as the railroad came, later in the nineteenth century.

Town of ELKO
History
The district around Elko, called the Old Thirteenth Georgia Military District, had been devoted mainly to cotton farming since Houston County was established in the 1820s. By spring 1888 the Georgia Southern and Florida Railroad (or GS&F) completed a line through Houston County. In the southern part of the county, the railroad passed near two older farm communities called Hickory Grove and Spoonville. The GS&F Railroad sold land lots for a new town with a railroad depot, and the community was first called "Elko" in 1889. The town of Elko was incorporated in 1891 with an elected mayor-council government.

The railroad depot was the center of business and social life in Elko, and crowds greeted the daily trains that ran from Macon, Georgia through Valdosta, Georgia to Palatka, Florida. Regular passenger service began in March 1890, and the line was acquired by the Southern Railway in 1895. Because of the railroad, Elko residents could go shopping in Macon and return home the same evening, or they could travel overnight to Florida and visit the resorts at St. Augustine.

In 1900 the town's population was estimated at 500. A newspaper, The Elkonian, appeared in 1899, and the Bank of Elko was founded in 1900.

The boll weevil blight had a devastating effect on the town's commerce. The Bank of Elko soon liquidated its assets and closed, followed by many other businesses in Elko. Local farmers switched to peach crops, and Elko citizens built a peach packing shed, but the town never recovered its former prosperity. In 1915 or afterward, a fire caused by cinders from a locomotive smokestack burned down Elko's remaining stores. Scheduled passenger service to Elko ended in 1930.

The town's last mayor was Joe Norton "Nick" Buff. In the latter half of the twentieth century only Paul Davis' general store, which doubled as the town's post office, remained open in Elko.

Origin of the name
The origin of the name "Elko" is obscure, but it is believed to have been bestowed by the GS&F railroad company in 1889.[1] Other railroad towns named "Elko" exist in the American states of Nevada and South Carolina.

Present-day Elko
With the demise of railroad passenger service, Elko became more isolated in the latter half of the twentieth century than it had been in the 1890s, and the population declined. Elko's residential district, with its Victorian houses shaded by oak and pecan trees, attracts some residents who commute to nearby cities. As an unincorporated town, Elko is governed by the Houston County Board of Commissioners and protected by county sheriff's patrols and a volunteer fire department. The town's churches hold monthly services, with some residents attending more than one church on alternating Sundays.

TAYLOR- Twiggs CO., GA

History
Twiggs County has a long rich history. Arthur Fort of Wilkinson County proposed a bill in the Georgia Legislature on November 14, 1809 to create Twiggs County. The new county would be separated from Wilkinson County at that time and named to honor Maj. General John Twiggs, a celebrated American Revolutionary soldier from Georgia. The bill passed and became law on December 14, 1809.

The first county seat was Marion, which coincidentally is the location of the exact geographic center of the state of Georgia. Geologists from the State Department of Natural Resources and the US Geologic Survey located the states center in a swampy area where two creeks (Turvin and Savage Creek) intersect and erected a bronze marker to identify the location. An historic marker in front of Old Marion Baptist Church, near the intersection of Bullard and Marion Ripley Road, is about 1.1 miles from this bronze marker for the "heart" of Georgia.

Modern Day
Twiggs County is a beautiful land of pleasant contrasts contained within our 360 square miles and also has distinction of being the geographic center of the state. Twiggs County has a major interstate running through the heart of the county which is I-16. I-16 gives us easy access to both Savannah and Macon. We now have two industrial parks, one of 150 acres and the other 500 acres, at the intersection of I-16 and Hwy 96.

TAYLOR- Washington CO, Georgia

Courthouse before 1855


Courthouse Burned

History

Washington County in east-middle Georgia was established on February 25, 1784. Georgia's tenth county, named for U.S. president George Washington, was settled by Revolutionary War (1775-83) veterans who were awarded grants to Creek and Cherokee lands. Beginning in 1786, seven counties plus portions of nine more were eventually cut from the original Washington County. The county currently encompasses 680 square miles, and its population, according to the 2000 U.S. census, is 21,176 (45.7 percent white; 53.2 percent black).

Warthen was the first settlement in the county, founded as the site of the superior courts and the jail. Made of hand-hewn logs, the jail has been restored and is considered the oldest log jail in Georgia. The entire village of Warthen, including the jail, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.


