Reconstructed 1820 Census
Rabun Co., GA

Andrew Jackson Ritchie, author of the earliest comprehensive history of this area, Sketches of Rabun County History, writes that there were 524 people enumerated on the 1820 census for Rabun Co., GA. That census has long since been lost, along with an untold number of other early records for the county, but by compiling information from surviving documents and by closely reading Dr. Ritchie's work, we can determine at least a few of the families who were in this area in 1820.

By Dr. Ritchie's account, and by local folklore, there were several families who lived here before the county was even formed, not including the remaining Cherokee and people of other native tribes. Below is a list of families who were in this county and the earliest dates for which we have records of them. Right now, this is only a list, an incomplete one at that, but take heart! Soon we hope to have further information on each of these families, including a list of their children and so forth. Eventually, we hope to be able to account for most, if not all, of the people who were living here in 1820. Just think: if the average family size was, say, between five and ten people, then there were between 50 and 100 families here in 1820, possibly more. That means we have a long way to go! So, if you know anything about any of these families or have proof that other families were here in 1820, please e-mail me.

The following families were known to be here in 1820 or prior to that year. Wife's name is in parenthesis.

1. Barnard, Luke
2. Cannon, Henry (Hannah Bowen Cannon)
3. Cobb, Ralph
4. Coffee, Cleveland (Martha Coffee)
5. Gates, Charles Sr.
6. Gilley, Willis (Elizabeth Gilley)
7. Green, John
8. Jones, James
9. Jones, Joseph
10. Jones, William (Bashaba Coffee Jones)
11. McKinsey (McKenzie), Chesley Sr.
12. Morrow (Morris?), Shadrick
13. Mozeley, David (Elizabeth Terrell Mozeley)
14. Mozeley, Henry T. (not yet married)
15. Powell, Edley (Elizabeth Powell)
16. Powell, Tillman
17. Smith, Joshua
18. White, John

The following families are thought to have been here in or prior to 1820, but there is no solid proof as of yet.

1. Beck, Gideon
2. Beck, Samuel
3. Beck, Solomon
4. Coffee, Edward, Gen. (Elizabeth Neville Coffee)
5. Coffee, Elijah
6. Coffee, Elisha
7. Coffee, Joel (Martha "Patsy" Cobb Coffee)
8. Coffee, John (Winnifred Neville Coffee)
9. Dickerson, Obediah Terry (Mary Dillard Dickerson)
10. Dillard, James (Sarah Barnard Dillard)
11. Dillard, John (Ruth Dillard)
12. Price, William (Rebecca Neville Coffee)

In addition, we know that the following families were here in 1821, though many were probably here before then.

1. Carter, Jesse (Lavina Sams Carter)
2. George, Isaac
3. Hamby, William
4. Kelly, John
5. Lovell, George
6. McClain, John (Mary Ann McNair McClain)
7. McClure, John
8. Miller, Andrew, Gen. (Rebecca F. Cheri Miller)
9. O’Dell, Benjamin

There are several families not yet listed on this page. I am working my way slowly through Deed Book A and the earliest surviving court minutes. Plus, I am poring over history books, family histories, online queries, and census records to discover who these people were and where they came from. It is a slow and tedious undertaking, but well worth the effort.