To Preserve Family and Farm

As indicated, I am David H. Gambrell, , Atlanta, GA. My wife of 56 years is the former Luck Flanders of Swainsboro, Georgia. While recently pursuing one of my Emanuel County hobbies, I stumbled on your blog “To Preserve Family and Farm” and have found it fascinating and have shared it with my wife. As you probably know, there, there is a good deal of mystery about the “Right Wing” of Sherman’s Army as it passed through Washington, Johnson and Emanuel Counties, right after Thanksgiving in 1864. Part of the mystery is the location of “Sutherland’s Mill”, the identity of Sutherland, and the exact route followed on the Army’s passage between Sutherland’s Mill and “Summerville” while crossing Emanuel County. This is the march that brought this army in contact with the Wiggins family at their home place in Blun. My “google” of “Sutherland’s Mill” put me in touch with a chapter of your story.

My interest in this subject is a long story which I will summarize by saying that I wrote several articles for the Swainsboro Forest Blade in November 1989 memorializing the 125th anniversary of Sherman’s March. Among other things, my research produced, from the National Archives, “Route Maps” generated by Sherman’s engineers as they progressed on the march. These maps are remarkably accurate although based on “dead reckoning” in the absence of established base points. The maps for the 17th Corps along the Old Savannah Road are the ones used by Dr. John Derden of East Georgia College for his annual bus tour of Sherman’s March along the Old Savannah Road between Wadley and Midville.

The route of passage of the 15th Corps south of the Old Savannah Road, generally following the “Lower Savannah Road” is displayed in Sherman’s Route Maps, but it strays from today’s roads at several points and the exact route has never been traced to my knowledge. You have mentioned a map as a part of your work but I have not seen it in the chapters of your work that I have read. The route posted by Schwabe in his map is accurate in a general way, but is not as precise as the “route map” which I have used.

It seems clear from comparing the engineers’ route map along the Lower Savannah Road that the Army left that road somewhere east of present day U. S. Highway 1, bearing northerly, either as a shortcut to “Summerville”, or to avoid the Canoochee Swamps further down toward Hawhammock. Names appear on the map referring to residents, such as Scott and Scarboro (?) and locations are noted such as “Summerville Steam Saw Mill”. In the vicinity of Summertown, the route clearly follows the Old Swainsboro-“Summerville”-Midville Road, and that part of the route brought the Army in direct contact with the Wiggins Place.

The exact route of this shortcut, and certain other variables from today’s road system, could be clarified by some precise engineering and map work which I have considered having done.

One reason this subject has been of interest to me is that on the previous night the same Army camped near and passed through the Flanders Place in western Emanuel County along the Old Mount Vernon-Louisville Road (now called the Pinetucky Road) just east of the Sutherland’s mill site on Sardis Creek. This was the home place of my wife’s ancestor, W. A. Flanders, and where her grandfather and father were born. Incidentally, my wife claims a relationship with the Wiggins Family, through her Moring ancestors.

Both she and I have been fascinated by your family’s story and its relationship to the subject of Sherman’s March in Emanuel County.

Is there any possibility that we might further compare notes? I will be glad to send you copies of the articles which I wrote for the Forest Blade, including the 15th Army Corps route map, and I would be pleased to have a copy of your map, and any further information which you may have on this subject. If your book has already been published, please let me know as I would like to have a copy for my Emanuel County archives. I was also interested in the story about Henry Blun. Over the years, I have heard a number of references to him and other Savannah bankers regarding their interests in Emanuel County properties, including the “Emanuel Farm Company” near Blundale, and in other locations, predecessors I think to large paper company holdings in that area.

I will look forward to hearing from you.

David H. Gambrell, Atlanta, GA

I am the grandson of Emily Add Wiggins Davis and John West Davis I would like to read the history of my family. I would appreciate it if you can send me a way of viewing the document from the diary that was written by you. I am having trouble getting getting with the website.