Georgia: Robert Forsyth

Born in Scotland in 1754, Robert Forsyth was one of the two original U.S. marshals not born in 

the future United States. After settling in New England when he was a teenager, Forsyth and 

his family moved to Fredericksburg, VA a year before the American Revolution began.174 Like 

many young Virginians at the time, Forsyth began the early part of his career as a soldier in the 

Continental Army. On January 10, 1779, Forsyth received a 

captain’s commission in "Light-Horse” Harry Lee’s elite cavalry 

unit, but within the year he transferred positions and worked 

as an aide-de-camp to General Waightsill Avery.175 As General 

Avery’s aide, Forsyth was tasked with supplying the Continental 

Army in the Southern Theater of the war. As a result of his 

success in this role, Forsyth received a promotion to major, a 

rank he would maintain throughout the remainder of the 

conflict.176 

After the American Revolution concluded, Forsyth returned to 

his home in Virginia, where he remained for two years before 

moving to Georgia in 1785. Between 1785 and September 

1789, Forsyth participated in local politics, while attending to 

growing his personal fortune.177 In the fall of 1789, President Washington appointed him as the 

first U.S. marshal for Georgia—a decision that would prove fateful.

Forsyth quickly plunged into his duties, including overseeing the enumeration of Georgia. 

Unfortunately, Georgia’s extant 1790 census records were among those destroyed by the 

British in during the War of 1812, so there is no direct record of the names of the heads of 

household or the deputy marshals. Over the years, researchers have been able to piece 

together some of this information from other records, but there will always be large gaps. 

 

174 “History - The First Generation of United States Marshals/The First Marshal of Georgia: Robert Forsyth,” U.S. 

marshals Service, last estimated release October 28, 2019, 

https://www.usmarshals.gov/history/firstmarshals/forsyth.htm. (Accessed October 28, 2019).

175 Ibid. 

176 Ibid. 

177 Ibid.

Miniature Portrait of Robert Forsyth 

1790s.

Courtesy of the National U.S. marshals

Museum
Nevertheless, Forsyth completed the enumeration of 

Georgia’s population on June 25, 1791, thus meeting the 

original deadline that Congress established for completing 

the census.

178 His returns showed that Georgia had a total 

population of 82,548 people, making it the third smallest 

state in the nation.179 After this, Forsyth continued to 

serve as Georgia’s U.S. marshal for more than three 

years.180 

On January 11, 1794, Forsyth and his two deputies corned 

Beverly Allen, a former minister, and his brother in the 

house of a local resident, with the intention of forcing 

them to comply with their summons to appear in court for 

a civil case.181 In an effort to detain the fugitives, Forsyth 

entered the house and proceeded to knock on the door to 

a room on the second floor.182 A fearful Beverly Allen shot through the door and killed Forsyth, 

making him the first federal law enforcement officer killed in the line of duty.

183

 Forsyth’s 

deputies arrested Allen, but he escaped from prison twice, finally fleeing to Kentucky, where he 

spent the remainder of his life.184 

Forsyth’s son, John, served as a U.S. Congressman and Senator, the Governor of Georgia, and 

the Secretary of State under Presidents Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren.

 

178 “Georgia”. Return of the whole number of persons within the several districts of the United States: according to 

"An act providing for the enumeration of the inhabitants of the United States," passed March the first, one 

thousand seven hundred and ninety-one, pg. 55. PDF. Retrieved from

https://www.census.gov/content/census/en/library/publications/1793/dec/number-of-persons.htm. (Accessed 

October 28, 2019). For Information about Georgia’s Modern Population see “QuickFacts: Georgia,” U.S. Census 

Bureau, last estimated release July 1, 2018, https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/GA. (Accessed October 28, 2019). 

179 “Georgia”, Return of the whole number of persons within the several districts of the United States: according to 

"An act providing for the enumeration of the inhabitants of the United States," passed March the first, one 

thousand seven hundred and ninety-one, pg. 55. 

180“History - The First Generation of United States Marshals/The First Marshal of Georgia: Robert Forsyth.” 

181 Ibid.

182 Ibid.

183 Ibid.

184 Turk, David S., “Conclusion: Retired Deputy U.S. Marshal Follows the Trail of Robert Forsyth’s Murderer,” U.S. 

marshals Service, last estimated release October 28, 2019, 

https://www.usmarshals.gov/history/firstmarshals/forsyth.htm. (Accessed October 28, 2019).

Historical marker marking the burial place of 

Robert Forsyth

Courtesy of the Georgia Historical Society