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Evans County, Georgia

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History/Timeline

seal of Evans County, Georgia
1890 Claxton, Georgia The Savannah and Western Railroad began to install railway tracks in this area. After this Claxton, Georgia began to be settled.. The railway Store owner, Remer Hendricks, Glenn and Nancy Hendricks gave the grant for the right of way for the 400 mile railroad. [1]
Store owner Remer Hendricks and his parents, Glenn and Nancy Hendricks, granted the railroad right-of-way and a free well providing water for the trains that stopped on their property. Later Nancy Hendricks gave free lots to citizens who were interested in building there. This became Claxton, Georgia, which developed into the Fruitcake Capital of the World. Soon the company built a station on their property for the trains. [2][1]
1890 The railroad was responsible for the origination of Bellville, Georgia. Naval stores, agriculture, and timber harvesting are its main economic contributors. Bellville, was named for James Bell Smith's Irish mother, Fannie Bell who married James Smith, Esq. The Smiths bulls a home standing on Hwy 280 near the Smith Cemetery. [2][1]
1901 A large fire almost destroyed Bellville business district.[2]
Evans county within Georgia state
1910 Hagan, Georgia Hagan, Georgia, is also another railway town situated close to Claxton. The town was named for Susannah Hagan Smith, and has had a good boarding school here. The Perkins Saw mill closed, due to depression, which caused many former employees to leave the town. Since 1910 Hagan and Claxton Georgia have expanded so that the towns are adjoining. Both Claxton, Georgia and Hagan, Georgia have expanded so that they are adjoining. Hagan was centered around a sawmill begun by the Perkins family in the 1890s. It rebounded until is a thriving community currently. [2][1]


1911 Claxton, Georgia was incorporated, and became the Fruitcake Capital of the World. The first 1923 courthouse still stands today. town was named after Mr. Philander Priestly Claxton, a noted educator. [2][1]
Claxton Bakery, Claxton, Georgia
Reasons for wanting the Evans County Creation Citizens of Georgia did not want to have a long distance to travel to the courthouse, thus Georgia decided to create the county.[3][1]
1) Citizens' distaste for traveling long distance to the courthouse. They wanted to reach the courthouse and arrive back home in the same day.
2) By adding another county, this gave Georgia more representatives.
3) Some believed a minority existed n Reidsville, Georgia (county seat in Tattnall county) which controlled Evans area.
4) Increase in businesses in Evans County area.
5) Savannah and Western Railroad entered Tattnal County.
6) Landowners wanted railway stations to be built on their property.
Aug 11, 1914 Once the Bill passed the in the Georgia legislature. The next step would be to create the County.[3]
There was some dissension for Evans county creation. Some citizens arguments:[3]
July 21, 1911 The Columbus Daily Enquire reported a delegation of (100 people) from Early and Decatur counties met with the General Assembly to voice their opposition to the bill for creation of Evans County. Their worry was loss of land for Evans County. The people debated with the General Assembly.[4]
The distance or difficulty to reach the courthouse were being corrected.[3]
The tax burden of a new county would override the new county for jobs to be found.[3]
The 1904 Georgia Amendment had limited the Georgia counties to 145 counties.[3]
To bypass the 1904 amendment a new amendment would have to be passed. [3]
1914 The bill did pass for Evans county, Georgia creation. The area taken from Bulloch county which opposed the new county the most, was reduced to only (60 sq. mi.) . Then the same bill would go to the house for concurrence and will require state voters to ratification. This county will have ($2,000,000.00) of revenue in its taxable property.[4][5]
Claxton and its businesses
1914 The Railroads arrived in this area. This gave rise to the towns of Evans County.The state of Georgia legislature formed its 152nd county, Evans County, as the 152nd county from parts of Bulloch and Tattnall Counties. The 185 sq. mi. county was named for Clement Evans, Confederate General, Methodist minister, historian, author and state senator from Stewart County, Georgia.[2][3][1][5]
1915 The first railroad came through Claxton, Georgia, when the Seaboard Air Line Railway train entered Claxton, Georgia depot. [2][1][5]


