University of West Georgia - Chieftain Yearbook (Carrollton, GA)

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IN RETROSPECT

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From my constant vigil in the red clay hills surrounding West Georgia College I have observed every facet of her great history. I have seen students enter as lowly, frustrated rats and some leave possessing certificates or diplomas leading to various professions and others possessing degrees in elementary education. I have seen competent faculty members come and go, each having con- tributed to the history of the school. As two eras of progress have occurred and a third one has begun, I, the Spirit of West Georgia, have gained increasing confidence in my sons and daughters.

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Lot no, 99, Land district no. Lot No. 99 jQ.. y Qj.Q he numbers drawn by Lawrence Richardson of Columbia County in the land lottery of 1825. How vivid is that day in my memory, for that is the day I began my vigil from the red hills of Georgia. Mr. Richardson received title to approximately 200 acres of land some- where west of the Chattahooche River. In 1830 the land was sold at public outcry to settle a claim against Richardson. It brought $21, or about ten cents an acre. It passed into the hands of William A. Walsh, who never occupied the land. Obadiah Wright, who at that time was a recent immigrant to the frontier county, secured the land and made some clearings and improvements. Before the end of the decade it was again sold at the fall of the sheriff ' s hammer. By this time cotton was now king and the red soil of the land provided a new means of wealth. Thomas Bonner from Clarke County bought it and immediately engaged Y. Hendrix to construct a permanent dwelling house there. This was completed in 1844. The big house stood then on a little knoll about halfway between the road and our present drive. Twenty yards farther back, where Adamson Hall now stands, was the kitchen, in which the house servants cooked the food which was brought into the dining room on large trays. A commissary room joined the kitchen, and a smokehouse stood not far away. Across the road in front of the dwelling were the barns, the gin house and a cotton press. The slave quarters were strung along the ridge from the rear of the kitchen to the present site of the Admin- istration Building. The burying ground for the slaves was the area now occupied by Melson Hall. In 1860 I sadly watched as Bonner ' s two sons marched off with a company of volunteers to the tune of Jim Patrick ' s flute. Late in 1863, several thousand federal cavalry under General Stoneman, marching from Selma, Alabama, to join Sherman below Jonesboro, passed along the road which now fronts the campus. Some of their foragers raided the smokehouse and barns, taking hams, shoulders, milk, eggs, flour, corn, and hay. They did not burn anything and did not molest the women. Peace came, followed by reconstruction and eco- nomic and social adjustments. The land in time became the property of the Sharp family, and in 1906 it was deeded to the board of trustees of the Fourth District A and M School. The idea of the Agricultural and Mechanical Schools originated with Governor Joseph M. Ter- rell in 1902, but the bill creating them was not passed by the General Assembly until 1906. The citizens of CarroUton and Carroll County donated the ponderous sum of $39,000, with hghts and water for ten years, for the establishment of the Fourth District School. Of this amount $9,000 was paid for two hundred and seventy acres of land, which was bought from B. A. Sharp. The first two buildings, the boys ' dormitory, now Mel- son Hall, and the Administration Building, were erected by Mandeville and Aycock, contractors, for $30,000, which represented the actual cost of building, plus one per cent. Each bedroom had a double bed, a combination dresser and washstand, a study table, a washstand set, two straight chairs, a Hot Stuff Heater, and shades. The classrooms, domestic science depart- ment, dining hall, and kitchen in the Administra- tion Building were adequately equipped. The price of board the first month per pupil was seven dollars and thirty-five cents, which repre- sented the actual cost of provisions and fuel. Dur- ing the first thirteen years, the board rarely ex- ceeded eleven dollars. Professor J. H. Melson became the school ' s first principal and served for the first thirteen years of its life. Much of the success of the A. and M. School was due to the efforts of Professor Melson during the time he headed the institution. Melson Hall was named in his honor. The A. and M. School flourished until America ' s entry into World War I in 1917 brought sadness I J I I '