Georgia Land Lotteries

About About Georgia Cherokee Land Lottery

The Georgia land lotteries were an early nineteenth century system of land redistribution in Georgia. Under this system, white male citizens could register for a chance to win lots of land that had (and in most cases recently) been forcibly taken from the Creek Indians and the Cherokee Nation.

Land Spaces

Land lots were surveyed in five different sizes based on the perceived quality of the land. In 1805, land lots were 202.5 acres (0.8 km²) and 490 acres (2.0 km²). In 1807, land lots were 202.5 acres (0.8 km²). In 1820, land lots were 250 acres (1.0 km²) and 490 acres (2.0 km²). In 1821, land lots were 202.5 acres (0.8 km²). In the 1832 Land Lottery area, land lots were 160 acres (0.6 km²), while in the 1832 Gold Lottery area, land lots were 40 acres (0.2 km²).

Lotteries

1805 Land Lottery

The 1805 Land Lottery encompassed the Creek Indian lands just west of the Oconee River ceded to the state in 1802 and a small strip of land in the southeast section of the state.

The 1805 Georgia Land Lottery was authorized by Act of May 11, 1803. The year for the drawing was set for 1805 with a grant fee of $ 8.10 for the 202 acres lots and $19.60 for 490 acre lots, and included land in these following counties:

• Baldwin: 5 Districts (1-5) - lot sizes 202 acres
• Wayne: 3 Districts (1-3) - lot size 490 acres
• Wilkinson: 5 Districts (1-5) - lot size 202 acres

Persons that were entitled to draw were:

• Bachelors, 21 years or over, 1 year residence in Georgia, citizen of United States 1 draw.
• Married man with wife and/or child, 1 year residence in Georgia, citizen of United States 2 draws.
• Widow with child under 21 years, 1 year residence in Georgia 2 draws.
• Orphan or family of orphans under 21 years, with father dead and mother dead or remarried 1 draw.

Sources

• The names were recorded on card files of the Georgia Surveyor General and includes the name of each participant, county of residence, notation as to blank or prize draw, lot number, district number, and county in which the land was located. Before the lotteries the land surveyors measured the districts to be distributed and drew plat maps. These are the land lottery plat maps from the original surveys, plus resurveys or renewed surveys of districts. These records are from Record Group 003-03-024, Surveyor General -- Survey Records -- District Plats of Survey, and can be found at Georgia Archives. I have been unable to locate an online version of the winners from this source.
• A book, 1805 Georgia Land Lottery, by Virginia S. and Ralph V. Wood; Cambridge, Mass.: Greenwood Press, 1964 extracted those names. This book gives the names of the participants and whether they drew a blank or a prize. If the person drew two blanks, then he or she did not win any land in this lottery. This is the only lottery that lists the unfortunate drawers. For this reason it's of value as a substitute census.
  • Digital versions of this book does not seem to be available at this time. (10-19-2020)
  • Physical copies can be found at World Cat
  • index can be found at 1805 Georgia land Lottery and Roots Web
  • Some names can be found at https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/2575607

Notes

Names of interest in this source

• Etheridge Crews
• no hickox
• Joseph Sykes Sr.
• Lucy Sykes
• John Murray
• Thomas Murray
• James Murray
• John Murray
• Timothy Murray

1807 Land Lottery

Authorized by Act of June 26, 1806, with drawings conducted August 10, 1807 through September 23, 1807. The grant fee were 12.15 for a 202.5 acre lot.

Counties included were:

• Baldwin
• Wilkinson

Persons that were entitled to draw were:

• Bachelor, 21 years or over, 3-year residence in Georgia, citizen of United States – 1 draw
• Married man with wife and/or child under 21 years, 3-year residence in Georgia, citizen of United States – 2 draws
• Widow, 3-year residence in Georgia – 1 draw
• Spinster, 21 years or older, 3-year residence in Georgia – 1 draw
• Orphan under 21 years, father and mother dead, 3-year residence in Georgia – 1 draw
• Family of orphans under 21 years, father and mother dead, 3-year residence in Georgia – 2 draws
• Orphan under 21 years, father dead, mother living, 3-year residence in Georgia – 1 draw
• Family of orphans under 21, father dead, mother living, 3-year residence in Georgia – 1 draw
• Any fortunate drawer in the previous land lottery was excluded

Sources

• 1807 Georgia Land Lottery: Fortunate Drawers and Grantees, comp. by Paul K. Graham (Decatur, Ga.: The Genealogy Company, 2011).
  • World Cat
  • Available for purchase through Heratige Books
• The Second or 1807 Land Lottery of Georgia, comp. by Silas Emmett Lucas Jr. (Easley, S.C.: Southern Historical Press, 1986).
  • World Cat
  • Index available at http://sites.rootsweb.com/~gatroup2/georgia_1807landlottery.htm

Notes

• Franklin Crews
• Oglethorpe Crews
• no hickox
• Washington Sikes
• Richmond Sikes

1820 Land Lottery

— After the Creek War (1814), President Jackson demanded from the Creeks an immense area of land which would become the southern third of the entire state of Georgia. A second section of land in northeast Georgia was included. This other, smaller section defined the eastern end of the Cherokee Nation for 12 years.

1821 Land Lottery

— Further Creek cessions which included the future site of Atlanta.

1827 Land Lottery

— Signaled the end of the Creek Indians in Georgia.

1832 Land Lottery

— This lottery, along with the 1832 Gold Lottery, gave the Cherokee Nation to Georgia settlers. Sparked the "Trail of Tears."

1832 Gold Lottery

— By the time of the gold lottery the Georgia Gold Rush was already beginning to wind down. The state did not guarantee that gold existed on the lots given away.

1833 Fractions Lottery

— The State of Georgia held one final land lottery in December, 1833, to distribute fractions from the Cherokee territory and other remaining lots not drawn in previous lotteries.

Internal References

• 

  The Cherokee land lottery, containing a numerical list of the names of the fortunate drawers in said lottery, with an engraved map of each district

External References

• Georgia Land Lotteries from the state of Georgia Archives
• 1805 Georgia Land Lottery
• 1807 Georgia Land Lottery
• Georgia Land Lottery from ngeorgia.com
• Land Lottery Records from rootsweb.com/~usgenweb
• Land Lottery Records from georgiagenealogy.org