Houston County Researchers: As I had mentioned a few weeks ago, the Houston County Heritage Book Project is coming right along. Prior to publishing this book, we are hosting an On-line Photo Gallery to display historical photos of the area and its citizens. If you would like to share any of your old photos of Houston County, please Email them to: [email protected] Just about any type of file will do: jpg, gif, art, etc. I would like to thank Susan from California for sharing the great photo of the King brothers of Perry, GA. It is a rare occasion that I am able to view Civil War era photos of soldiers in uniform from Houston County. This photo is a real treasure! It is now a part of the Early Military Photos album in our online photo gallery. Take care, and happy hunting! William A. Mills Perry, GA [email protected] ________________________________________________________________ YOU'RE PAYING TOO MUCH FOR THE INTERNET! Juno now offers FREE Internet Access! Try it today - there's no risk! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj.

Houston County Reseachers: Religion and religious freedom is one of the strongest foundations that this country was built upon. From the earliest days of the 1600s and 1700s, there were the Puritans, Congregationalists, Quakers, etc. During the 1840s, America was a literal melting pot of religious movements. Generally speaking, the Baptists, Methodists and Presbyterians were the dominant denominations, but there were also several others. While surfing the Net, I found a website that contains extensive information about religious movements, both from the early days, and up until the current time. The University of Virginia developed this website at: http://cti.itc.virginia.edu/~jkh8x/soc257/profiles/listalpha.htm This particular page is an alphabetical listing of the religious movements. There is extensive info about each denomination, as well as detailed listings of websites pertaining to each. I have found this info very informative for genealogical research. Take care, and happy hunting! William A. Mills Perry, GA [email protected] ________________________________________________________________ YOU'RE PAYING TOO MUCH FOR THE INTERNET! Juno now offers FREE Internet Access! Try it today - there's no risk! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj.

Is there anyone on the list who is related to the Christian family? I have pictures that I would like to identify and maybe find a home for. They belonged to my grandmother, Alma Leverett. Most look to be WWI or WWII era. Helen

According to my mother, there is a Buster Stripling buried in the Leverett family cemetery in Houston County. The grave is unmarked, not even a slab. He was suppose to have been visiting Mary Thomas Hammock Leverett when he died. The Hammocks, Striplings and Emmerson/Emersons all intermarried in Jones and Houston County. Sure would like to identify this person and mark the grave with something besides occassional flowers. Helen

lol lol so glad somebody else experienced this heat!!! Poor farmers are really suffering though..... Robbie Porter

Bill-- I was just in central Ga on vacation. I thought it was wonderful weather... 104 degrees and just enough humidity to moisten the nasal passages... as you said "just perfect for frying your meal on a sidewalk". Aw shucks, maybe just for warming up yer eggs in the mornin'. Arrived back home in Vegas to come out into the "dry" heat (only 13% humidity) ....I jest threw my steak on the patio in the 111 degree heat and got a nice rare one! However, I have burned the nasal passage hairs right off! Diana

William, you do evoke some odd memories from my childhood. Around the home where I was born in Houston Co. - halfway between Wellston (RAFB) and Byron - were a number of large trees. One was the inevitable cedar, a huge, tall scaly thing - too prickly to climb. There was also a black walnut tree and on the ground under the tree was a large slab of stone which we used as a base to crack the walnuts with a hammer. Over the many years of use, that stone had a deep walnut-sized depression worn in its surface. The walnut meat was so tedious to pick out of the shell but, man, were those cakes with walnut flavored icing worth the trouble! And Ice cream in the summer time - peach icecream during peach season; strawberry icecream from our own strawberries; butter pecan from our own pecans, and walnut icecream once in a great while was a rare treat. We had a few chinaberry trees around and one of them had a long heavy straight limb not too high off the ground which made a wonderful "horsie" for an only child who had to find her own entertainment. That limb was "Silver" and I was "The Lone Ranger," 'til finally I had a real horse to ride, a big, beautiful chestnut walking horse named "Major." My grandfather, Henry Frank Rape, made popguns for me from an elderberry branch and I used the chinaberries for bullets. He could also make whistles from the elderberry. And some folks made elderberry wine. But, my favorite tree on our homesite was an old, huge pecan tree. It shaded the smokehouse and the washbench where my mother and our friend Viola washed clothes every Monday. While they boiled the clothes in a big iron pot over a fire made of oak wood and scrubbed them on scrub boards over tin tubs, I climbed the pecan tree which had a perfect limb for gymnastics - skin-the-cat, hanging by my knees over the limb, chin-ups and any other acrobatics I could dream up. On long Sunday afternoons, after church, I took my favorite book of the moment and climbed into that pecan tree and sat in the chair-like crotch of the tree and read for hours, often 'til I was called to supper. At Christmas time my grandfather and I would go to the woods to bring back a holly tree which we would decorate with real candles in little clamp-on holders. We would make popcorn strings, and string them and tinsel ropes around the limbs and put a tinsel angel on top. And every night, Mother would light the candles and we would sit and enjoy their beauty for a few minutes before she blew out the lights and we would scurry off to a cold bed in an unheated bedroom. Life was simple, not always easy, but so very good. Precious are my memories of my childhood. Joyce Rape Harrison