In 1796 the Georgia legislature named Sandersville (originally Saunders Crossroads), which was situated at the crossing of two Indian trails, the county seat. Many early post-office communities within the county grew and faded with time, while railroads determined the survival of several villages. Townships in the county today include Davisboro, Deepstep, Harrison, Oconee, Riddleville, Sandersville, Tennille, and Warthen. As a frontier county, self-contained farms and plantations were also common.

Religion played an important role in the early community. The first church in the area was constituted in 1790. Baptists and then Methodists later organized, and both denominations had founded churches by 1856. Around 1900, Catholic and Episcopal congregations were formed. Today 120 churches of various denominations meet around the county, and many are descendents of these earlier ones.

On November 25, 1864, Union general William T. Sherman and his troops came through Washington County on their "March to the Sea." Sherman selected the Brown House as his headquarters. Two days later, when his army left Sandersville, Sherman ordered the courthouse and jail to be burned. In Tennille, railroad tracks were pulled up, heated, and twisted into "bowties." The county courthouse was lost to fires in 1855 and again in 1864. A new courthouse was completed in 1868 and enlarged in the Victorian style in 1899. Before the turn of the twentieth century, brick store buildings replaced the wooden ones that had been burned.

Medicine also played a key role in the county's history. William Rawlings, a renowned surgeon, opened a hospital around 1895. Nurses were taught at Rawlings' Nurses Training School from 1903 to 1932. Operating on the Sandersville square for sixty-five years, the Rawlings Sanitarium moved to a new facility in 1961; originally called Washington Memorial Hospital, it is now the Washington County Regional Medical Center.

Stable cotton prices from about 1890 to the mid-1920s brought prosperity and fine homes to the area, many of which are still standing. Farmers have since diversified, growing other agricultural products, and a prosperous lumber industry has also developed.

Fortunately for Washington County, as the marketplace for some agricultural products declined, the kaolin industry grew. Kaolin, a white, alumina silicate clay, is used in paper, medicines, paints, and many other products, all of which are shipped around the world. As Washington County grew into kaolin's largest refiner, it became known as the "Kaolin Capital of the World." Five processing companies and numerous mines currently attract college-educated personnel, scientists, and geologists from many countries. An annual Kaolin Festival celebrates the importance of the resource. At the end of the twentieth century, kaolin was an $800 million business and Georgia's largest volume export. Mining companies have reclaimed and restored more than 80 percent of the land that has been stripped since 1969.

Organized in 1976, the Washington County Historical Society operates two museums, one in the old county jail, which is now the Genealogical Research Museum, and the Brown House Museum, which serves as the society's headquarters. Four districts are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, as are the Old City Cemetery and several other structures. An exhibit dedicated to architect Charles Edward Choate is housed in the chamber of commerce.

Two Georgia governors came from Washington County: Jared Irwin, a Revolutionary War soldier and frontier Indian fighter, and Thomas Hardwick, a U.S. senator and congressman. Elijah Poole Mohammed, leader of the Nation of Islam, was born near Deepstep; the Gordys of Motown music fame and concert singer McHenry Boatright were also from Washington County.

TAYLOR- Edgecombe CO., (later Nash Co)

Edgecombe County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is part of the Rocky Mount, North Carolina Metropolitan Statistical Area

History

The county was formed in 1741 from Bertie County. It was named for Richard Edgcumbe, a Member of Parliament from 1701 to 1742 and a lord of the treasury, who became 1st Baron Edgcumbe in 1742.

In 1746 part of Edgecombe County became Granville County; in 1758 another part became Halifax County; in 1777 yet another part became Nash County. In 1855 the formation of Wilson County from parts of Edgecombe County, Johnston County, Nash County, and Wayne County reduced Edgecombe to its present dimensions, aside from minor boundary adjustments.

Edgecombe County was historically home to the Tuscarora Indians.Today there are many descendents of the Tuscarora still living in certain areas of the county.

TAYLOR- Smithfield, VA

Smithfield is a town in Isle of Wight County, in the South Hampton Roads subregion of the Hampton Roads region of Virginia in the United States.

History and industry

Smithfield, first colonized in 1634, is located on the Pagan River, not far from Jamestown. The Native Americans knew this area as Warascoyak, also spelled Warrosquoyacke, meaning “point of land.”

The town, established in 1752 by Arthur Smith IV as a seaport and incorporated in 1921, is most famous for the curing and production of the Smithfield ham. The Virginia General Assembly passed a statute defining Smithfield ham by law in 1926.

