How Gold Helped Make East Cobb History

The Georgia Gold Rush started in Dahlonega, Georgia in 1829.  So many people wanted land in this area, Georgia held the Georgia Gold Land Lottery of 1832 and that is how Cobb County started.  Before that, this land was known as Cherokee County, and this fact is mentioned in the original Tritt property deeds from 1840 and 1856.  ​
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Lottery Spinner from 1832

Georgia held the Gold Lottery from 1832 to 1833, to give away several thousand parcels of 40 acres each.  The Cherokees were being forced from the area (the Trail of Tears), and there was the belief that much of their former land had gold, including the present-day area of East Cobb.  

​There was so much demand for gold, that the state divided the area into 40 acre parcels (called Land Lots), rather than the usual 160 acre parcels.   The Land Lot system is still used today to describe land in Cobb County. 
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Brothers Samuel and Isaac Sewell bought the 80-acre Tritt property from 2 winners of the Gold Lottery.  The brothers also owned the Sewell Mill, the ruins of which you can still see today on Sewell Mill Road.  The Tritts are related to the Sewells by marriage.

Sewell Mill ruin (photo by B&E Roberts Photography - click for website)

Sewell Mill Millrace by Sewell Mill Creek (photo by B&E Roberts Photography - click for website)

According to the B&E website, "when Sherman's troops arrived in 1864" at the Sewell Mill, "the women working at the mill (while the men were off fighting) had taken all of the working parts of the mill and hidden them in the creek.   Upon departure of the Federal troops, the parts were re-installed and the mill resumed operations."

On the Antebellum era map below (see B&E website for more details), the Sewell Mill is located in the center of the map at "Flour Mill".  The names on the map are the East Cobb landowners at the time, and "Sewell" is located where East Cobb Park and the Tritt property are now.  "Delk" is located next to "Sewell", and by the Civil War, Jackson Delk had bought the Tritt property.  Many streets and schools in East Cobb are named for these East Cobb landowners.

Also prominently featured on the map is the Marietta Camp Ground, which has a very important history in East Cobb. It was first established in 1837, and Samuel Sewell and his brother Isaac Sewell, who owned the Tritt property from 1840, were the first "tenters" to stay at the campground.  Revivals were held each year after harvest time.  Families met at the campground and came together for a week-long event, after the fruit was jammed and the pies were baked, 

According to the Marietta Campground website:  "This land was bought for $40. Four men, Isaac Sewell, Samuel Sewell, Wisdom Gober and William Mayes, each gave $5 and the remainder was secured in small donations. Chappell Groover rode horse-back to Meriweather county to secure deeds."  Read more of the history of the Marietta Campground here.

One of the Revivals held in July (image courtesy of Marietta Campground - click for website)

This Georgia map shows the counties created in each of the 7 Land Lotteries.  Cobb is in the Gold Section from the Gold Lottery of 1832.

7 Land Lotteries in Georgia

Part of the vision for the Tritt property, besides saving greenspace, is to have a place to preserve the history of East Cobb and all the families who first settled here and were so prominent in making East Cobb what it is today. 
 
East Cobb has a rich legacy and history we feel is important to save and pass on to future generations before those stories fade away.  Just as Roswell and Marietta have retained their historical identities, we also want East Cobb to do the same.
 
We can compile stories and pictures from families to create a place where our history isn't forgotten.  Let us know if you would like your family story told from the early days of Cobb County.   Email [email protected] to get in touch with us.  ​​​