By Robin Postell
MORVEN, GA – The history of the Macedonia Community in Morven is a rich part of the Deep South.
On Saturday, May 25, at the Morven Heritage Room at Morven City Hall, located at 178 2nd Street, those who have deep roots within this community will come together to celebrate one of the most treasured characters of that history, Charlie Milton Bud Jackson, aka “Greatest Trojan.”
The event will also be the official launch and re-dedication of Macedonia Community Foundation, Inc., which strives to maintain the historical relevancy of those whose ancestors are buried in a slave/Native-American cemetery which has become landlocked behind the Macedonia Baptist Church in Morven.
The Macedonia Community was established by Negro enslaved peoples as a spiritual refuge during slavery and after Emancipation. The Founders surnames became Jackson, Golden, McCall, Ward, Gilbert, Rhym, Rogers, Ponder, Jones, Maxwell, Inman, Thompson, Waters, Spencer, Robinson, Wilson, Jenkins, Holsendolph, Reynolds, Sharp(e), Grant, Yearby, Edwards, Miller, Simmons, Morrison, Green, Brown, Wade, Turner, Godfrey, Johnson, Gilbert, Miley, Hewett, Baker, Green, Christian, etc. to name a few.
Many of these early enslaved peoples would branch out throughout Brooks to establish other communities such as Dixie, Pidcock, Pavo, Barney, Sand Hill, Rock Hill, etc. The Macedonia Baptist Church became a haven for religious worship and community meetings. The original church building that was built in the woods behind and beside today’s (May 6, 2019) building burned sometime in the 1930’s (?).
Oral and written historical documents attest to the enslaved as supporting or at least not abandoning their homes during the Civil War. These enslaved peoples played a great part in preserving and maintaining the agricultural base of Brooks County during the Civil War. Because of the supplies generated and used during that conflict Brooks County became widely known as “The Breadbasket (Smokehouse) of the Confederacy.
The Macedonia Settlement was founded along the Coffee Road which was the main road of travel to Florida when the settlers came into the region beginning around 1818. Andrew Jackson and Romeo Wilson eventually purchased the property on this thoroughfare and established a way station and grist mill. After the Civil War and during Reconstruction, The Federal Colored Troops Company G 103 Regiment encamped on the Jackson Road (named 1991)to protect the freedmen. The well located at 5307 Jackson Road was widely known as “Sidney’s Well” as a tribute to Sidney Wilson, a Creek/white enslaved woman who became the wife of Andrew Jackson, I. Her brother was Romeo Wilson, I. Many of their descendants own property in the Macedonia Community today, Monday, May 6, 2019.
The program for tomorrow reads:
Greetings and Welcome. We are glad and happy you have chosen to spend time with us as we honor and give thanks for the life we shared with this humble servant. Please let us know if there is any way we can assist you on your journey. Bud’s earthly journey began on January 1, 1919 at “The Old Home Place” that formerly graced 5307 Jackson Road in Morven, to Andrew Jackson, II and Pollie Mae James. Historically, Andrew II and Pollie Mae had survived the May 1918 “Mary TurnerLynchings” of Brooks and Lowndes Counties. Bud’s earthly roots would begin with his paternal grandfather, Andrew I an enslaved man out of West Africa who was brought to the Irwin Territory around 1845 with a brother named Manson by Pliney Sheffield I, one of the largest plantation owners in American history. His paternal grandmother, Sidney Wilson, a Creek of mixed ancestry handed down her families’ histories. Sidney’s brother was Romeo Wilson I. Bud’s maternal grandfather was Ben Davis an enslaved man of Haitian ancestry. His maternal grandfather, Lee James was descended from the Florida Seminole country. Notably: there was a picture of young Bud around six years old showing Bud wearing a white Christening gown and adorning long, flowing locks. RIP August 19, 1982Bud married Willie Mae Sharp in February,1942. Willie Mae’s maternal grandfather was Burdell (Bordell) Thompson who married Mary Inman who were enslaved by the WC McIntosh family. Willie Mae’s mother was Eula Thompson. Eula died in childbirth leaving Mae to be raised by Bordell and Mary on the McIntosh place that sat across from today’s Macedonia Baptist Church on Jackson Road. Willie Mae’s father was Willis Sharp the son of Mamie Sharp whose mother and father were enslaved by Hamilton W. Sharp. Together with their multitude of relatives and friends, they would build a solid foundation in the Macedonia Community…
Macedonia Community Foundation Program
There will be a welcome breakfast from 8-10 a.m. Fannie Marie Gibbs (The Greatest Trojan’s beloved daughter) will present a “Celebration of Life.” Courtney Jackson will provide photography
There will be fellowship and the Rededication & Proclamation for the Macedonia Community Foundation will take place prior to “freestyle activities,” which will include hayride, games, and a scavenger hunt.
A Memorial Banquet will be held at 5:00 p.m. with a welcome from Voncell Patricia Jackson. The Master of Ceremonies will be Oglesby Lee Jackson, Jr., a former Lowndes County history teacher and lauded historian of Jackson Road history.
Scripture and Grace will be provided by Anthony Jerome Jackson, Sr.
A full day and evening is planned with some of the most interesting and storied individuals in this area.