There were both Revolutionary and Civil War actions in and around the town mostly due to its proximity to the James River.

Smithfield is a river town, and its life and growth were dependent on the river until the fire of 1921 which destroyed its peanut warehouses and its growing peanut businesses. The peanut trade moved to the nearby railroad town of Suffolk.

Currently, Smithfield Foods, a Fortune 500 Company that owns Smithfield Packing Company and others, is the world’s largest pork processor and hog producer. The company, based in Smithfield, raises 12 million and processes 20 million hogs annually.

Smithfield's Historic District boasts over 70 buildings of exceptional architectural importance, including residences of the Colonial, Federal, and Victorian periods. Sites of historic interest in Smithfield include the 1750 Court House, the adjacent colonial tavern that is now the Smithfield Inn, the Isle of Wight Museum, the Schoolhouse Museum, and Windsor Castle Park.

CHRISTMAS- NC Declaration of Rights

1 Aug. 1788Elliot 4:242--46, 248--49

The resolution was accordingly read and entered, as follows, viz.:--

Resolved, That a declaration of rights, asserting and securing from encroachment the great principles of civil and religious liberty, and the unalienable rights of the people, together with amendments to the most ambiguous and exceptionable parts of the said Constitution of government, ought to be laid before Congress, and the convention of the states that shall or may be called for the purpose of amending the said Constitution, for their consideration, previous to the ratification of the Constitution aforesaid on the part of the state of North Carolina.

Declaration of Rights.

1. That there are certain natural rights, of which men, when they form a social compact, cannot deprive or divest their posterity, among which are the enjoyment of life and liberty, with the means of acquiring, possessing, and protecting property, and pursuing and obtaining happiness and safety.

2. That all power is naturally vested in, and consequently derived from, the people; that magistrates, therefore, are their trustees and agents, and at all times amenable to them.

3. That government ought to be instituted for the common benefit, protection, and security, of the people; and that the doctrine of non-resistance against arbitrary power and oppression is absurd, slavish, and destructive to the good and happiness of mankind.

4. That no man or set of men are entitled to exclusive or separate public emoluments or privileges from the community, but in consideration of public services, which not being descendible, neither ought the offices of magistrate, legislator, or judge, or any other public office, to be hereditary.

5. That the legislative, executive, and judiciary powers of government should be separate and distinct, and that the members of the two first may be restrained from oppression by feeling and participating the public burdens: they should, at fixed periods, be reduced to a private station, return into the mass of the people, and the vacancies be supplied by certain and regular elections, in which all or any part of the former members to be eligible or ineligible, as the rules of the constitution of government and the laws shall direct.

6. That elections of representatives in the legislature ought to be free and frequent, and all men having sufficient evidence of permanent common interest with, and attachment to, the community, ought to have the right of suffrage; and no aid, charge, tax, or fee, can be set, rated, or levied, upon the people without their own consent, or that of their representatives so elected; nor can they be bound by any law to which they have not in like manner assented for the public good.

7. That all power of suspending laws, or the execution of laws, by any authority, without the consent of the representatives of the people in the legislature, is injurious to their rights, and ought not to be exercised.

8. That, in all capital and criminal prosecutions, a man hath a right to demand the cause and nature of his accusation, to be confronted with the accusers and witnesses, to call for evidence, and be allowed counsel in his favor, and a fair and speedy trial by an impartial jury of his vicinage, without whose unanimous consent he cannot be found guilty, (except in the government of the land and naval forces;) nor can he be compelled to give evidence against himself.

9. That no freeman ought to be taken, imprisoned, or disseized of his freehold, liberties, privileges, or franchises, or outlawed or exiled, or in any manner destroyed, or deprived of his life, liberty, or property, but by the law of the land.

10. That every freeman, restrained of his liberty, is entitled to a remedy to inquire into the lawfulness thereof, and to remove the same if unlawful; and that such remedy ought not to be denied nor delayed.

11. That, in controversies respecting property, and in suits between man and man, the ancient trial by jury is one of the greatest securities to the rights of the people, and ought to remain sacred and inviolable.

12. That every freeman ought to find a certain remedy, by recourse to the laws, for all injuries and wrongs he may receive in his person, property, or character; he ought to obtain right and justice freely without sale, completely and without denial, promptly and without delay; and that all establishments or regulations contravening these rights are oppressive and unjust.

