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Family of Lester Griffin
Lester Griffin, born July 30, 1890, was a son of Lillian Melissa Knight and Noah Webster Griffin, grandson of Mary Elizabeth Carroll and William Washington Knight, and great grandson of Levi J....
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Double Jeopardy for Rachel Sirmans
In Berrien County, GA in the summer of 1873 there arose a dispute between Burrell Hamilton Bailey and Bradford Ray over what has been described as “some family matters.” On 23 of June, 1873, while...
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Obituary of Caswell Yawn
Caswell Samuel Yawn (1926-2003) Caswell Yawn (LEFT) and James Clements (RIGHT) photographed June 2, 1939. Image courtesy of Edith Mayo. Caswell S. Yawn, 77, died Saturday, June 21, 2003, at his...
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Resolutions of the Berrien Minute Men
Resolutions of the Berrien Minute Men Levi J. Knight, original pioneer settler of Ray City, was the military leader of the community. He served as a captain of the local militia company in the Indian...
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Mrs. Elizabeth Patten dies at Ray City
Elizabeth Register Patten (1828-1916) Elizabeth Register Patten. Image Source: Terri Hoye According to Nell Patten Roquemore’s Roots, Rocks, and Recollections, Elizabeth Register was a daughter of...
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Fourth of July, 1834 and the State Rights Association
In 1834, William A. Knight, Levi J. Knight, Hamilton W. Sharpe, John Blackshear, John McLean, John E. Tucker, William Smith led the effort to form a State Rights Association at Franklinville, GA,...
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Mrs. Schmoe ~ Ray City Teacher
Nancy Young Schmoe Nancy Young Schmoe, was a teacher at the Ray City School and the wife of Charles Woodrow “Woody” Schmoe who served as principal of the school in the late 1940s and early 1950s....
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Col. Thomas E. Blackshear’s Report on the Battle of Brushy Creek
Col. Thomas Edward Blackshear Col. Thomas Edward Blackshear made an official report to Governor Schley about the engagement between whites and Indians that took place on Brushy Creek on July 14, 1836...
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Skirmish at Troublesome Ford
In the summer of 1836 squads of Creek Indians fleeing the prospect of forced relocation to western territories were moving from the Georgia-Alabama line through south Georgia to rendezvous in the...
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An old tintype of Walter Howard Knight
Walter Howard Knight (1859-1934) Tintype photograph of Walter Howard Knight, Rays Mill, Berrien County, GA. Image Courtesy of Jimmie Mobley. Walter Howard Knight, a son of William Washington Knight...
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William Lonnie Royal and the Turkey Heist
William Lonnie Royal (1897 – 1981) Lonnie Royal, 1973. William Lonnie Royal was born June 13, 1897, at Homerville, Clinch County, GA. He was a son of Gabriel Marion Royal and Vercy Lee Fender. Some...
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John Sherlock ~ Irish Horse Trader
Irish Horse Traders The Irish Horse Traders were a well known, if irregular, part of the historical businesses of Ray City and other Georgia communities. According to Georgia: a guide to its towns...
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Gilbert Parrish and the Dipper Gourd
Gilbert Parrish (1856-1903) Gilbert Parrish, son of William Parrish and Rebecca Jane Devane, was a farmer of the 1156 District of Berrien County. As a farmer, Gilbert Parrish appreciated the...
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Final Report of General Julius C. Alford on Actions at the Little River and...
As described in previous posts, the July,1836 actions against Indians in this immediate area (Skirmish at William Parker’s Place and the Battle of Brushy Creek) were preceded and somewhat precipitated...
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Electric Lights and Running Water for Ray City, GA
Ray City Water and Light Ray City Light Plant – September 18, 1923. Bruner Shaw was among those present at the start-up of the power plant. In the 1920’s the cities and towns of south Georgia were...
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Richard Seward Johnson ~ Ray City Farmer
Richard Seward Johnson (1855-1936) Richard Seward Johnson. Image courtesy of Henry Aubrey Bullard. All rights reserved. Richard Seward Johnson, a son of Merritt H. Johnson (1814 – 1877) and Mary Ann...
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Henry Blair’s Account of the Skirmish at Cow Creek
In August, 1836 the pioneers of Lowndes and surrounding counties were engaged in local actions against Creek Indians along Warrior Creek, Little River, Alapaha River and at Cow Creek. These Indians...
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Bessie Griffin Bazemore
Bessie Griffin (1883-1983) Bessie Griffin Bazemore. Image source: P.C. Griffin Bessie was a daughter of Noah Webster Griffin and Lillian Melissa Knight, a granddaughter of William Washington Knight,...
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Rays Mill Gets G & F Depot
By September 1908, the construction of the Georgia and Florida Railroad was nearing completion. A contract was let out to construct a “neat and commodious” train depot at Rays Mill at a cost of $1500...
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Henry Needham Bullard and Mary Ann Johnson
Henry Needham Bullard (1878-1938) Henry Needham Bullard was born and raised near Ray’s Mill, GA (now Ray City). Image provided by Aubrey Bullard. All rights reserved. Henry Needham Bullard, son of...
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