- Collection:
- Civil Unrest in Camilla, Georgia, 1868 : Reconstruction, Republicanism, and Race
- Title:
- Letter: Superior Courts of the South Georgia Judicial Circuit: Baker, Calhoun, Grady and Mitchell counties to the Desoto Trail Regional Library, Camilla, Georgia, [1970?]
- Creator:
- Culpepper, Robert, Jr.
- Date of Original:
- 1970
- Subject:
- Acquisitions (Libraries)
United States. National Archives and Records Administration
Archival materials--Georgia
DeSoto Trail Regional Library (Camilla, Ga.) - Location:
- United States, Georgia, Mitchell County, Camilla, 31.23129, -84.21046
- Medium:
- letters (correspondence)
- Type:
- Text
- Format:
- image/jpeg
text/html - Description:
- This donation letter to The DeSoto Trail Regional Library from Robert Culpepper, Jr., Senior Judge of the Superior Courts of the South Georgia Judicial Circuit , introduces a collection of documents comprised of photostatic copies of the official records in the National Archives. The documents relate to an incident in Camilla on September 19, 1868. These letters, affidavits, reports and newsclippings describe the violence that broke out in the town when a Republican candidate for Congress, W.P. Pierce, attempted to hold a political rally at the courthouse. Culpepper obtained the collection from Bush Perry, who had served as administrative aide to Georgia Congressman E.E. Cox. He presents the collection to the DeSoto Trail Regional Library in memory of Perry.
Digital image and transcription created by the Digital Library of Georgia in 2001 of a photocopy held by DeSoto Trail Regional Library of an original record held by the National Archives. - Local Identifier:
- cam001
- External Identifiers:
- Metadata URL:
- https://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/zlcu/id:cam001
- Digital Object URL:
- https://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/do:dlg_zlcu_cam001
- IIIF manifest:
- https://dlg.usg.edu/record/dlg_zlcu_cam001/presentation/manifest.json
- Bibliographic Citation (Cite As):
- Cite as: [title of item], United States. Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands. Records. National Archives and Records Administration, presented in the Digital Library of Georgia
- Extent:
- 1 page/leaf
- Holding Institution:
- De Soto Trail Regional Library System
- Rights:
-
Page: [1]
A. WALLACE CATO, Chief Judge
P. 0. BOX 65
BAINBRIDGE, GEORGIA 31717-0065
912/246-1111
WILLARD H. CHASON, Judge
P. 0. BOX 774
CAIRO, GEORGIA 31728-0774
912/377-7349
ROBERT CULPEPPER, JR.,
Senior Judge
P. 0. BOX 388
CAMILLA, GEORGIA 31730-0388
912/336-0771SUPERIOR COURTS
SOUTH GEORGIA JUDICIAL CIRCUIT
BAKER, CALHOUN, DECATUR, GRADY AND MITCHELL COUNTIES BATTLE OF CAMILLA
DONATED TO THE DESOTO TRAIL LIBRARY IN MEMORY OF L. BUSH PERRY
The documents in this book are photostatic copies of the official records in the National Archives of the Camilla Affair, sometimes called the Camilla Riot, or the Battle of Camilla, which occurred on September 19, 1868, when a Republican candidate for Congress, W. P. Pierce, attempted to hold a political rally at the courthouse in Camilla .
Pierce was accompanied by Captain F. F. Putney and a large number of blacks, armed with walking sticks and shotguns, and a wagon with a band of music. The group was stopped north of Camilla and warned not to come in with arms, but they persisted and when they approached the courthouse one shot was fired into the group which started the shooting on both sides, and the group from Albany was hastily dispersed and were pursued and a number were wounded and killed.
Tift won the election but was not officially seated as Georgia was not formally readmitted to have representation in Congress .
Most of the blacks and the so-called "carpetbaggers" made up the Republican Party, and feeling ran so high in the whole area that the Semi-Weekly News of Albany listed only Democratic candidates for the upcoming General Election of 1868, completely disdaining any mention of the Republican candidates.
All of this points up that politics were just as "hot" then as they sometimes are in this day and time !
Bush Perry loved Camilla and Mitchell County and when he was associated with me many, many years ago for a short while we often mused about the interesting things and people in our historical background and when he later went to Washington as an Administrative Aide to Congressman E. E. Cox, without any suggestion on my part, he put together these documents and sent them to me and we have hoarded them through the years.
Bush loved people, he loved sports, he loved his community and his family. He was a talented writer and when he was growing up he was my idea of an All American Boy, and in manhood a gentleman and scholar !
We proudly present this book to the DeSoto Trail Regional Library in loving memory of this long-time friend and great and good person !
[Signed] Rob Culpepper