Houston County Researchers: Summer in Central Georgia is about as *hot* as you would ever want it to be. For those of you who have visited the Houston Heritage Book Project webpage, you know that you can keep an eye on the temps in the Perry, Georgia area by reviewing the weather updates and forecast that is posted there. http://homestead.juno.com/houston-heritage Perhaps that could evoke some sympathy from those who are experiencing cooler climates. Yesterday, it was 104 degrees ... just perfect for frying your meal on a sidewalk. I was traveling on some of the back roads in Houston & Dooly Co., GA, and drove thru an extensive pecan grove. You could really feel the difference in the temps upon entering it. It was like a huge enveloping canopy of foliage air conditioning. Over the years, I've visited several old homeplaces, and just about all of them had huge trees near what was left (if anything) of the old homes. Usually, there was a pecan, magnolia or cedar tree ... and, an occasional hemlock. And of course, the stately live oaks. What tales those trees could tell, as they have stood guard over the generations of occupants of these homeplaces. Even today, as you are driving by the modern subdivisions in Houston Co., GA, you can find an occasional small grouping of gigantic trees that surely must be the only extant evidence of a homeplace from days gone by. I fully expect that within ten years, even these areas will be developed, and part of someone's driveway or house. Trees have always amazed me with their sense of preserving part of our family's heritage. In almost everyone's memory, there is at least one particular tree that they can remember from their childhood. Whether it is one that they helped their grandparents shuck corn under, swing from on a home-made swing, or just keep cool under on a hot summer day while sipping a tall glass of ice-tea. At my family's cemetery in North Carolina, there is a massive cedar tree near the back of the graves. It is literally almost 4 feet across, and probably well over 150 years old. In 1993, I decided that I would help to propagate some seedlings from this huge cedar. So, I found 7 small (a foot or less tall) seedlings under the tree in the Fall, and carried them back to my home in Perry, Georgia. Today, these trees are now over 8 feet tall. My cousin in North Carolina has recently informed me that the huge red cedar is almost dead, and that it will need to be cut down soon. While I am sad to think of the demise of this family landmark, I am somewhat consoled by the fact that there are at least 7 more of its *kin* who will carry on in its stead .... but about 450 miles south of there. If any of you have some tree tales to tell, I would sure like to hear them. Also, any good old-fashioned "how to keep cool" tricks that your grandparents may have passed onto you for the summer time. Take care, and happy hunting! William A. Mills Perry, GA [email protected] ________________________________________________________________ YOU'RE PAYING TOO MUCH FOR THE INTERNET! Juno now offers FREE Internet Access! Try it today - there's no risk! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj.

Hi Sandra is off line for a short time. Her computer isn't working and she has had some family issues come up as well. Her husband is on the mend but in the hospital. If you need any help with Rootsweb, just email me on [email protected] Kind Regards, Gaila

And here I am sitting in the middle of a chilly winter with my mouth watering for a lovely Georgia peach. I wouldn't mind baking in the warm Georgia sunshine at the moment either! Gaila in sunny but chilly Sydney ----- Original Message ----- From: "William A. Mills" <[email protected]> I am almost mesmerized by the quality of peaches around Central Georgia: the firm, velvety texture, the bright golden to almost crimson hues, the exquisite, almost breath-taking aroma, and the heavenly taste, as sweet as sugar or honey ever dared to be. Here's to eating some sweet Georgia peaches! Take care! William A. Mills

