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The Barney History Project: The people, places, and stories of Barney, Georgia

The people who organized the South Georgia Railroad

Back to the South Georgia Railroad narrative

The railroad emerged through several kinds of work: proposing the financing, raising subscriptions, signing the charter petition, governing the corporation, and managing its first operations. The same person sometimes filled more than one role, but the roles were not interchangeable. These dossiers state what the record supports for each participant and leave gaps unresolved when the evidence runs out.

Initial promoters and financing

January 1896 subscription committee

Other charter incorporators

Other founding directors and first officers

Why the roster names James W. Hitch and two McCalls

Huxford names James W. Hitch on the January subscription committee and in the county-commissioner roster. His own index assigns the commissioner page to John W. Hitch, and his erratum changes James to John on page 198, covering both the subscription-committee and director lists. Contemporary reports identify the commissioner, Morven businessman, and director only as J. W. Hitch. Huxford's corrected account therefore identifies John as the committee member, although independent confirmation still requires the original January report or another contemporary record. The site therefore has one full dossier, John William Hitch, rather than separate James and John biographies.

The McCalls are not a printing problem. Dr. James H. McCall, the charter incorporator, and John Goldwire McCall, the founding director, were brothers with different public careers.

Promoter of a later Barney railroad proposal

  • Eugene Henry Beck: Barney educator and legislator; incorporator, director, and financial agent for the proposed Georgia, Alabama and Western Railroad