The Martin and Lucretia Stamper house is near the Meriwether and Harris County lines in Talbot County. It is also known as Merrywood. The two-story I-house with Classic Revival details was built in 1833. The Stampers, who moved to the area from Upson County, were among the early families to settle there. Their two-story home is a rarity and indicates how wealthy the family was. According to the 1840 census, the Stampers enslaved 40 people and owned just over 700 acres.
In 1850, the Stampers sold their property to John Harris and James Weaver. While the National Register of Historic Places does not state this, it seems the land was divided, and the Harris family occupied the house. In 1860, Weaver sold his acreage to Harris. The Harrises lived in the house until 1890.
The home was put on the National Register of Historic Places in 2007. The photos below are from the NRHP application.
Powell Baptist Church’s congregation began in 1879. Its founding date indicates that this is a freedmen’s church, which means its founders were likely enslaved. The first minister was Reverend J. Bowell. Tax records indicate the church was built at the same time. At some point, the edifice was covered in brick. The painted brick archway adds character to the building. The church is still active.
There are many different types of headstones found here, from homemade to commercial. The most surprising find is what appears to be two separate cairns placed end to end. So far, I’ve only found this covering in historically white cemeteries in Georgia.
The vernacular marker for Eddie Leonard (1950-1981)CairnsLeon Leonard (1939-1967)Mr. Oscar Lee Beach (1900-1983)The Eldren Bailey marker for Luella OwensThe modern crowned marker and ledger stone for Rosie Lee Thomas Biggs (1932-2013)
Saddlebags houses are two-room homes with a center chimney that heats both rooms. This type of house evolved from single-pin (room) houses, one-room homes with a fireplace. This type of house is a common vernacular form in Georgia.
Smith Hill Cemetery is located in the southwest part of Talbotton, Georgia. Like many cemeteries in Georgia, it illustrates a community’s history and funerary art changes through its landscape and the types of headstones found throughout the cemetery.
The vernacular marker for the Riley family
Located on a hill, the cemetery is almost completely overgrown except for specific cleared areas for more recent burials. It is said that this cemetery started as a cemetery for the enslaved, but this is frequently said about overgrown cemeteries that are a final resting place that serves the Black community. For this one, it is certainly possible because Talbot County’s 1860 Slave Census shows over 4,000 people held in bondage, and there was a plantation in the area. However, I did not locate any research that confirmed this. Still, it is a historic cemetery active since the late 1800s.
Iron fence around a plot
What is known is that this has served the Black community as a final burying place for several generations. Researching old obituaries, I found that church members from the nearby St. Phillips AME Church, Shady Grove Baptist Church, and other area churches are buried here. Some common names in the cemetery are Trice, Kimbrough, and Martin.
Rufus Martin (1903-1978)
There are many influences on markers, from Victorian-influenced ones to handmade ones, field stones, ironwork, and modern markers. A common form of handmade headstones in Georgia is the rounded concrete one. Often, marbles are used as a decorative addition to the marker. They are some of my favorite ones to find in a cemetery. The concrete headstone of the Riley family is a new favorite. The combination of the marbles and the line drawings makes it incredibly unique.
Jack Raines Sr. (1907-1978)
Additional markers in the cemetery include a painted blue Eldren Bailey marker, fieldstones, and a homemade obelisk with name plates made of professionally made marble. More recent burials use a common granite form found in almost any cemetery in the United States. However, a more recent handmade brick crypt was made for Willie Battle.
The Victorian-influenced marker of Mary Chapman, 1868-1905A fieldstone
If you are into exploring cemeteries, don’t skip the lesser-visited or overgrown ones. You never know what you might discover. Some people are a bit more daring than I am and will visit during high snake and tick season, but Smith Hill Cemetery is the perfect cemetery to visit in the fall and winter once there is a chill in the air.
The Eldren Bailey marker for Mr. Edmon Lamar (1899-1956)MotherHodges
Matthew’s Chapel, located between Waverly Hall and Woodland, Georgia, was built around the end of the Civil War. The Methodist Church showcases Greek Revival features. Additionally, the two doors provided separate entrances for men and women. The small cemetery is located to the right of the church.
Built in 1848 and consecrated in 1853, the Zion Episcopal Church in Talbotton, Georgia was recently restored. This carpenter gothic style church served as a congregation for a planter class of families who had relocated from the coast.
Like many antebellum churches, the church was built with a slave gallery that still lines the upper perimeter of the church. The doors were locked, so I was unable to document the inside.
It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
The backside of the church as viewed from the roadMarker for Elizabeth Margaret White, 1813-1850
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