Fitzgerald leader enterprise and press. (Fitzgerald, Ben Hill County, Ga.) 1921-1964, 1922-03-16
INTERVIEW MRS. R. A. MAJORS

Mrs. r. A. Majors says: my first
trip to the present site of Fitzgerald
was in the early spring of 1885,, when
| came in company with my husband
who was a director in the newly or
gained company and was making a
survey of the land with the founder,
Mr.. P. H. Fitzgerald, Messrs Hayde,
and Matrau, who later opened up a.
lumber business and Dr. and Mrs. Nc
Way of Des Moines, Ia
From Abbeville we came by wagon
with mule and horse harnessed to-
gether with ropes, as our motive pow
er and steered by rope lines and a
limb of tree Our road was a faint
trail through the woods and broken
trees across our path was always caus-
ing no end of trouble to drive over
or around. In fact this experience
was common for several years as soon
as one got away from town by as
much as a mile. Even where a road
was pretty well established, the tall
pines weakened by frequent turpen-
timing and the more frequent fires
were ready to fall at any time of high
wind and when they measured their
excessive heighth by their length on
the ground and when several trees hap
pcned to the same fate in close prox-
unity, there was a considerable loss
OF time and patience as our good col
ony people wendell their way in and
about.
Of course this trip being one of adj
venture soley, to the ladies in Our par
ty we saw only the humorous side of
everything and almost everything new
or strange was another occasion for
mirth. Our destination was Swan
the little turpentine town of thir-
teen families which was to be our
postoffice and neighbor settlement
through the shack period and then to
be absorbed by the colony limits Of
Fitzgerald, when the survey was COM
pleted
Three branches of the highly es-
teemed Drew Family were living in
Swan-Mr. David Drew with his wife
now his widow residing on Central
Avenue, and their daughter Miss Lulu
Drew who was courted and married a
little later by Mr. T. S. Price, (Tom,
we called him in those days) and he
was one of our first leading dry goods
merchants. Then there was Henry
Drew and his young family, who have
grown up here and scattered, his
wife's. people the Ross's. Mr.. Thurston
Ross being assistant post master and
later city treasurer and one of the most
popular young men of that day, but
who passed away in 1902, bht his bro
ther and sister still live here among
us.
Then there was Jesse Drew at whose
home we we're entertained on our
short visit. The Drews occupied sub
tantial homes built on the favored
Southern plan then SO new to US, with
wide porches and large halls though
the centre from which each room op-
ened as separate unit, each with a
large fire place. We were used to
rooms built in suites where a large
coal heater could heat several rooms
together
Some of my activities in the year of
81 were soliciting subscribers to the
canning factory enterprise, which was
doomed to ultimate failure and the
building, but an empty shell at the
time going up at last in fire and smoke.
! walked these streets from one end
10 announcer W1Oh others OF this commit
tee, two Of whom remember were
Mrs. Anna Ratings and Mr.. Sam
Fleming.
j had much social pleasure from a
small literary club of which other
members were Mrs. d. c. WEIGH and
her three daughters, Emma, Ora and
Nellie, Mrs. J.H. Stalker and daughter.
Mrs. G.. E. Kicker, Mrs. Coe, Mrs. !.
Wilkerson, and other special or visit
ing friends
One social occasion that stands out
strong in memory was New England
dinner which was given by our G.
A. R. Circle on Washington Birth
day of 49, Mrs. L. w. Frink, Mrs.
F. w. Mcintosh, and I were dressed
IN Martha Washington costume. still
have mine and | understand one of
the other ladies has also, and our pho
tograph made at that time. Mayor
Goodnow spoke for us and Sidney Las
celles sang, and there were other en-
Pertaining exercises.
Ia