History
Colquitt County became the 115th county in Georgia by an act of the Legislature on February 25, 1856. It was named after Walter T. Colquitt, a minister, statesman and lawyer who was admired as a military leader in the mid 1860’s.
The area was know as the “black spot,” deep in forest of pines, broken only by wire grass, small streams and an occasional indication of Indian parties coming through the area in search of game. The county was formed to make it easier to levy and collect taxes, establish a form of law and order and to carry out the functions of a “trial court.” The area was carved out of Lowndes and Thomas counties.
On Dec. 13, 1879, a preliminary county seat charter was adopted and A.C. Butts donated 50 acres in the center of the county for an administrative concentration point. It was named Moultrie, after Gen. William Moultrie, a Revolutionary War hero.
Founders of naval stores started harvesting the timbers in the late 1889s and 1890s. They set up turpentine stills and built tram roads, allowing for the railroad to come into the territory. The railroad allowed for growth and prosperity for the county. Just about every train brought people interested in setting up naval stores or working in the sawmills.
By 1900, through the work of businessmen, bankers and speculators, the county was on the high road to becoming a farmer’s paradise. Land was cleared and development companies began dividing the one-time forested area into farm tracts. Experienced farmers from north Georgia and the Carolinas were invited to come and develop the land. The county’s agriculture industry thrives today.
*Excerpts were taken from “A Pictorial History of Colquitt County, GA” By Advantage Publications 1993