Before the new courthouse was built all county business was done in the White Building, which was a 3-story building purchased by Mrs. Ben Daniel (whose husband used the building for an office.)[3] [1][5]
White building, 1st building for Court .
May, 1922 The contract for the Evans county Courthouse was let and advertised by the Evans County commissioners. The commissioners asked for bids to be $50,000[4]
1923 1st courthouse, for Evans was built 1923 in Claxton, Georgia with a neoclassical revival style. It was the tallest and most distinguished building in town, located on Railroad Street. Renovations were done in 1980. Cost was planned to be $50,000[2][3][1][5]
Evans county Courthouse
Daisy, Georgia owes its existence to the arrival of the railroad. The town's economic contributors are cotton ginning and turpentine production. The town has ideas for restoration of more of the town's first buildings. Daisy is (3) miles from the eastern side of the County. This is a farming area. The downtown area has historical stores, such as the Daisy Fire Department, Post Office and Town hall. The citizens restored an old train car and parked it downtown near the railway tracks.[2][1]
Daisy Refurbished railway car
Evans County is called the Magnolia Midlands by the Historic Southerners.[3]
Other examples of business in manufacturing, educational, health and social services for Evans County's economy include include Camellia Health and Rehabilitation, Claxton Poultry Company, Georgia Department of Corrections, Nesmith Chevrolet Company, Pinewood Christian Academy, and Valmont Newmark. Its sales tax is 8% with county ranking of 64 out of 71 Tier 1 counties.[3]
Evans County businesses are 100 % exempt for property tax on certain business inventory. [3]

http://genealogytrails.com/geo/evans/news.htm

July 1940 Camp Stewart was built when the U.S. government bought land in several counties, including Evans County. Fifteen hundred people were displaced by the camp creation. [3]
Camp Stewart later became Fort Stewart. [3]
1940 Evans County citizens voted and elected the first female sheriff. Mrs. Josie Mae Rogers, who was appointed after the death her father, Sheriff Jesse C. Durrence on June 24, 1940. Later, she was elected sheriff by the people of the county. [3][5]
1959 Bellville was incorporated.. Since incorporation, the town restored the old trailroad depot, where it holds annual Railroad Days celebrations. Folksinger, Tom T. Hall has a song called "God Came through Bellville, Georgia" that citizens say he wrote while standing on the steps of the depot.[2][1]
Skillet corn bread
Evans County is similar to that of the state of Georgia. It has a mix of ancestors from American, English, Irish, German, Scots-Irish, French, and Italian. Its favorite foods are seafood, corn on the cob, and Brunswick stew.[1][5]
New Brunswick Stew
1950, 60's Advances in the businesses for Evans County were exemplified by a new Evans Memorial Hospital, and the Clayton-Evans County Airport. [3][5]
November 1975 Claxton High School teacher, B.G. Tippins worked with 15 students to build a a biplane which was the only one of its kind. It was called the Miller Lil' Rascal, a two-seat sporting biplane. This plane was the only one of its kind built. [3]
Hagan has now built (2) civic parks, the Bradley Memorial Park, Maggie Lee Lewis children's park and refurbished the 19th century G. Wesley DeLoach home for community and civic uses.[2]
October 16, 2006 Evans County Sheriff's Department was presented with seven bullet-proof vests by the Georgia Fraternal Order of Police. [5]
Skillet corn bread
2012 the Census Estimate showed a population of 10,689 for Evans County.[3]


Adjacent counties

  • Bulloch County – northeast
  • Bryan County – east
  • Liberty County – southeast
  • Tattnall County – southwest
  • Candler County – northwest

Government Offices

1st courthouse, for Evans was built 1923 in Claxton, Georgia with a neoclassical revival style.It was the tallest and most distinguished building in town, located on Railroad Street. Renovations were done in 1980. [2][3][1]

Evans county Courthouse

Geography

Location - southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Georgia
Known as Evans County area known as the Magnolia Midlands within the Historic South region.
Size - 187 square miles (480 km2), of which 183 square miles (470 km2) is land and 4.0 square miles (10 km2) (2.1%) is water.
River - Canoochee River ( a tributary of the Ogeechee River.
Creeks - Grice Creek; Billy Fork Creek; Thick Creek; Mill Branch; Barnard Mill; Rocky Branch; Scott Creek; Cedar Creek; and Dry Creek.
Ponds, Lakes -Cypress Pond; Dyess Pond; Beasley Pond; Bernard Smith Pond; I.W. DeLoach Ponds; Big Beasley Pond DeLoach Pond and Tippins Lake
Sub-basins- All of Evans county is in the Canoochee River sub-basin of the Ogeechee River basin.
Geology -Coastal plain region of Georgia, an area consisting mostly of sedimentary rocks.
Soils -Thin sand and red and yellow clay. The sand in Evans County that lies along the Canoochee River is white quartz of a medium to coarse grain. Some medium-grain sand covers about 50 acres of land along the railroad above Bull Creek
Climate - Humid subtropical climate under the Köppen classification and has a mild climate, :Temperatures 49.8 degrees in January and 82.7 degrees in July. T
Rainfall -average annual rainfall is 48 inches
Altutude - 65 feet (20 m) above sea level a to altitude of 228 feet (69 m) above sea level
Tornado statistics - 2 injuries in Tornadoes, March 29, 1974 (Category 1 tornado- $5,000-50,000 damages )trios is 1.4 times below the U.S. average for tornados

