John Thomas Mitchell, and His World
by Bill Mitchell
Comparing Today With Grandfather's Day
I recently visited the homeplace of my
Grandfather, John Thomas Mitchell, near Social Circle, Georgia. This visit again impressed me with the massive changes in life since his time.
John Thomas was born June 5, 1866, 131 years ago. His father was Francis William Mitchell. He died in April 1943, and
is buried in the Mitchell Cemetery two miles north of Social Circle. When he was born, this country was only 90 years old (1776-1866).
Much of life, then, was similar to colonial times. Most people were farmers. Except for steam railways, land
transportation was still by horseback, by horse and buggy, or by horse and
wagon. People cooked on wood stoves, heated with wood fireplaces, and lighted
their houses with kerosene lamps. When they went to see about the livestock at
night or early morning, they used a kerosene lantern.
Cotton was king in Georgia. Eli Whitney's invention, the cotton gin, was a major factor in that industry.
Cotton gins were located about 10 miles or even less apart, so farmers didn't
have to go far to get their cotton ginned.
Grandfather, his wife, and his children
were deep into the cotton economy. At the height of his career, he owned two
large farms in Walton County, and another was in his wife, Jessie's, name. So,
he was set up for disaster when the cotton bowl weevil invaded the South. So
severe were the damages wrought by this little pest that Grandfather, among
many others, lost both his farms. Cotton, the money crop, was decimated. No
trace remains now of his main house. Another still stands, but is no longer
owned by my family.
But Grandfather John T. was a man of
parts. He was active in state politics, so was appointed to a position as
Curator of the Georgia State Museum, which was in the Capitol in Atlanta. He and his wife and youngest
daughter moved to Atlanta. Later, they returned
to the 80 acre farm my grandmother owned near Social Circle.
Times were bad later throughout the
country during the Great Depression, but Grandfather said at least they had
plenty to eat from the farm. My Mitchell family were farmers and planters as
far back as I have traced them. Grandfather John's father was Francis William,
who lived in the Walton County area. His father, Thomas Hardaway, had moved
there from Dinwiddie County, Virginia, early in the 1800's. Both are buried in
the Mitchell Cemetery. Thomas's father was John Henry Mitchell, a brick mason
and farmer, who lived in Dinwiddie County, Virginia.
But Grandfather John T. was more than
just a farmer. He was headmaster of the Hawkins Academy in Walton County for many years. Such "academies" were small
private schools, which catered to
local children of many ages. Several existed in that part of the country at the
time the Hawkins Academy was in service.
Grandfather was a proud member of the
Masons. He was a member of the Dawson Lodge in Social Circle and was
Worshipful Master of the Blue Lodge. He was a life-long member of the Annie Mary Baptist Church about 5 miles north
of Social Circle, and held most lay church
offices during his life.
Contrast his life with life today. I
traveled to Social Circle from my home near Villa Rica, by car, in an hour and
a half. The sleepy Social Circle of his day has grown and is still growing. It
lies on Interstate 20, and a railroad. You can reach the Hartsfield International Airport in less than an hour. My
cousins, the Watts, live on the old place in air
conditioned houses. One of my cousins was an aircraft mechanic, another a successful
salesman.
The area around Atlanta is fast
becoming a national hub of commerce. Atlanta is an international city. When
Grandfather was born, Georgia was a lesser part of the original thirteen
colonies, and was engaged in a civil war of secession with the North. Far from
having our bright future, it faced generations of privation and trouble before
reaching our present prominence.
Grandfather lived three and a half
generations from our country's founding. My grandson, Grant Mitchell, is four
generations from Grandfather J.T. Those seven and a half generations are a mere
flicker of time as human history is measured, yet if Grandfather could see us
today, he'd be totally amazed by our technology.
We must remember such things to
maintain balance in our world.
