Spring 2021

News & Updates from the Milton Historical Society

Visit our website: www.miltongahistoricalsociety.com

Aubrey's Corner:

Scroll down to read the Spring installment of another Aubrey Morris article, in which we revisit the decades-long search for John MIlton, Georgia's first Secretary of State. About Aubrey Morris was a reporter for the Atlanta Journal newspaper, and in 1957 was hired at WSB radio to create and manage the news department, where he served for over 30 years. Morris wrote over 150 columns for local papers, including the Alpharetta & Roswell ReVue. The Morris family has generously allowed the Milton Historical Society to copy the articles.

Aubrey Morris

Follow MHS on Facebook The Milton Historical Society Facebook page is a great way to keep up with current events and activities. Weekly features include newspaper articles from the past, known as 'Milton Memories.' The Society's quarterly newsletter is featured along with other historical information.  The ultimate goal of the Society is to have a place for researchers of Milton history to gather, pose questions and obtain guidance or assistance. Our Facebook page is a great place for everyone to share photographs and Milton family history. For a Facebook preview, click: Milton Historical Society - Georgia

Johnny DeVore - Crabapple Baseball Legend by Connie Mashburn

John Truman DeVore was born March 30, 1943 to Fred and Lala DeVore in Crabapple, Georgia. He was a member of the Milton High School Class of 1961. While at Milton, Johnny DeVore played baseball and basketball. He sang in the glee Club, and small ensemble. He was a member of the Science Club and the Aerie year book staff. In baseball, Johnny was the team’s starting pitcher during his sophomore, junior, and senior years. He led the Eagles to Region 1A championships in consecutive years. In 1960 DeVore was selected to play in the Atlanta Journal City of Atlanta versus Greater Atlanta High School All-Star Baseball Game.  Johnny earned an athletic scholarship to West Georgia College where he excelled as a pitcher. The team won three consecutive Georgia Intercollegiate Conference titles. DeVore set a West Georgia career record with a 1.01 Earned Run Average (ERA). In 1964 he compiled an ERA of 0.40 which was the nation’s best among National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics schools. He set school season records for most consecutive shutout games and total shutout games. Johnny earned both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in education.  In 1966 he was hired to teach social studies and coach the junior varsity baseball team at Southwest DeKalb High in Decatur. Three years later he became head varsity baseball coach at the school. After spending 14 years at Southwest DeKalb, he became head varsity baseball coach at Shamrock High. While at Shamrock, DeVore was twice named Teacher of the Year. Over his career he won numerous regional championships, and second place in the 1973 state championship game. During one stretch his team won 56 consecutive regular season region games. His teams won 377 games, a DeKalb County record.  Johnny retired from coaching in 1996. DeKalb County honored him by changing the name of the Shamrock baseball field to “John DeVore Field.” For 20 years, during and after his coaching days, he was an instructor for the Georgia Tech Pitchers and Catchers Camp. DeVore was well-known for his ability to coach baseball, but he was better known for the way he helped shape the character of his players. Above photo of John DeVore is from the Milton High School yearbook, the 1961 Aerie

The measure of the man... can often be judged by what others say about him. Some memorable quotes: "His whole life was devoted to the kids, and it wasn't just baseball. He just used baseball as the vehicle. He used baseball lessons to teach life lessons, and he was concerned about his boys growing up and being successful in life." Fayron (Mrs. John) DeVore "He was a main instructor when it came to pitching at the camp. He is one of the best pitching instructors I have ever been around. He could relate really well with the kids, because he knew how to talk to them and how to teach them." Danny Hall, Georgia Tech head baseball coach And from Johnny DeVore himself, when building Southwest DeKalb's first baseball field: "A field can even help a team, because kids seem to play better and take more pride when playing on a good field."

Editor's note: Growing up, Johnny lived with his family in historic Crabapple in the Reese House, memorialized by the City of Milton with an historical marker. The Reese House was the subject of the Milton Historical Society's 2019 glass holiday ornament. Limited quantities still available for discriminating collectors. For more information click here.