Hi William, I enjoyed your treatise on Georgia Peaches. The reason they are so sweet this year is because of the draught. The more it rains the more watery and less sweet are the peaches - so the lack of rain has been good for one thing at least. I was born and raised on a Houston County peach farm owned by my grandfather Frank Rape. I can remember riding the wagon through the orchards as the "hands" picked peaches and dumped them from buckets into boxes and then loaded the boxes on the wagon. Several of the hands would save the biggest, tree-ripened peaches for me. I could peel them with my fingers and I'd be too full to eat dinner when I got back to the house and too sticky to be allowed in before washing off. But, they were so good. We raised Elbertas, Georgia Belles and Hiley Belles and Golden Jubilees. The Hiley Belles were a white-meat peach and they were delicious. It was one of my favorite times of the year because I wasn't in school and I got to go with my grandfather to the packing shed at Elberta where the peaches were packed in baskets and put on the freight train to be shipped to Florida. There was a special bonus in shipping our peaches to Florida - every Christmas we received a basket of mixed citrus fruit from Mr. Gentilly who bought my grandfather's peaches every year. If "Daddy" Frank and I happened to be at the packing shed at lunch time, we would walk across the road to the little country store and buy lunch - a couple of penny wheels, a hunk of cheese and a NuGrape. Yummmm! The store building is still there and it brings back sweet memories everytime I pass by. Thank you for the memories. Joyce Rape Harrison

Will, Just reading your descriptions make my mouth water. There is nothing better than a ture "tree ripened" peach. Regards, Steve On Sat, 15 Jul 2000 15:27:57 EDT "William A. Mills" <[email protected]> writes: > Houston County Researchers: > > Mid-Summer is probably one of the most enjoyable times of the year > in > Central Georgia. The weather is like an oven, but the peach trees > are > producing an abundance of scrumptious delicacies. Houston, Peach > and > other surrounding Georgia counties, are in full swing with their > peach > production equipment now. Personally, I have 7 peach trees in my > backyard, which are in their second year of production. For some > reason, > our peaches are sweeter than ever this year. Regardless of how many > I > pick, they sure don't last long around here :-) > > Last year, I discovered an old ledger from the late 1800s and early > 1900s, that gave a detailed listing of the early peach orchards of > Houston Co., GA. The listing is massive, and one day, I intend to > transcribe the data. I've seen detailed accounts in some of the > Deed > Books of the same era, which describe large groups of land owners > giving > the rights to use the water (streams, etc.) on their property, for > the > benefit of the peach packing industry. > > Prior to, and up to 1924, when a huge portion of western Houston > Co., GA > was to become the new Peach Co., GA, the massive peach industry was > one > of the main reasons for the separation. The Fort Valley and Byron > area > has been prime territory for the peach business for well over 100 > years. > The fortunes which were made as a result of this, is utterly > amazing. > > Around 1920, Fort Valley, GA hosted a Peach Festival which was > unlike any > the country had ever seen before. And, they invited folks from all > over > to come and eat BBQ, be entertained, and *observe* their peach > orchard > productions. However, once the attendees found out that *they* > could > also duplicate what they saw in Peach County, they started their > *own* > peach production enterprises. From that point, the monopoly on the > peach > production business spread out from this area. > > This is not to say that the peach industry is not still massive > around > Central Georgia, as it certainly is. A few years back, Marilyn N. > Windham of Fort Valley, GA, wrote an excellent book describing the > early > Peach Festival and the industry that was behind the fortunes made. > For > anyone who has roots in this area, I consider this to be "required > reading". > > The Elberta peach and several other varieties were developed in this > area > of Georgia. Some, directly from peach pits, I believe. I've had > experts > tell me that you can't plant a peach pit and expect any sort of > quality > fruit to develop. I can tell you for a fact, that you *can*. Two > of my > best peach trees were planted directly from a peach pit. However, > it > takes about 4 or 5 years before you will be eating any peaches. > > I am almost mesmerized by the quality of peaches around Central > Georgia: > the firm, velvety texture, the bright golden to almost crimson hues, > the > exquisite, almost breath-taking aroma, and the heavenly taste, as > sweet > as sugar or honey ever dared to be. Here's to eating some sweet > Georgia > peaches! > > Take care! > > William A. Mills > Perry, GA > [email protected] > > ________________________________________________________________ > YOU'RE PAYING TOO MUCH FOR THE INTERNET! > Juno now offers FREE Internet Access! > Try it today - there's no risk! For your FREE software, visit: > http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj. > > > ==== GAHOUSTO Mailing List ==== > For technical list assistance, contact listowner > Sandra Riner at [email protected] > ________________________________________________________________ YOU'RE PAYING TOO MUCH FOR THE INTERNET! Juno now offers FREE Internet Access! Try it today - there's no risk! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj.

