Gunmen, Lawmen and Wild Men of Early Georgia

Within the pages of this historic book are documented accounts of the pioneer Georgians of yesteryear who settled and shaped the great geographic realm known today as the state of Georgia.  They came from all walks of life.  They either sought an existence on free or very inexpensive property where they might reside and begin lawful life anew, or else a rough-and-tumble, confrontational and oft-times outlaw life, taking what they wished from whom they wished, when they wished:

• Virginia Hill & “Bugsy” Siegel – Though gentle and kind to friends and family, life was less than rewarding to the attractive young lady from Cobb County, Georgia, who grew up to become the “kept woman” of Chicago mobsters.  After living a life of high – but non-violent – crime, Virginia ultimately died a lonely death far from her Georgia home, and later was immortalized for posterity upon the silver screen with notorious mobster Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel.  Before her departure from her Georgia home, Virginia, nevertheless, left a coterie of close friends behind who remembered her in nothing but fond thoughts for the remainder of their lives.

• Jacob Pettyjohn & Murder in Forsyth County – Though he sought a normal, law-abiding life, Jacob Pettyjohn’s world became nightmarish in 1859, when events quite nearly conspired to end his life.  At the somewhat young age of 42, he was convicted of “Murder” for little more than his failure to render assistance to a victim in need.  After winning a “Stay of Execution” in his resulting trial, he did not wait around hoping for a reversed judgment.  Jacob Pettyjohn had “seen the handwriting on the wall,” and struck out for Texas, where he became a Confederate officer and gentleman before disappearing into history.

• Frontier Fighters From Yesteryear – If one rides through Polk County today, the name “Prior” can still occasionally be seen on a street name and in property descriptions.  The once-prominent family was composed of hard-working, honest, and law-abiding citizens who worked the land and became prosperous in the days preceding the U.S. Civil War.  During and after this conflict, when a criminal element threatened the lives and livelihood of the Prior family, the perpetrators quickly discovered they had seriously misjudged their prey.

• The Murder of Cherokee Chief James Vann II – On a cold winter night in 1809, at an isolated tavern located on the old Federal Road at what today would be the approximate county line between Forsyth and Cherokee counties, an important head-man of the Cherokee Nation was brutally murdered in cold blood.  Though he was buried and his grave clearly marked a short distance away in Blackburn Cemetery, the specific location of his interment has been strangely lost through time.  Today, no one knows for certain where the last mortal remains of Chief Vann now lie, nor even the reason for his murder.  Speculation has continued to the present day.

• The Vanished Confederate Treasury Gold – During the dark closing days of the U.S. Civil War, casks of gold and silver coins comprising the Confederate Treasury and the assets of several Virginia banks – a glittering hoard worth untold millions of dollars today – were spirited from Virginia across the Carolinas and into northeast Georgia in a last-ditch effort to avoid their confiscation by Federal authorities.  Portions of these funds seemed to disappear into thin air in the confusion of a mass exodus in those tumultuous times; other portions were stolen and scattered over the northeast Georgia hills by escaping thieves in the pandemonium, and have become a subject of great legend today.

• The Robbery of the Bank of Lumpkin County – It is but a footnote in history today, but back in the early 1900s, a group of bandits attempted to rob the Bank of Lumpkin County in Dahlonega, Georgia, and met with a bit more resistance than they had anticipated.  The ensuing blazing gun-battle on the old town square rivaled a scene right out of the old West and ultimately resulted in the capture of the criminals.

• The Murder of Postman James Langston – If a complete tally of the number of deaths associated with the illicit production and sale of un-taxed whiskey (“moonshine”) in the United States could be obtained, the number would understandably be staggering.  Worse, many of the deaths were completely needless.  The gruesome murder of U.S. Postman James Langston on a backroad just south of Atlanta on a crisp autumn morning in 1922 is one such example.  Surprisingly, following a lengthy trial, the perpetrators of this horrible crime – all moonshiners – received what could only be described as exceptionally light sentences despite exceptionally-strong evidence against them, and no rational explanation has ever even been provided for this heinous crime.

• The North Georgia Moonshine War – The rugged north Georgia mountains have long been a refuge and home for descendants of those hardy early pioneers who chose that environment over their homes in Scotland and Ireland in the late 1700s.  These denizens of the high mountains often were dependent upon the production and sale of untaxed liquor (“moonshine”) as a cash crop just to survive.  In 1876, after the federal government had “outlawed” such sales and begun enforcement of the “liquor laws” of the United States, the result was literally a declaration of war between the mountaineers and the “revnoors.”

• The Story of Outlaw George Anderson – He haunted the stagecoach and train routes throughout the old West and as far north as Canada in the late 1800s, robbing and pillaging at will, but always with a strangely-polite manner.  Though captured and imprisoned numerous times, the “Grey Fox” (as he came to be known) always escaped to continue his high crimes. . . that is, until advanced age and infirmity down South in Georgia combined to bring his highwayman days to a close forever.  Today, the story of George Anderson, a.k.a. “Bill Miner,” has been immortalized in books and Hollywood major motion pictures.

The topics above from Gunmen, Lawmen, and Wild Men of Early Georgia are just a portion of the 32 captivating stories jam-packed with fascinating information, including some 194 equally-enthralling period photos, many of which have not been previously published.