13. That excessive bail ought not to be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.

14. That every freeman has a right to be secure from all unreasonable searches and seizures of his person, his papers and property; all warrants, therefore, to search suspected places, or to apprehend any suspected person, without specially naming or describing the place or person, are dangerous, and ought not to be granted.

15. That the people have a right peaceably to assemble together, to consult for the common good, or to instruct their representatives; and that every freeman has a right to petition or apply to the legislature for redress of grievances.

16. That the people have a right to freedom of speech, and of writing and publishing their sentiments; that freedom of the press is one of the greatest bulwarks of liberty, and ought not to be violated.

17. That the people have a right to keep and bear arms; that a well regulated militia, composed of the body of the people, trained to arms, is the proper, natural, and safe defence of a free state; that standing armies, in time of peace, are dangerous to liberty, and therefore ought to be avoided, as far as the circumstances and protection of the community will admit; and that, in all cases, the military should be under strict subordination to, and governed by, the civil power.

18. That no soldier, in time of peace, ought to be quartered in any house without the consent of the owner, and in time of war, in such manner only as the laws direct.

19. That any person religiously scrupulous of bearing arms ought to be exempted, upon payment of an equivalent to employ another to bear arms in his stead.

20. That religion, or the duty which we owe to our Creator, and the manner of discharging it, can be directed only by reason and conviction, not by force or violence; and therefore all men have an equal, natural, and unalienable right to the free exercise of religion, according to the dictates of conscience; and that no particular religious sect or society ought to be favored or established by law in preference to others.

Amendments to the Constitution.

1. That each state in the Union shall respectively retain every power, jurisdiction, and right, which is not by this Constitution delegated to the Congress of the United States, or to the departments of the federal government.

2. That there shall be one representative for every thirty thousand, according to the enumeration or census mentioned in the Constitution, until the whole number of representatives amounts to two hundred; after which that number shall be continued or increased as Congress shall direct, upon the principles fixed in the Constitution, by apportioning the representatives of each state to some greater number of the people, from time to time, as the population increases.

3. When Congress shall lay direct taxes or excises, they shall immediately inform the executive power of each state of the quota of such state, according to the census herein directed, which is proposed to be thereby raised; and if the legislature of any state shall pass any law which shall be effectual for raising such quota at the time required by Congress, the taxes and excises laid by Congress shall not be collected in such state.

4. That the members of the Senate and House of Representatives shall be ineligible to, and incapable of holding, any civil office under the authority of the United States, during the time for which they shall respectively be elected.

5. That the Journals of the proceedings of the Senate and House of Representatives shall be published at least once in every year, except such parts thereof relating to treaties, alliances, or military operations, as in their judgment require secrecy.

6. That a regular statement and account of receipts and expenditures of all public moneys shall be published at least once in every year.

7. That no commercial treaty shall be ratified without the concurrence of two thirds of the whole number of the members of the Senate. And no treaty, ceding, contracting, restraining, or suspending, the territorial rights or claims of the United States, or any of them, or their, or any of their, rights or claims of fishing in the American seas, or navigating the American rivers, shall be made, but in cases of the most urgent and extreme necessity; nor shall any such treaty be ratified without the concurrence of three fourths of the whole number of the members of both houses respectively.

8. That no navigation law, or law regulating commerce, shall be passed without the consent of two thirds of the members present in both houses.

9. That no standing army or regular troops shall be raised or kept up in time of peace, without the consent of two thirds of the members present in both houses.

10. That no soldier shall be enlisted for any longer term than four years, except in time of war, and then for no longer term than the continuance of the war.

11. That each state respectively shall have the power to provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining its own militia, whensoever Congress shall omit or neglect to provide for the same; that the militia shall not be subject to martial law, except when in actual service in time of war, invasion, or rebellion; and when not in the actual service of the United States, shall be subject only to such fines, penalties, and punishments, as shall be directed or inflicted by the laws of its own state.

12. That Congress shall not declare any state to be in rebellion, without the consent of at least two thirds of all the members present in both houses.

13. That the exclusive power of legislation given to Congress over the federal town and its adjacent district, and other places purchased or to be purchased by Congress of any of the states, shall extend only to such regulations as respect the police and good government thereof.

14. That no person shall be capable of being President of the United States for more than eight years in any term of fifteen years.

