Troupville, Georgia
Troupville | |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| State | Georgia |
| County | Lowndes |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
Troupville (Occasionally written as Troupeville) is an unincorporated community in Lowndes County, Georgia, United States, near Valdosta. Troupville was a riverboat landing at the junction of the Withlacoochee River and the Little River (Withlacoochee River).
When the railroad came and killed off the riverboats, Troupville residents picked up their houses and moved to the railroad, founding Valdosta.
History
Troupville was named after Governor George Troup. In 1833, Lowndesville replaced Franklinville, located east of modern Hahira, as the county seat.[1] In 1834, a group of citizens were appointed to select a new county seat. In July 1836, a group of commissioners were advertising for merchants and mechanics to settle at Troupville. They believed that the Little River and Withlacoochee River could be made navigable at a small expense.[2] In October 1836, advertisements were put in newspapers for proposals to bid a courthouse at Troupville. It was incorporated on 14 December 1837 by an act of the Georgia legislature.[3]
Troupville's location at the confluence of the Withlacoochee and Little Rivers, on the stage route from Thomasville to Waresboro, and along the planned route of the Brunswick and Chattahoochee Railroad, soon proved prosperous. In 1839, town lots were being sold at $3,443. A decade later they had risen to $9,162. At its peak, Troupville had three hotels, four stores, numerous shops, three churches, and professionals of various sorts. It also had a newspaper entitled the South Georgia Watchman, later called the Troupville Watchman. Troupville also stood as a gateway town to the then new state of Florida. A mile to the north of the town was a horse racetrack.[4]
By the 1850s the Brunswick and Florida Railroad had only been laid out as far as the Satilla River at Waresboro. In 1854 it merged with the Savannah and Florida Railroad to form the Savannah, Albany and Gulf and surrendered its privilege to building a line from Waresboro to Thomasville. In December 1856 the Atlantic and Gulf Railroad Company received a charter to construct a line from Waresboro to Thomasville that was to pass through Lowndes County. Three different routes were surveyed by E.L. Heriot, Chief Engineer for the Company: a route through northern Troupville, a line through northern Lowndes County, and a line passing through Lowndes County and crossing the Withlacoochee at a mineral springs. The decision to go with the third route was published on June 17, 1858. Heriot reasoned that the southern route required less curvature and fewer changes in grade than the shorter Troupville route. Days later on June 22 at 3:00 am, the Lowndes County courthouse at Troupville was set aflame by William B. Crawford. Crawford fled to South Carolina after being released on bond. On August 9, a meeting convened in the academy building in Troupville at which it was decided to create from the area of Lowndes County to the west of the Withlacoochee River a new county to be called Brooks County.[5]
The construction of the Atlantic and Gulf Railroad signaled the end of the Troupville. Riverboats had become obsolete in this area of Georgia and moving the town to the crux of the incoming rail lines was crucial for the livelihood of Lowndes County. Many residents physically moved their homes and businesses to Valdosta. Troupville quickly lost its charter as county seat to the newly founded Valdosta.[6] In early 1871 a toll bridge crossing the Little River at Troupville was completed.[7] By 1874 Troupville was described by a Valdostan, as being "a deserted village or rather an old field with scarcely a vestige of the village remaining."[8]
References
- ^ History of Lowndes County, Georgia 1825-1941. General James Jackson Chapter, D.A.R. 1995. ISBN 0964935902.
- ^ "Merchants and Mechanics, Look at This!!". Southern Recorder. Milledgville. 26 July 1836.
- ^ http://metis.galib.uga.edu/ssp/cgi-bin/legis-idx.pl?sessionid=5ff30ec6-1880cf6956-6895&type=law&byte=19086215
- ^ Shelton, Jane (2001). Pines and Pioneers: A History of Lowndes County, Georgia 1825-1900. Lowndes County Historical Society. ISBN 9780877970347.
- ^ Shelton, Jane (2001). Pines and Pioneers: A History of Lowndes County, Georgia 1825-1900. Lowndes County Historical Society. ISBN 9780877970347.
- ^ History of Lowndes County, Georgia 1825-1941. General James Jackson Chapter, D.A.R. 1995. ISBN 0964935902.
- ^ "Affairs in Georgia". Savannah Morning News. Savannah, Georgia. 19 January 1871.
- ^ "Letter From Valdosta". Savannah Morning News. Savannah, Georgia. 5 May 1874.