Milton Historical Society Delivers The President's Annual Report - 2020 In December 2020, President Jeff Dufresne outlined the Society's accomplishments for the year: Archiving: Scanned 140 Aubrey Morris articles Scanned and framed the Foster deeds Created an MHS artifact donation policy Integrated the new scanner with office hardware Research: John Milton project - Visited Augusta and Louisville, GA in search of the City's namesake Milton Memoirs project - conducted 50 Zoom interviews for the MHS archives and upcoming documentary about the impact of the pandemic on our local community Communications & Branding: Expanded Constant Contact for a total of 440 contacts Published four quarterly newsletters with an open rate of 50% Created a Facebook page named "Milton Historical Society - Georgia" Enhanced the MHS website Simplified the MHS logo and installed a new sign at headquarters Public Relations: Published two cover stories in the Milton Herald about the Foster deed donation and the Milton Memoirs documentary Submitted a guest MHS article for the new BeLocal magazine Monthly Programs: MHS hosted the following programs at the MIlton Library: The Mystery of the Native American Trail Trees program by Don Wells Archiving Family History Photos program by David McDonough Note: due to the pandemic four other scheduled programs were postponed. Service to the Community: Recommended historic names for the City's newly acquired Greenspace properties Researched Alan Brown's family property on Providence Road Researched Harold Smith's family property at 980 Mayfield Road Selected historic photos for Milton's new Police Station

Milton Historical Society Invites you to Become a Patron! We appreciate your support in the past and invite you to join as a new patron or continue your active patronage by renewing in 2021. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the Society has had an active 2020 with research projects, collecting and cataloging artifacts from Milton residents, and providing educational programs. (For an idea of the Society's activities, scroll up for President Jeff Dufresne's report on accomplishments in 2020.) Multiple patron categories are available to fit your personal and family circumstances: Lifetime patron Sustaining patron Family patron Individual patron Corporate sponsorships are also available. For more information on patron levels and the benefits of each, please access the Become a Patron form on our www.miltongahistoricalsociety.com. To join, download the Become a Patron form and mail it to the address on the form, or submit payment online from the website. Note that under the new Patron Program, your dues expire 12 months from the date of payment, and not the calendar year.

Aubrey's Corner: Quest for Old Milton's namesake rightful place continues By Aubrey Morris North Fulton Footprints Editorial note: This article, donated by the Aubrey Morris estate, was first published in the Johns Creek Herald December 18-24, 2002.

No, the cursive concoction reproduced within this column, with such broad strokes of purpose, is not chicken scratching. Nor the writing of a modern kindergartner.  This attention-grabbing example of visual communication dates from Georgia’s earliest days, and is a reproduction of the exact signature of John Milton.

Enlargement of John Milton's Signature

Remember John? An occasional subject for these musings, who, in case you’ve forgotten, was the Revolutionary officer who spent some time as a prisoner in the dungeon at St. Augustine, Florida, became our state’s first secretary of state, and apparently led a life filled with intrigue, sometimes clouded with outright mystery. Of local significance, Mr. Milton was the man for whom Milton County, (1857-1932), was named. A couple of years back, when some frustrated North Fulton taxpayers were vowing to resurrect Milton County from the trash heap of history and say goodbye to the Fulton County connection, John Milton suddenly became a man who mattered again. So, I started to explore Milton the man, the Burke Countian who, after the demise of Milton County, apparently is left with Milton High School and Milton Parkway as the only places to honor his name. I mean in Alpharetta, elsewhere in Old Milton County — or at any other place in Georgia. Was Milton just a myth? That question doesn’t set well with Joe Reynolds, a retired communications executive and native Burke Countian, who resides in Crabapple. So, Mr. Reynolds set about exploring the nooks and crannies of Georgia history. His quest has taken him to the backroads of Burke County, to Savannah and Coastal Georgia, to Augusta and Richmond County, Louisville, Milledgeville, (former state capitols), and of course to our present capital, Atlanta. Although Joe, to his frustration, hasn’t yet located the burial spot of John Milton, any authority on Georgia history would be impressed by his growing chronological dossier on Milton. At the State Archives, for example, he located several letters written and signed by John Milton, the earliest on April 10, 1783, “in the seventh year of American Independence.” Milton’s signature on that letter is identical, though somewhat smaller in scale, from that printed in this column. The latter shows him, as “Secr.,” affixing his name to a letter dated March 24, 1788.  Mr. Reynolds, meanwhile, keeps adding other types of newfound data to his research project, although he still hasn’t been able to pinpoint the location of Padan-Aram, John Milton’s plantation near Wrens, in Burke County. Numerous sources say the mysterious Milton was buried at this plantation following his death on October 19, 1817. Let there be no doubt, Padan-Aram, derived from a Biblical place name, was John Milton’s home, as Joe Reynolds proudly points out. One of Joe’s recently-uncovered Milton letters, a copy of which Mr. Reynolds shared with me, was datelined “Padan-aram, 30th May, 1816,” just over seven months before Milton’s death. Joe Reynolds continues his personal mission “to bring honor back to the name” of John Milton “…to make amends,” to his fellow Burke Countian, as he puts it.  Mr. Reynolds’ growing chronology of discoveries about John Milton, his family, his service in the American Revolution and his singular role, as Secretary of State, in preserving Georgia’s Colonial and early State Records, is the result of Reynolds’ personal dedication and love of his native state. Georgia’s high-ranking state historians might take their cue and join Mr. Reynolds in his fascinating mission — seeing that one of Georgia’s true pioneers is given his rightful place in history.

