Located in Southeast Georgia, Charlton County was established by the Georgia Legislature in 1854.  In earlier times, Charlton County and the Okefenokee Swamp were the home of the Oconi, Timuquan, Seminole and Cherokee/ Creek Indians.  Settlements in and around the great swamp date back at least 1500 years. In 1538 the area was explored  by Spanish conquistador Hernando deSoto. In the 1620s and 1630s, Spanish priests established missions in some of the Oconi villages. Mission San Lorenzo de Ibihica was located on the eastern edge, near Kingfisher Landing. Mission San Diego de Ocone was located on Floyd's Island. 
 
(See Indians History and Pre-History)
(See Coleraine)

Later, this region became part of the disputed territory between Spain, Portugal, France and Britain in the Seven Years' War (aka the French and Indian War). With the Treaty of Paris in 1763, the land was included in the British territory bounded on the south by the St. Marys River.
 
Charlton County contains the headwaters of both the Suwannee River and the St. Marys River. In the 1750s, a trading post on the banks of the St. Marys became the first official settlement of European colonists in what is now Charlton County. A small fort  ("Fort Alert") was built there, and was staffed with United States soldiers to protect the settlers from being attacked by Indians and marauding gangs of thugs. Later, the outpost came to be known as Traders Hill, and with the official establishment of Charlton County in 1854, it became the first county seat.
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With the advent of the railroads in the 1830s, a small community known as "The Station" sprung up along the route from Waycross to Jacksonville. It quickly grew to become the town of Folkston and, in 1901, it became the new county seat. Over the years, commerce increased, more settlers arrived and several small villages started up in the county, among them:
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Billy’s Island
Camp Pinkney
Centerville
Chesser Island Homestead
Coleraine
Folkston
Homeland
Kings Ferry
Leigh Hill / Sawpit Landing
Moniac
Newell
Racepond
Saint George
Trader's Hill
Uptonville

The Okefenokee Swamp held a rich bounty of old growth cypress and pine trees, and the timber operations to harvest them became an important part of the local economy. In 1891 a group of Atlanta businessmen led by attorney "Captain" Henry Jackson tried to gain access to the groves. They attempted to dig a canal through the land formation known as Trail Ridge and drain the waters into the nearby Saint Marys River. They abandoned their efforts after three years and the project became known as "Jackson's Folly." The community that remained came to be known as Camp Cornelia.

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In 1909, other interests acquired the land, and tram railroads were built into the interior of the swamp. The Hebard Timber Company's logging operation led to the growth of a lively settlement of about 450 residents in the very depths of the Okefenokee, on Billys Island.
 

In 1936, President Franklin Roosevelt (partly at the behest of his wife Eleanor) set aside 400,000 acres of swampland, islands, lakes, and prairies, in order to preserve the  unique ecology and wildlife of the area. Today this site is known as the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, and Camp Cornelia is its headquarters.

Galleries
 

Images from Charlton County's early days
If you have photos of old Charlton County please consider allowing us to scan them for the historical record. 

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Chesser Island Gallery
Billys Island Gallery

Holding Gallery

Folkston in the 1950s and '60s

Saint George 1910 - 1918


Archive Documents

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Photo albums of archive documents including the following:

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1855 Tax Digest

1858 Vigilance Committee

1860 Census

1870 Census

1877-1893 County Commission

1887-1890 Bethel Church Register

Late 1800s Superior Court Records

1897-1932 Moniac Justice of the Peace

1913-1928 Voter Registration

1947 Tax Collection

Restaurant Ledger

Register of Posted Lands

Methodist Church Register

 

Indices of the Charlton County Herald 1908-1945          Coming Soon

Digests of the Charlton County Herald 1908-1945

Timeline
A collection of articles, essays, notes, and excerpts from books that help provide a narrative of Charlton County's past

Biographical Sketches

Biographies of Charlton County citizens, printed in various periodicals over the years

 

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Events Calendar

Important Notice:

Due to the covid pandemic, the meeting that was scheduled for September 9 has been postponed until further notice. Watch this space, or visit our Facebook page for further announcements.

 

The Charlton County Historical Society offers several books about the area's history for sale:
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"History of Charlton County"
by Alexander S. McQueen, 1932
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"Charlton County Georgia Historical Notes"
by The Charlton County Historical Commission, 1972
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"Settlers of the Okefenokee"
by Lois Barefoot Mays, 1975
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contact us at
charltonhistoryandmore@gmail.com