In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

Section HI THE ElGHTEEN-TwENTIES Age of the Pioneers. Their Names Now Cover the Land CHAPTER 1 1821-1822-1823 Henry, Fayette—Then De Kalb Organization of De Kalb County ECAUSE the land lot is such an integral designation in connection with all real estate transactions in this section, it might be well to look into the matter of its origin. Indeed, the land lot was the basic unit in the laying out of all Georgia counties subsequent to the Indian cession of 1802. Land acquired prior to that cession and including all territory in Georgia south of Franklin, Banks and Jackson counties and lying east of the Oconee River is known as "Head Right" country. That is to say, none of it was surveyed and divided into land districts and land lots. It was only surveyed in response to an application for a head-right grant and could be in any shape the grantee desired so long as it conformed in amount to his grant.1 All counties laid out after the cession of 1802and the Land Act of 1803 are known as "Land Lottery" counties. There were eight of these lotteries, covering a period from 1805 to 1833, inclusive. Those entitled to draw were free white male citizens over 18 years of age. Every such citizen, who had not previously drawn, was entitled to one ticket; if a husband or father, to two tickets; certain officers and soldiers to two;widows and orphans were included in the distribution.2 Grant fees for the various lotteries ranged from five dollars to fifty dollars, the average being approximately ten dollars.3 It has already been noted that five large counties, Dooly, Houston, Monroe, Henry and Fayette, were created from the Creek Indian cession of January 8, 1821. Each of the five counties was divided into Land Districts 9 miles square, and these into lots of 202/2 acres each. The land itself was distributed under Act of May 15, 1821, which created the counties, by lottery, drawn near the close of that year.4 The persons who drew the various land lots in Henry and Fayette counties, known as original grantees from the state, were residents of practically all, if not all, of the then existing counties in Georgia. Many sold the land sight unseen and comparatively few actually established residence on the land acquired in the Lottery of 1821, which incidentally, was the fifth of eight lotteries. Since Henry and Fayette counties were the parents of De Kalb and the grandparents of Fulton County, it will not be amiss at this point to review the Act of May 15, 1821, by which they were organized. Although Dooly, Houston and Monroe counties were created under the same act, they do not concern us here and references to them in the act will be omitted, except in the preamble. B THE EIGHTEEN-TWENTIES 21 "AN ACT To organize the Counties of Dooly, Houston, Monroe, Henry, and Fayette; to add a part of Henry to the County of Fayette; and to establish an additional Circuit, to be called the Flint Circuit, and in the mean time to attach the said Counties to the Southern, Ocmulgee and Western Circuits. #1. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of Georgia in General Assembly met, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That it shall be the duty of any three or more of the persons hereinafter named, not being themselves candidates, in each of the Counties aforesaid, to hold an election for five Justices of the Inferior Court,5 in each of the Counties aforesaid; giving at least twenty days notice when said election shall be held; at the places by this act to be designated for the temporary holding of the Superior Courts in the said Counties; and the said persons shall certify from under their hands to the Governor, the five candidates who have the highest number of votes, who shall thereupon be commissioned by the Governor, and hold their office until the next election for Justices of the Inferior Court in course throughout the state; unless their offices shall become sooner vacant by law: And that the following persons be and they are hereby appointed Commissioners for superintending the said elections in the counties aforesaid, to wit, . . . For the County of Henry, William Harkins, David Castleberry , Cheadle Cochran, Solomon Stricklin, William M'Knight, Charles Gates, senr. and Lee JefTers. For the...

Share