1788 Letter signed by Georgia's Secretary of State John Milton

Early African-American Education in North Fulton County In Georgia, like many other places, African-Americans historically did not have the same educational opportunities as white students because of their race. The recent Black History Month was a time to reflect on those experiences for Black students around our region.  The Alpharetta Colored School, shown here, in a Fulton County School picture, in 1952, opened off Kimball Bridge Road in 1950. Until then, classes for Black students at elementary schools around the area only ran through the seventh grade. If a Black student wanted schooling beyond that, they'd have to find another option or trek the 30-odd miles to Atlanta and pay tuition. Soon after opening up to a high school education, the institution was renamed, at its students' request, the Bailey-Johnson School. This honored George "Hard" Bailey, a local Black blacksmith who donated land for the school, and Warren Johnson, a former slave turned major proponent of African-Americans' education.  It closed in 1967, ending government-sponsored school segregation in North Fulton County. After that, for the first time, a Black high schooler from Milton would attend the old Milton High School (which was then located in downtown Alpharetta). Thank you to the Alpharetta and Old Milton Historical Society for sharing some of these insights with us in the City of Milton.

Muse of the month! Wisdom from the Pin Point Heritage Museum, Savannah, Georgia: "Our grandchildren need to know who they are, where they came from -- why their ancestors did what they did, and how they did it. To give them a sense of self and place. There are memories there that tell some very important life stories." Emory Campbell Emory Campbell is a community leader, educator, and consultant among the Gullah people, African-Americans who live in the coastal low country region of South Carolina and Georgia. The Gullah-Geechee have preserved much of their African linguistic and cultural heritage. Wikipedia

Emory Campbell

A Building at the Pin Point Heritage Museum

About the Pin Point Community The Pin Point community was founded in 1896 by freed slaves after the Civil War. For nearly 100 years the community was quietly isolated on the banks of the Moon River just south of Savannah. The museum is located in the old A.S. Varn & Sons Oyster and Crab Factory, in business until 1985. The museum, operated by the Coastal Heritage Society, gives visitors a chance to experience the Gullah-Geechee culture first hand with multimedia presentations, exhibits, and unparalleled views of the marsh that provided the abundant seafood canned at the factory.

Milton Historical Society Patrons Many thanks for your support! Lifetime Patrons Mark and Amy Amick Jeff and Josephine Dufresne Felton Anderson Herbert Johnny Herbert Bill Lusk Robert Meyers Adam Orkin Charlie Roberts Sarah Roberts Kevin and Marsha Spear Karen Thurman Corporate Sponsors Lithic Genealogy Group The William B. Orkin Foundation  2021 Patrons

Sustaining Patrons Kathy Beck Philip Beck Byron Foster Carl and Sheryl Jackson Steve Krokoff Holt Lyda Connie Mashburn Curtis Mills Ronnie Rondem Robert and Jennifer Sorcabal Family Patrons Joan Borzilleri Amy Dubroc James and Linda Farris Laura Foster Individual Patrons Elizabeth Montgomery Lynn Tinley

2020 Patrons

Sustaining Patrons Kathy Beck Philip Beck James Farris Linda Farris Byron Foster Carl and Sheryl Jackson Steve Krokoff Individual Patrons Elizabeth Montgomery Lynn Tinley Family Patrons Marc and Sheree Arrington Laura Bentley Wayne Boston Gregg and Mary Cronk Lara Dolan Amy Dubroc Laura Foster Seth Garrett Burt Hewitt Robert Jamison Courtney LaFon Ed and Mary Jo Malowney Barry and Suzanne Mansell Paul Moore Robert and Jennifer Sorcabal

We Love our Founding Members!

Ron Wallace Felton and Johnny Herbert Adam Orkin Pat Miller Dawn and Keith Reed Amy Christiansen Kathy and Philip Beck Jessica and Warren Cheely Joe and Heather Killingsworth Ronnie Rondem Seth Chandlee Curtis Mills Mary Ann and Clarke Otten

Mark Amick Joan Borzilleri Norm Broadwell Jeff Dufresne James Farris Byron Foster Kim Gauger Bill Lusk Connie Mashburn Bob Meyers Charlie Roberts Kevin Spear Karen Thurman