Lowndes County Georgia

Lowndes County Georgia

List of Emigrants to Arthington, Liberia

Eric Dewayne Jackson

One hundred and twelve Black men, women, and children emigrated from Lowndes County Georgia to Liberia in 1871 and 1872, just 7 years after the Civil War. These were families of farmers, craftsmen, and laborers who left Lowndes County looking for a better life, one free of terrorism and racism. When the Union Army withdrew from the region during Reconstruction, the civil unrest was so bad that on June 30, 1869 a local citizen made a jaded plea for help in the South Georgia Times (The Valdosta Time’s Predecessor). ” The person stated, “Dead (explicative)s! In this and neighboring counties. The land is literally strewn with deceased colored gentlemen. Every log has one behind it, ‘clay root’ conceals some half dozen, every gopher hole is trying to swallow; and has one half way down, every frog pond contains one or more… we need the military. These Ku Klux outrages must be stopped until the crop is gathered.”

The first group of 63 emigrants was headed by Jefferson Bracewell, a farmer and carpenter who was cited in the 1870 Census as having $6,000 of personal property. Aaron Miller, a farmer that owned 450 acres of land in what is now known as Hahira, Ga., led a second group of 59 people. The two groups settled in Arthington, Liberia. Liberia was founded by the American Colonization Society and former American slaves in 1822.

The Lowndes County settlers in Liberia prospered for a while then fell upon hard times. Many like Jefferson Bracewell and nearly his entire family died from Malaria while others were killed in conflicts with the local population. Aaron Miller was also one of the ones who died a few years after their arrival. Other settlements met similar fates. However, as the years passed some of these emigrants saw their dreams and ambitions fulfilled. Today descendants of former American slaves only make up 5% of the Liberian population.

[This document was made possible through the help of Renate Kraus Milner of the Lowndes County Historical Society, Dr. Crowley, Professor of History, Valdosta State University, and last and foremost. Mark David Howard, who wrote a Valdosta State University Masters Thesis titled African Departure: a History of the Liberian Emigrant from Georgia in the Reconstruction era.]
Lowndes County Georgia

List of Emigrants for Liberia

By Barque Edith Rose, From Hampton Roads, Virginia, November 7, 1871

No.	Name	Age	Occupation	Educat’n	Religion

1	Jefferson Bracewell	47	Carpenter	Read & Write
2	Rhoda Bracewell	40			Baptist
3	Joseph Bracewell	19		Read
4	Isaac Bracewell	18		Read
5.	Littleton Bracewell	16		Read
6.	Scinthea Bracewell	14		Read
7.	John Bracewell	13
8.	Dennis Bracewell	11
9.	Nathaniel Bracewell	10
10.	Joshua Bracewell	5
11	Sarah Bracewell	2
12.	Virginia Bracewell	1

13	Jefferson Bracewell, Jr.	21	Farmer	Read & Write
14.	Emily Bracewell	16
15.	Henry Bracewell	2
16.	Phyllis Bracewell	6mos

17	Toby Washington	24	Farmer

18.	Laura Lane	16

19.	Eli Ponder	22	Farmer	Read &Write
20.	Grace Ponder	20
21.	Isaiah Ponder	2
22.	Levi Ponder	1
23.	Nancy Ponder	50

24.	William Dickerson	45	Farmer
25.	Catherine Dickerson	42			Baptist
26.	Polly Dickerson	21
27.	Frances Dickerson	17
28.	Sara Dickerson	16
29.	Grace Dickerson	14
30.	William Dickerson, Jr.	10
31.	Lewis Dickerson	6

32.	Andrew Turkett	38	Farmer		Baptist
33.	Edith Turkett	40			Baptist
34.	Mary Turkett	15
35.	Annice Turkett	11
36.	Moses Turkett	8
37.	Cornelia Turkett	6mos