George Walton

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George Walton (* 1741 in Colony of Virginia , † February 2, 1804 in Augusta , Georgia ) was one of the signatories of the US Declaration of Independence and the sixth and 19th governor of the US state of Georgia since independence.

Life

George Walton was born in Virginia. His parents died in childhood and he was adopted by an uncle. In 1769 he moved to Savannah to study law. He was admitted to the bar in 1774, shortly thereafter became secretary of state in the Georgia Congress and in 1775 the second president of the security committee, precursor to the governorship. From 1776 he was elected several times in the Second Continental Congress. As a colonel in the Georgia Militia First Regiment, he fought in the Battle of Savannah , where he was captured. After he was released in 1779 with other prisoners-of-war soldiers, he was elected governor of Georgia that same year, but was replaced after only two months. From 1783 to 1789 he was attorney general in Georgia, in 1789 he was elected governor for the second time. At the end of 1795 he was appointed US Senator to succeed the resigned James Jackson , but had to cede the office to his elected successor Josiah Tattnall in February 1796 .

Archibald Bulloch succeeded him as governor in 1776, Richard Howly in 1780 and Edward Telfair in 1790 . According to him, which was Walton County , Georgia named.

literature

  • Edwin C. Bridges: George Walton: A Political Biography . Ph. D. diss., University of Chicago, 1981.
  • Edwin C. Bridges et al .: Georgia's Signers and the Declaration of Independence Cherokee Publishing Co., Atlanta GA 1981, ISBN 0-87797-055-6 .
  • Kenneth Coleman: The American Revolution in Georgia. 1763-1789 . University of Georgia Press, Athens GA 1958.

Web links

Commons : George Walton  - album with pictures, videos and audio files
personal data
SURNAME Walton, George
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American politician, Georgia governor, and United States senator
DATE OF BIRTH 1741
PLACE OF BIRTH Virginia
DATE OF DEATH February 2, 1804
Place of death Augusta , Georgia