Bacon County, Georgia

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History/Timeline

Blueberries

1,000,000 years ago Bacon county area land was beneath the ocean. Alma, Georgia, the county seat have coarse yellow sand that some feel was ocean bottom sand. Other evidence of prehistoric life has been uncovered in Georgia, but none for the area of Bacon. Shark teeth fossil remains have been recorded in southern Georgia. Many archaeologists were researching in 1970-80, but it does require funds for the research. ^[1]

1700's Creek Indians first settled this Wiregrass region. Later pioneer families migrated from the Carolinas for affordable land.^[2]

Turpentine harvesting

1900 A turpentine still was owned by American Tie and Timber company. Turpentine and naval stores, which collects, processes, and markets forest products refined from the oleoresin of the slash pine and longleaf pine trees and turpentine were the key industries. Bacon county also has a large blueberry industry industry currently, thanks to the sandy soil. ^[2]

1900 Alma was settled after a train station was built for depot the east to west railway which passed through southern Appling County and northern Pierce County. This enabled rail access to Brunswick and Savannah without traveling through Waycross. When citizens first applied to Appling County for the town to be incorporated, they received the incorporation for the town of Alma, Georgia. ^[3]

1904 Georgia voters had approved a constitutional amendment limiting the number of counties in the state to 145. To create more Counties, the Georgia legislature had to pass an amendment in 1904 to change the counties limit. ^{[2] [3]}

1905 - the General Assembly formed 8 more counties bringing the total to 145, the constitutional limit that had been approved by voters. However there was pressure for more counties.

1906 - The Georgia lawmakers by-passed the limit by creating counties with a constitutional amendment that were not subject to the limitation....

Aug 21, 1906 When the Georgia assembly wanted to create Bacon County there was a stumbling legal block. FIRST The legality of a municipal incorporation, legislation had to pass the the assembly for Alma to be incorporated. In the end they approved to re-incorporate Alma with legislative instead of the nomal judicial charter. That act was approved. ^[3]

Alma, GA school

1906 Two stories detail how Alma, Georgia was named.

"This is Your Georgia and Workers" by Bernice McCullar- (sold in a book stand near the turpentine Still.  :::One story is Alma, Georgia represents the first letter of 4 of Georgia's early state capitals: Augusta, Louisville, Milledgeville and Atlanta.(Although Savannah is missing form the list.)^[2]

Story 2 Georgia Place-Names(1975), by Kenneth Krakow in Georgia Place-Names (1975) is a Macon salesman who came through the town with no name, offered the name of his wife, "Alma Sheridan"^[2][4]

map of Bacon County.

Nov 3, 1914 - Georgia Assembly created Bacon County from portions of Appling, Pierce, and Ware counties. Pioneers of Applling, Pierce and Ware counties were these Bacon's first settlers. Bacon County was the 149th county created by Georgia legislature. NOTE: the county seat, Alma, Georgia's name is an acronym of the first letters or Georgia's 4 state capitals: Augusta, Louisville, Milledgeville, and Atlanta. ^[5]Others believe Alma's name was suggested by a travelling salesman who offered his wife, Alma Sheridan.^[2][4]

Nov. 3, 1914 date of Bacon County’s creation (although a state historical marker on the courthouse square incorrectly cites the county’s creation on the day the legislative act proposing the constitutional amendment was approved). Georgia’s 151st county was named for U.S. Senator Augustus Octavius Bacon, (d February 1914). Augustus was a Confederate Army veteran, candidate of Presidential Election from Georgia in 1868 and U.S. Senator(1895-1914). ^[3]

1914 Why was Bacon County created by constitutional amendment instead of an act of the General Assembly? SEE 1906 Bacon County had to be created the "by-pass way" of the constitutional amendment. ^[3]

1919 Bacon Courthouse was built. It still serves the residents. It was listed on National Register of Historic Places in 1980 ^[2]

Bacon county has no incorporated towns, but communities are Rockingham and Sessoms. Rockingham, Georgia was named for Rockingham, North Carolina by immigrants from North Carolina. ^[2]

1924 Georgia suddenly had 161 counties (16 created by constitutional amendments).^[3]

Jan 1,1932 Milton and Campbell counties merged with Fulton with a total of 159 counties...

1945 Georgia voters ratified another new constitution with the limit of 159 counties. There was a new provision that no new counties could be formed unless existing counties were consolidated to form a new one....^[3]

Bacon is one of 25 Georgia counties that still have their original boundaries provided at the time of creation.^[3]

1998 - A satellite campus of Okefenokee Technical College opened in Alma.^[2]

Rabinowitz Building

The Alma Depot and the Rabinowitz Building located on West 11th St. The Depot is privately owned and used as a warehouse. also of interest are the Old Dixon Hotel and the Camp Ground Methodist Church date to the early 1800's.^[2]

The Bacon Area and Whitehead Creek Area (2 wildlife management areas) allow hunting. Together with Bacon County parks, visitors and residents have recreation .

According to the 2010 U.S. census, the population of Bacon County is 11,096, an increase from the 2000 population of 10,103.

Bacon county Blueberries

U.S Highway Number 1 crosses Bacon County from north to south and connects Maine to Key West, Florida. Georgia Highway No. 32 crosses the county as it connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Alabama border. Recently, Federal and State funds have enabled road paving for the county following the consolidation of the county and city schools. There are still many dusty dirt country roads. Some are firebrakes used also for travel. Descendants of Bacon County pioneers have held on to the inherited lands. Some of the farm deed records predate the Civil War. Some enlarge the land holding by acquiring farms nearby. Thus the total number of farms have decreased but the size of the farm has increased. Mechanized farming increased together with the decrease of farm laborers. Pine tree growth is still an important and profitable industry.^[1]

Bacon County does not have a rich history. It only has one historic marker in the 294 miles of its sparse population.