Protected areas

  • Protected species of flora and fauna- Georgia plume, Sarracenia flava, Sarracenia minor, beardtongue, Stewartia, loblolly-bay and sweetbay. Others include the purple honeycomb head, large-stem morning-glory, few-flower gay-feather, pond spice, Lobelia boykinii, hummingbird flower, and other plants.
  • Protected birds- red-cockaded woodpecker,, Bachman's sparrow, the spotted turtle, Say's spiketail and the 'southern bald eagle


Demographics

In 2010 there were 11,000 people in the county with population density of 60.2 people/sq. mi. The racial makeup of the county was 66.4% White, 31% Black or African American, 0.4% Native American, 0.9% Asian, 0.3% Pacific Islander, and 1% from two or more races. 12.7% of the population were Hispanic or Latino. Breakdown of ancestry - 11.5% were Irish, 8.8% were German, 7.5% were English, and 6.4% were American. The median income for a household in the county was $40,796 and the median income for a family was $45,938. he per capita income for the county was $19,072. About 15.1% of families and 21.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 32.0% of those under age 18 and 15.8% of those age 65 or over.[6]

Evans County is populated by many different ethnic groups.Among these groups are Whites; Blacks or African Americans; Native Americans; Asians; Pacific Islanders; and Hispanics or Latinos. Foreign born Evans Countians are predominantly Mexican, followed by Filipinos; Guatemalans; Japanese; Indians; Germans; and Indonesians. The most common ancestries in Evans County include American; English; Irish; German; Scots-Irish; French; and Italian. [7]

Religion

  • Evans County is largely Protestant. The breakdown of Relitions 1) Southern Baptist Convention: 45% 2) United Methodist Church: 36%, 3) Progressive Primitive Baptists: 6% 4) Catholic:6%

Evans county favorite food

  • Evans County's cuisine includes a variety of different foods ranging from seafood, corn on the cob and chicken and dumplings to Brunswick stew, fried chicken and cornbread. Other well known and loved foods in the county include pecans, peaches and peanuts

NOTABLES:

  • Joseph Kennedy, US Army veteran, recipient of Bronze Star was born in Claxton, became Senator and president pro temper of the Georgia State Senate.
  • Albert Parker made Claxton Fruit Cake and Evans County famous with the Claxton Bakery
  • Ira S. Womble, Sr. made Claxton and Evans County famous with the Georgia Fruitcake company
  • Cartha Deke DeLoach, a native Evans Countian, FBI, worked with J. Edgar Hoover
  • Dr. Curtis Gordon Hames, internationally known cardiologist studied heart disease published one of the first studies on the protective value of HDL cholesterol, was born and practiced medicine in Claxton. .
  • Charles Gordon Edwards of Daisy- U. S. Representative
  • William Washington Larsen of Hagan United States Representative
  • James Kicklighter, Bellville native- entertainer
  • Curtis Gordon Hames, an internationally recognized cardiologist who

County Resources

  • August 11, 2008 as Evans County Day-annual celebrations of the county's founding including the 2014 centennial celebration.
  • Evans County -annual rattlesnake roundup, 2nd weekend of March since 1968, with the roundup festival growing every year since then and moving from within Claxton to just outside the city in 2001.
  • Name Change to The Claxton Rattlesnake and Wildlife Festival
  • Cruisin' in the Country Bike Ride, a Yuletide Ride began in 1995 The event was changed from December to November the next year, includes 65 mile route becoming a complete century ride.
  • Martin Luther King Day parade, in January
  • Christmas in Claxton, 1st Saturday in December, includes arts and crafts, food, and the Parade of Lights.
  • The Richey Arena has barrel racing and other activities. L
  • Tractor pull -1st Saturday of each month at the Longneedle Farm Truck and Tractor Pull.
  • Chicken Pickin' festival has also been held annually since September 11, 2010

Cities/Communities



Census

  • According to the 2010 U.S. census, the population of Evans County is 11,000, an increase from the 2000 population of 10,495.

Cemeteries


Sources

  1. ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 http://www.claxtonevanschamber.com/history.html
  2. ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/counties-cities-neighborhoods/evans-county
  3. ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17 3.18 3.19 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evans_County,_Georgia
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 http://genealogytrails.com/geo/evans/news.htm
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 5.8 https://georgiainfo.galileo.usg.edu/topics/counties/evans
  6. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evans_County,_Georgia
  7. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evans_County,_Georgia




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