In a message dated 07/15/2000 12:28:58 PM Pacific Daylight Time, [email protected] writes: << I am almost mesmerized by the quality of peaches around Central Georgia: the firm, velvety texture, the bright golden to almost crimson hues, the exquisite, almost breath-taking aroma, and the heavenly taste, as sweet as sugar or honey ever dared to be. Here's to eating some sweet Georgia peaches! >> .........boy you sure do like to torture us former southerners..........hmmmm

Houston County Researchers: Mid-Summer is probably one of the most enjoyable times of the year in Central Georgia. The weather is like an oven, but the peach trees are producing an abundance of scrumptious delicacies. Houston, Peach and other surrounding Georgia counties, are in full swing with their peach production equipment now. Personally, I have 7 peach trees in my backyard, which are in their second year of production. For some reason, our peaches are sweeter than ever this year. Regardless of how many I pick, they sure don't last long around here :-) Last year, I discovered an old ledger from the late 1800s and early 1900s, that gave a detailed listing of the early peach orchards of Houston Co., GA. The listing is massive, and one day, I intend to transcribe the data. I've seen detailed accounts in some of the Deed Books of the same era, which describe large groups of land owners giving the rights to use the water (streams, etc.) on their property, for the benefit of the peach packing industry. Prior to, and up to 1924, when a huge portion of western Houston Co., GA was to become the new Peach Co., GA, the massive peach industry was one of the main reasons for the separation. The Fort Valley and Byron area has been prime territory for the peach business for well over 100 years. The fortunes which were made as a result of this, is utterly amazing. Around 1920, Fort Valley, GA hosted a Peach Festival which was unlike any the country had ever seen before. And, they invited folks from all over to come and eat BBQ, be entertained, and *observe* their peach orchard productions. However, once the attendees found out that *they* could also duplicate what they saw in Peach County, they started their *own* peach production enterprises. From that point, the monopoly on the peach production business spread out from this area. This is not to say that the peach industry is not still massive around Central Georgia, as it certainly is. A few years back, Marilyn N. Windham of Fort Valley, GA, wrote an excellent book describing the early Peach Festival and the industry that was behind the fortunes made. For anyone who has roots in this area, I consider this to be "required reading". The Elberta peach and several other varieties were developed in this area of Georgia. Some, directly from peach pits, I believe. I've had experts tell me that you can't plant a peach pit and expect any sort of quality fruit to develop. I can tell you for a fact, that you *can*. Two of my best peach trees were planted directly from a peach pit. However, it takes about 4 or 5 years before you will be eating any peaches. I am almost mesmerized by the quality of peaches around Central Georgia: the firm, velvety texture, the bright golden to almost crimson hues, the exquisite, almost breath-taking aroma, and the heavenly taste, as sweet as sugar or honey ever dared to be. Here's to eating some sweet Georgia peaches! Take care! William A. Mills Perry, GA [email protected] ________________________________________________________________ YOU'RE PAYING TOO MUCH FOR THE INTERNET! Juno now offers FREE Internet Access! Try it today - there's no risk! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj.

Congratualtions, that is so wonderful!!! A very deserving award, I hope they don't all move to Perry though. The site is great, thanks so much for letting Houston County Page link to it, Gaila ----- Original Message ----- From: <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Friday, 14 July 2000 3:36 AM Subject: The Briar Patch recognized by AOL I was delighted and shocked to learn that The Briar Patch ..www.thebriarpatch.com has been selected by AOL for placement in their Hall of Fame. This has resulted in more that 6000 hits this week! I've heard from many folks all over the world looking for Parkers, Moodys and wanting to move to Perry...(maybe I over did it) 8>) Thanks to all who have assisted in the development of the site and have provided encouragement. I'll be updating the site next week . I have some really neat pictures of Perry folks from the 50s. Thanks again. terre moody walker [email protected] Website: <A HREF="http://www.thebriarpatch.com">TheBriarPatch</A> http://www.thebriarpatch.com This letter was composed with PowerMail™

Houston County Researchers: The Evergreen Cemetery photo gallery is now online at: http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumList?u=967501 This is just the first chapter of many to come, regarding THE HERITAGE OF HOUSTON COUNTY, GEORGIA book publication project. Over the next few months, I will be posting dozens of more photos which depict historic sites around Houston Co., GA, as well as photographs of the early families. If any of you have any ideas for this online photo gallery, please let me know. I have chosen the thumb-nail photo gallery format, so that viewing would be much easier. Take care, and happy hunting! _________________________________ William A. Mills Perry, GA [email protected] Research Website: http://homestead.juno.com/wa-mills ________________________________________________________________ YOU'RE PAYING TOO MUCH FOR THE INTERNET! Juno now offers FREE Internet Access! Try it today - there's no risk! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj.