Bacon County Marker.

Since there is more history in Appling County (from which Bacon County was formed) some of Appling County's history can be also included for Bacon County. All legal and historical documents of present day Bacon county came from Appling county in origin. Supplies for Bacon had to be bought in Savannah (100 miles away) and hauled in by oxcart pulled by oxen requiring several days. A wash pot and a hog were, then meat could be killed and cooked. The settlers hand made their plow stocks. Farmers had no seed planters, instead they dropped corn by hand 36 inches apart.^[1]

Government Offices

Courthouse Details It is not known what served as Bacon County courthouse for the four years after its creation in 1914.

1st Courthouse, 1919 - 2-story brick courthouse was completed a nd still serves today.

Bacon county courthouse

Geography

Size -Area: 286 mi² - 259 sq. mi. (740 km2) is land and 27 square miles (70 km2) (9.5%) is water.

Rivers - Big Satilla Creek, Hurricane Creek, Little Hurricane Creek

has a total area of 286 square miles (740 km2), of which 259 square miles

Rank -Bacon County, Georgia is the 2873rd largest county equivalent area in the United States.

Type -majority and western portion of Bacon County is located in the Satilla River sub-basin of the St. Marys River-Satilla River basin. The entire eastern, and half of the SE edge of the county is in the Little Satilla River sub-basin of the same St. Marys-Satilla River basin.

Size 285-square-mile county in 1914

Created from Appling, Pierce, and Ware counties.

Locale -southeast South Georgia.

Known as ‘Wiregrass Country’.

Soil -Grayish sandy loam ideal for farming in other areas

Excepted area - Sea level rises to form clay hills over a gully of black water

Vegetation - Piney woods, In the 1800's the county had wiregrass which carpets the ground, for good grazing range for cattle.

Agriculture - land was cleared for cotton, tobacco,

Products - Lumber from the forest industry, turpentine

Animals - unbranded and Razorback hogs roam the piney woods eating the wringers roots.

Elevation 215 feet above sea level

Adjacent counties

• Appling County (northeast)

surrounding counties

• Pierce County (east)
• Ware County (south)
• Coffee County (west)
• Jeff Davis County (northwest)

Protected areas

• Bacon Area and Whitehead Creek Area (2 wildlife management areas) allow hunting

Demographics

2000, there were 10,103 people living in the county with a population density of 36 people/sq. mi. The racial makeup of the county was 81.48% White, 15.70% Black or African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.30% Asian, 1.46% from other races, and 0.91% from two or more races. 3.39% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. In 2010 there were 11,096 people living in the county.with a population density of 42.9 people/sq. mi. The median income for a household in the county was $31,429 and the median income for a family was $45,442. The per capita income for the county was $17,110. About 11.6% of families and 16.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.8% of those under age 18 and 16.8% of those age 65 or over.^[6]

Bacon County and location in Georgia

• University: Okefenokee Technical College, Alma

Highways:

• U.S. Route 1
• U.S. Route 23
• Georgia State Route 4
• Georgia State Route 4 Alternate
• Georgia State Route 19
• Georgia State Route 32
• Georgia State Route 203

Cities/Towns

• Alma

• Rockingham

County Resources

• University: Okefenokee Technical College, Alma
• Bacon Area and Whitehead Creek Area (2 wildlife management areas) allow hunting
• Day of the Child in April
• Georgia Blueberry Festival in June

Blueberries

• Guysie Mule Roundup in October
• Big Buck Contest in October
• Christmas Parade in December.

Notables

• Harry Crews novelist, born in the county in 1935, recorded his childhood memories of the area in his acclaimed memoir, "A Childhood: The Biography of a Place (1978)."

Census

1920 --- 6,460 —

1930 --- 7,055 9.2%

1940 --- 8,096 14.8%

1950 --- 8,940 10.4%

1960 --- 8,359 −6.5%

1970 --- 8,233 −1.5%

1980 --- 9,379 13.9%

1990 --- 9,566 2.0%

2000 --- 10,103 5.6%

2010 --- 11,096 9.8%

Est. 2016 --- 11,372

Cemeteries

• Corinth Free Will Baptist Church Cemetery
• Pine Level Cemetery
• Rigdon Cemetery
• Rose Hill Cemetery
• Big Creek Cemetery
• Campground Methodist Church Cemetery
• Pine Lawn Memorial Garden
• Taylor Cemetery
• Wolf Pit Cemetery

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2} baker_history-of-alma_access.pdf
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9} http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/counties-cities-neighborhoods/bacon-county
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7} http://georgiainfo.galileo.usg.edu/topics/counties/bacon
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1} https://georgia.gov/cities-counties/bacon-county
5. ↑ http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~gabacon/
6. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bacon_County,_Georgia

• A History of Georgia: From Its First Discovery by Europeans to the Adoption of the Present Constitution in MDCCXCVIII, Vol 1, by William Bacon Stevens January 1, 1847 New York : D. Appleton
• http://genealogytrails.com/geo/bacon/
• School District
• Georgia Encyclopedia
• https://georgia.gov/cities-counties/bacon-county
• Bonnie Taylor Baker, "The History of Alma and Bacon County, Georgia (Alma, Ga.: B. T. Baker, 1984). "
• http://www.worldatlas.com/na/us/ga/c-bacon-county-georgia.html
• Susan R. Boatright and Douglas C. Bachtel, eds., "Georgia County Guide (Athens: Center for Agribusiness and Economic Development, University of Georgia, annual)."