15. That the judicial power of the United States shall be vested in one Supreme Court, and in such courts of admiralty as Congress may from time to time ordain and establish in any of the different states. The judicial power shall extend to all cases in law and equity arising under treaties made, or which shall be made, under the authority of the United States; to all cases affecting ambassadors, other foreign ministers, and consuls; to all cases of admiralty and maritime jurisdiction; to controversies to which the United States shall be a party; to controversies between two or more states, and between parties claiming lands under the grants of different states. In all cases affecting ambassadors, other foreign ministers, and consuls, and those in which a state shall be a party, the Supreme Court shall have original jurisdiction. In all other cases before mentioned, the Supreme Court shall have appellate jurisdiction as to matters of law only, except in cases of equity, and of admiralty and maritime jurisdiction, in which the Supreme Court shall have appellate jurisdiction both as to law and fact, with such exceptions, and under such regulations, as the Congress shall make: but the judicial power of the United States shall extend to no case where the cause of action shall have originated before the ratification of this Constitution, except in disputes between states about their territory, disputes between persons claiming lands under the grants of different states, and suits for debts due to the United States.

16. That, in criminal prosecutions, no man shall be restrained in the exercise of the usual and accustomed right of challenging or excepting to the jury.

17. That Congress shall not alter, modify, or interfere in, the times, places, or manner, of holding elections for senators and representatives, or either of them, except when the legislature of any state shall neglect, refuse, or be disabled, by invasion or rebellion, to prescribe the same.

18. That those clauses which declare that Congress shall not exercise certain powers be not interpreted in any manner whatsoever to extend the power of Congress; but that they be construed either as making exceptions to the specified powers, where this shall be the case, or otherwise as inserted merely for greater caution.

19. That the laws ascertaining the compensation of senators and representatives for their services, be postponed in their operation until after the election of representatives immediately succeeding the passing thereof, that excepted which shall first be passed on the subject.

20. That some tribunal other than the Senate be provided for trying impeachments of senators.

21. That the salary of a judge shall not be increased or diminished during his continuance in office, otherwise than by general regulations of salary, which may take place on a revision of the subject at stated periods of not less than seven years, to commence from the time such salaries shall be first ascertained by Congress.

22. That Congress erect no company of merchants with exclusive advantages of commerce.

23. That no treaties which shall be directly opposed to the existing laws of the United States in Congress assembled shall be valid until such laws shall be repealed, or made conformable to such treaty; nor shall any treaty be valid which is contradictory to the Constitution of the United States.

24. That the latter part of the 5th paragraph of the 9th section of the 1st article be altered to read thus: 'Nor shall vessels bound to a particular state be obliged to enter or pay duties in any other; nor, when bound from any one of the states, be obliged to clear in another.'

25. That Congress shall not, directly or indirectly, either by themselves or through the judiciary, interfere with any one of the states in the redemption of paper money already emitted and now in circulation, or in liquidating and discharging the public securities of any one of the states, but each and every state shall have the exclusive right of making such laws and regulations, for the above purposes, as they shall think proper.

26. That Congress shall not introduce foreign troops into the United States without the consent of two thirds of the members present of both houses.

. . . . .

Mr. Iredell then moved as follows, viz.:--

That the report of the committee be amended, by striking out all the words of the said report except the two first, viz.: "Resolved, That," and that the following words be inserted in their room, viz.:--"this Convention, having fully deliberated on the Constitution proposed for the future government of the United States of America by the Federal Convention lately held, at Philadelphia, on the 17th day of September last, and having taken into their serious and solemn consideration the present critical situation of America, which induces them to be of opinion that, though certain amendments to the said Constitution may be wished for, yet that those amendments should be proposed subsequent to the ratification on the part of this state, and not previous to it:--they do, therefore, on behalf of the state of North Carolina, and the good people thereof, and by virtue of the authority to them delegated, ratify the said Constitution on the part of this state; and they do at the same time recommend that, as early as possible, the following amendments to the said Constitution may be proposed for the consideration and adoption of the several states in the Union, in one of the modes prescribed by the 5th article thereof:"--

"Amendments.

"1. Each state in the Union shall respectively retain every power, jurisdiction, and right, which is not by this Constitution delegated to the Congress of the United States, or to the departments of the general government; nor shall the said Congress, nor any department of the said government, exercise any act of authority over any individual in any of the said states, but such as can be justified under some power particularly given in this Constitution; but the said Constitution shall be considered at all times a solemn instrument, defining the extent of their authority, and the limits of which they cannot rightfully in any instance exceed.

"2. There shall be one representative for every thirty thousand, according to the enumeration or census mentioned in the Constitution, until the whole number of representatives amounts to two hundred; after which, that number shall be continued or increased, as Congress shall direct, upon the principles fixed in the Constitution, by apportioning the representatives of each state to some greater number of people, from time to time, as the population increases.

"3. Each state respectively shall have the power to provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, its own militia, whensoever Congress shall omit or neglect to provide for the same. The militia shall not be subject to martial law, except when in actual service in time of war, invasion, or rebellion; and when they are not in the actual service of the United States, they shall be subject only to such fines, penalties, and punishments, as shall be directed or inflicted by the laws of its own state.

"4. The Congress shall not alter, modify, or interfere in the times, places, or manner, of holding elections for senators and representatives, or either of them, except when the legislature of any state shall neglect, refuse, or be disabled by invasion or rebellion, to prescribe the same.

"5. The laws ascertaining the compensation of senators and representatives, for their services, shall be postponed in their operation until after the election of representatives immediately succeeding the passing thereof; that excepted which shall first be passed on the subject.

"6. Instead of the following words in the 9th section of the 1st article, viz., 'Nor shall vessels bound to or from one state be obliged to enter, clear, or pay duties, in another,' [the meaning of which is by many deemed not sufficiently explicit,] it is proposed that the following shall be substituted: 'No vessel bound to one state shall be obliged to enter or pay duties, to which such vessel may be liable at any port of entry, in any other state than that to which such vessel is bound; nor shall any vessel bound from one state be obliged to clear, or pay duties to which such vessel shall be liable at any port of clearance, in any other state than that from which such vessel is bound.'"

CHRISTMAS- Warren County, NC

On July 22, 1779 the town of Warrenton was laid out by William Christmas, in the same year that King George III was on the throne and the American Revolution was in full swing. That year, John Paul Jones defeated the British ship, Serapis, and the British burned New Haven, Fairfield and Norwalk, Connecticut. In 1765, the county had been formed from Granville County and named Bute in honor of John Stuart, 3rd Earle of Bute, former Prime Minister and Lord of the Treasury, who was as detested in Great Britain as he came to be in the colonies. On January 20, 1779 a committee of Bute County patriots petitioned the North Carolina Assembly to divide the county in half naming the northern part Warren, after Dr. Joseph Warren, who had been killed at Bunker Hill, and the southern part Franklin, in honor of the great American, Benjamin Franklin.
The year before virtually every man in Bute County, numbering more than 600, had committed treason by swearing an oath of allegiance to the State of North Carolina, and against George III. Many served in the county militia and saw a lot of action. Direct descendants of those Revolutionaries still live in the town and county. The petition to divide was granted by the legislature, and the history of Warrenton began. With the victory of true liberty, prosperity grew. Like Jamestown in its beginnings, tobacco provided Warren County with a large financial flush. In later years, cotton would compete for the title of "King." Two physicians were in practice, the first courthouse was built, churches flourished, especially Hebron Methodist, founded in 1771, and located in the country.
One can tell much about the inhabitants of a town by their social priorities. In Warrenton, education was the primary choice, followed by fine architecture, music, dancing, art, and horse racing. In 1786, the Warren Academy was founded by the Macon brothers, one of whom Nathaniel, would become one of the greatest speakers of the U.S. House of Representatives. Theater began with the appointment of Marcus George, actor and scholar, as principal of the Academy. He taught Greek, Latin and education. More fine schools followed. There was a dancing master, John Liddell. Beautiful houses were built as centerpieces to the large plantations, and in time, town houses became the jewels that were erected.
By 1860, Warren County would become the richest in North Carolina. Warrenton would even own its own railroad. Warrenton became an axis for two important mail routes. The cotton gin created more prosperity. By 1800, the town's population was 238. By the 1850 Federal Census, there were approximately 700 people. By 1922, the number was 813 and currently the population stands at about 900, remaining remarkably stable during more than 200 years.

A Cultural Snapshot of Old Warrenton
(published 1924)
"Of course in a community such as we have described the people of Warrenton and Warren County to be -- of good families, education, training and associations -- we should expect to find habits and diversions similar to those practiced by their ancestors... and now I will undertake to describe their almost necessary concomitant -- card playing.
From the beginning, the men of the highest social life indulged in this vice. There were few professional gamesters among them, but in the gentleman class playing cards was the common diversion. "Old Sledge" or "Seven-up" was probably the chief game of chance; but the elite indulged in "Poker." The stakes were sometimes high, and serious and embarrassing losses occasionally happened, but as a rule, "the chips" were cheap and a limit was generally placed on the game. The idea of winning as an end or purpose was not thought of, as a rule; amusement, interest and excitement were the chief inducements of the game."
Sketches of Old Warrenton
Lizzie Montgomery

COLONIAL AMERICA 1600-1763

Introduction
1727 marked the deaths of both England’s monarch George I and the English scientist, astronomer, and mathematician Sir Isaac Newton. Born this year were signers of the U.S. Constitution, William Ellery and William Samuel Johnson. In 1727 midwives delivered most babies and the new vaccine against small pox vaccine was still considered daring and controversial. In 1727, the nature of lightening was still undiscovered. Stocks and the pillory were in ordinary use. Stagecoach lines were not yet established

Colonial Society
Colonial society was composed of several social classes. One’s social class determined political and legal rights, personal attire, even church seating. The wealthiest, best-educated, and most influential class was the gentry. The gentry owned large farms or plantations. Other gentry class members were merchants, doctors, lawyers, or ministers. Most community leadership positions were held by the gentry. The middle class farmed small landholdings, ran small stores and businesses, or worked at ordinary skilled crafts, such as shoemaking or woodworking. Women of the middle class made their own cloth, candles, cheese, soap, and other goods. Excess supplies were sold to augment the family income. Men of the middle class could vote and a few held public office. The lower class was composed of day laborers, apprentices, sailors, servants, and slaves. Very few owned any property at all nor could they read, write, or vote. The lower class was often very mobile, moving from place to place in search of work.

Colonial Family
Colonial family size was typically nine people, though a household often included stepchildren, grandparents, aunts, and cousins also. The head of the house was the father; the mother was his companion and helper; the children were expected to obey both their parents and all other authority figures without hesitation. Unruly or belligerent behavior was dealt with so harshly that the instruments of discipline would easily be categorized as instruments of torture by modern society.


Colonial Homes
Colonial homes were lit with fireplaces, candles, and lamps that burned animal fat. Most families did not use individual plates, but instead ate from a common trencher. Spoons of wood or pewter were often the only utensils on the table. Household furnishings were most often local versions of European goods, four poster beds, feather mattresses, etc. The rocking chair is the exception. Benjamin Franklin invented it.


Colonial News
Colonial news was exchanged chiefly by word of mouth on the grapevine, which met at least every Sunday morning. Official notices were read at church or posted on the doors of public buildings. Cities paid a crier who read announcements to those who couldn't read for themselves. Often, the only source of news from out-of-town would be visitors who either bore letters or could directly relate the news themselves. This informal system of distributing letters was not formalized into a federal service until 1753 when Benjamin Franklin became the deputy Postmaster General for the colonies. Boston had a weekly newspaper by 1704, but newspapers were not generally available until 1775.


Colonial Education
Colonial education was parent-sponsored, not tax payer supported. "It was not until about the time of the revolution that the modern signification of the word ‘free’- a school paid for entirely by general town taxes -- could be applied to the public schools of most Massachusetts towns, and when the schools of Boston were made free, that community stood alone for its liberality not only in America, but in the world” (Earle, 1935, p. 69).

Most schools required parents to participate in providing for the physical needs of the teacher by whatever means available, be that produce, furs, firewood, or chores. In some areas of strong religious persuasion, education was not seen as beneficial. "The Quakers did not encourage absolute illiteracy, but they thought knowledge of the ‘three R's’ was enough; they distinctly disapproved of any extended scholarship, as it fostered undue pride and provoked idleness” (Earle, 1935, p. 71).

Much of what children needed to learn was taught at home. Farming, hunting, building, and repairing things were considered the necessary skills for a colonial boy. Colonial girls were taught how to garden, sew, spin, cook, and care for the animals. Trades and professions were taught on the apprentice system which has been described as “one of the earliest forms of adult education” (Smith). Under the apprentice system, young people and adults were taught a craft or a trade by working alongside an accomplished master for a set period of time. It was not unusual to set up the apprenticeship contract to include reading and writing as part of the expected training.