If anyone has tried to contact me about the Heritage Book in the last 5 days and could not get through, my e-mail went out, but I am back now. Hope to get the flyers soon. Addie [email protected]

----- Original Message ----- From: Gaila & Jim Merrington <> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Sunday, March 05, 2000 1:42 PM Subject: Re: [GAHOUSTO] Spencer Cherry > In early Bibb County Georgia and Houston County Georgia, there seem to be > as many > as three seperate Cherry families. > I beleive that the Cherry families are interrelated. I know that the cherry familie sare related to the Anderson and Daniel families for sure: Charles Anderson b. 1808 m. ann Cherry Daniel Oct 2, 1836 d/o Aaron Daniel Sr. I beleive while with limited proof...you will find the CHERRY, ANDERSON, DANIEL, KNIGHT ,WOOD, TAYLOR AND COPELAND SURNAMES IN BLADEN COUNTY NC. And further more I am on current search to determine if all these surmanes are found w/i one or two regisments possibly the 2 or 5 NC Continental Line. which would seal it for me that that these people are close friends, and relatives from quite a way back. > > In Houston County, Sandra and I are sure that William, Spencer and Riley are > brothers, all born in NC. This is not proven, but we have William settling > on land that he bought from Spencer and Riley joining them shortly > afterwards. They are in the Centerville area. We think that William was a > member of the Shiloh Methodist Episcopal Church and may be buried there. > Spencer lived in the Henderson district of Houston County (1860 census). > > There is also a Francis Cherry, born in NC, who had previously lived in > Alabama, but moved to the Perry area in Houston County. He was a minister > and an editor of a Newspaper. Was he also a brother? > > In the 1860 Census Bibb County, there were Cherrys: > Joel T., John H. Lemuel, Martha, Mary x2, W.A., William x 2. One of these > is my William. There was also an Abner Cherry, Hilliard, Joseph,Isaac N and > Addison. Does anyone know if these Cherry's are related? > > I would love to know more about the Bibb County Cherry families to see if > there are connections. > > > Thanks > Gaila > > > >

Hi, I have checked with the Mayor's secretary at Perry City Hall in regards to a lot for David H. Houser. The lady was very nice and very helpful. The City acquired Evergreen from the Methodist Church. She went through the file cards on the lots and there was not a lot listed to David H. Houser. She then pulled the Cemetery records compiled by the University of GA and it showed no burial of David H. Houser or his second wife, Helen Houser. She checked another document and neither were listed on it. David's first wife, Eliza and their son, are in an enclosed area. There are other markers with different names in this area that are no known relatives of the Houser family. Mr. Mills excellent book on the cemetery does not list David or Helen. The appropriate issues of the Houston Home Journal carries the obituaries of Helen and David with the comment that they are to be buried in Evergreen Cemetery. A foot search of the cemetery revealed no markers for David or Helen. However, in the enclosure there are 2 unmarked slabs in the right-hand rear corner with no inscriptions on them. My interest in this matter is my ggrandmother, Susan Dorothy Jones Murray, was sister to Helen Jones Houser. Helen is the ggrandmother of Patrice Green of Florida. Skeet Brown

Houston County Researchers: As Stephanie Langston has stated, the City of Perry, GA has files on Evergreen Cemetery, as they are the caretakers of it. The majority of these files were written on large index cards in 1977, during a survey of the cemetery by a group of University of GA students on their summer project. Usually, the file will show who is the current contact person for that particular plot. Each card varies, so you *may* be able to find very useful info in them, including who is *probably* buried in a few unmarked graves. However, most of this data was provided many years after the fact, and is not documented. When contacting the City of Perry about these cards, it will be helpful if you have the grave lot number, which is listed in the Evergreen Cemetery book, now online; i.e. N-29. The contact person at Perry City Hall is Laura Smith, the secretary for the Mayor and the City Manager. Happy hunting! William A. Mills Perry, GA [email protected] ============>>> On Tue, 27 Jun 2000 08:41:13 EDT [email protected] writes: Just a suggestion, but you might call the City Of Perry and ask what they have in their records for Houser and the Lot #'s. I called for our family and found that they had information on unmarked graves. Hope this helps Stephanie ________________________________________________________________ YOU'RE PAYING TOO MUCH FOR THE INTERNET! Juno now offers FREE Internet Access! Try it today - there's no risk! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj.