Crawford

Crawford County Genealogy. Find Ancestors in Wills and Estates

Crawford County was formed in 1822 from Houston County and out of the Creek Indian lands. Later part of Macon and Talbot counties were added. Crawford County was named for William H. Crawford, who was the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury when the county was created. Knoxville, Georgia is no longer a municipality, however, there are several buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Old Crawford County Courthouse established in 1831 and the old Crawford County Jail established in 1882.

Online Images of Wills (1835 to 1852)

Testators: Ammons, Stephen ; Ansley, Marlin ; Armstrong, William ; Barnes, Littleton ; Beasley, David ; Bradford, Nathaniel ; Bray, John ; Brown, David Causey, Lemon M. LWT (1859); Causey, Lemon M. LWT (1849); ; Cleveland, William ; Collier, Benjamin ; Commander, Samuel ; Culpepper, Daniel ; Davis, John ; Dennis, Isaac, Sr. ; Dennis, Samuel ; Drew, Jesse ; Fudge, Elizabeth ; Fudge, Jacob ; Futrill, Abraham ; Griffin, Daniel ; Griffin, Rebecca ; Hail, James ; Hall, Robert ; Hammock, Mary ; Hannon, Henry ; Harris, James ; Hicks, Robert ; Hobs, Daniel ; Holloman, Zachariah ; Hunter, Nathaniel ; Janus, John ; Johnson, William ; Jordan, John ; King, John ; May, James ; Mobly, Lewis ; Moran, Jesse ; Morris, Benjamin ; Patterson, William ; Preston, David ; Reese, Reuben ; Rowel, William ; Rushing, Peter ; Sawyer, Lewis ; Simmons, Catharine ; Smith, Anthony ; Stone, Erastus ; Terrell, David ; Walker, Margaret ; Watkins, Wright ; White, Sharrard ; Williams, John ; Wright, James Wright, Robert

Images of Estates. Inventories, Vouchers, Guardianships, Estates 1833 to 1834

Marriages

1823 to 1832
1841 to 1870
1871 to 1872
1885 to 1886 (from newspapers)

Indexes to Probate Records

Will Book A (1835 to 1857)
Will Book B (1852 to 1894)
Bonds, Book 2 (1874 to 1898)
Inventories and Appraisements (1836 to 1837)

Tax Digest

1840

Miscellaneous

Causey, Lemon M. LWT (1859)
Causey, Lemon M. LWT (1849)
Wadsworth, Melcher (deed)

Memoirs of Georgia (published 1895

Settlers in Crawford County (1895)

Traced Genealogies of Crawford County Families

Ammons
McMihael
Stephens

Three Gordon Brothers

Three Gordon brothers settled in Crawford County and purchased large tracts of land adjoining one another. James Gordon built a brick home above a spring which was later owned by his grandson. Thomas Gordon was located across the creek just above the spring where the Indians had a council cabin (a double log house) on the present Lafayette Pike. This must be Beaverdam Creek near the site of the Old Creek Agency. It is also the site where the young men of the section came together during the Civil War and organized a company of 110 men with Clark Gordon as captain. At the close of the war, Clark Gordon was promoted to the rank of Colonel. The brothers had a worthy father, Thomas Gordon, who served during the Revolutionary War as a private in the 6th Virginia Regiment.

The Difficult Meanderings of Native Indians?

Native Americans were frequently having a war with other tribes. Some of the smaller tribes (or losers) were swallowed up and lost in identity. They were frequently on the move. Records were not kept of births, deaths, etc. They did not marry white women but sometimes captured them as slaves. There are a few published journals on the Gutenburg.org website written by slaves. The story told of life among the Indians during the 18th century was that after the capture the tribes were always on the move or having a war with other tribes. White families had no chance of retrieving their women. Benjamin Hawkins, a Creek agent in Georgia during its colonization, kept his own journals. Thus, the materials to be examined are those kept by Indian Agents (if one can find such items) who wrote in English and sometimes clarified the English version of an Indian name. These agents were in Charleston, South Carolina, and Savannah, Georgia where all of the records survive. I strongly recommend reading the deeds and affidavits (colonial writing) to gain historical knowledge of the times and discover more information. Interestingly, there are affidavits (given by co-pirates) in Charleston concerning the capture of the pirate, Captain William Kidd! Samuel Eveleigh of Charleston widely traded with the new Georgia Colony, and there is information to be gathered about his adventures. The wealth of information found in early deeds and minutes of the court provides a bounty of undisclosed information.

How to Turn Marginal Genealogy into Real Genealogy

As we continue our research, we find ourselves jotting down tidbits of information, thinking that it might be useful later. And it is, as more data reach our computers. But what kind of tidbits are most important? Witnesses to deeds and adjoining properties; every name in the old part of the cemetery, especially those adjoining your family plots. Names in the same district as your ancestor are written down according to the order of the entries, along with such details as acreage, adjoining neighbors, and waters. Purchasers of estate sales as some of these people married the daughters (examine these names in the county marriage records). Remarkably, all of these people were from the old neighborhood! You will be amazed at how this information provides a better understanding of the life and times of your ancestors, plus makes all the puzzle parts fit.

The Creek Agency Reserve

Benjamin Hawkins came into this area in 1803 and developed a compound on the Flint River. The compound included a shop and plantation, which became known as the Creek Agency Reserve. The site was located near Macon and doubtless served as one of the forts along the frontier during the Creek War of 1812 to 1813. Although Hawkins was well-liked by the local Creeks, he believed that he could persuade the natives to embrace a European-American way of life. He settled disputes and resolved many issues concerning white settlements in the Creek territory. When he died at the Reserve in 1816. he was replaced by David B. Mitchell.