The Savannah morning news., 1901-03-19
THE IRWIN-COFFEE LINE.
4 Fight involving 1880 Acres toOne
or the Other County.

-
or the other County.
DELLA, Ga. March 1s-Last Saturday
County Commissioners L. r. Tucker of
Irwin, S. B. Dorminey of Berrien ana
Dennis Vickers of Coffee met Mr.. War
doper. the surveyor sent by the Governor
10 settle, if possible, the dispute as to
county lines between the three counties
named, in Mr. Tom Howell's store, at
Lax.
Commissioner fuckers contention was
for the line fixed by the commission APP
pointed by the Legislature in 1858. This
line begins at the northwest corner of
lot number %, on the Ocmulgee river, and
runs direct south to the Coffee road, as
it stood in 1858. and along this road to
the Berrien line. The act of the Legis-
lsture of 1858 shows how this line was
fixed. Hon. George Young, Twins repre-
sentative in the Legislature in 1858, was
present at the meeting Saturday and ex-
planned in a most lucid manner just wha-
was intended by the act. He said, in
part:
we knew that the old Coffee road, like
all public roads, was undergoing
slight changes, by reason of
land being cleared and for other
clause was embodied in the act making
the Coffee road, as it now stands the
line between the two counties" Mr..
Young further stated that the present
line is the only one he ever knew, and
that it is where the commission appointed
by the Legislature. with the approval of
the Governor placed it.
Mr.. Elem Harper, who is in his SD
year, and who is a gentleman of the
4ria al
the meeting. He stated that he was
reared near the line in dispute, and that
it had always, in his time, been called the
Coffee road and that his father before
him had never heard it called otherwise.
To further strengthen his contention,
Commissioner Tucker showed that one
of the commission that marked out the
line ins 1858, Mr.. George j. NJ. Harper
lived just inside of the line in Irwin, that
mis- descendants still live there and that
they have always been citizens of Irwin.
Following are the names of the commits
sioners appointed by the Legislature in
1858 to mark out the line between Irwin
and Coffee counties: Irwin--George ]. Nj.
Harper, George E. McCook and John B.
Mobley. Coffee-Duncan B. Graham, Tim
othy Fressell and John HID.
OF these MIR. McCook is, so far as can
be learned, the only survivor and he is
firmaties brought on by age.
Mr.. Wardroper, the surveyor, contends
that the original Coffee road crosses the
Willaeoochee at what is known as the
Columbus road bridge, near the old Ben
Griffin place, but that the county line
from that point is the Willocoochee creek
TO its junction with the Alapaha river. To
sustain this contention he has some Old
blazes and old road marks, and but little
else and not hing DOsitiVq
Commissioner Tucker has the evidence
of the Legislator who introduced the bill
to fix the line; the evidence of an octoge-
marian who has lived in a few hundred
yards of the line all his hfe, and the evil
dence that the iate George j. NJ. Harper
one of the commission to mark out the
Inc, had always been a resident of IT.
win, just inside the line, and that the
line has never been changed from where
this commission placed It.
Mr.. Wardroper's contention is based on
what he claims as proofs that the line
is not now on the original Coffee road
where, he contends, the Legislature or
dered 1t fixed.
Should he finally carry his point sixty
elk lots of 400 acres each will be cut off
10 Coffee and Irwin will be that much
poorer; but there is so little to sustain
his contention. and so much positive proof
I'm rebuttal that no one believes there is
any danger of Irwin sustaining the loss
mentioned. 1t may be as well to state
here that the present dispute arose from
a request by the grand jury of Coffee
county last year to the Governor for a
Appling and Coffee and Irwin. This coun-
ty is now fgbting simply for justice and
the law as II stands, and will not be sat-
isfied with less.