George Walton began life very differently from many of our founders. He was born in Virginia sometime between September 1749 and February 1750. His father died near the time of this birth, and by the age of seven, he lost his mother as well. As a result, he was raised by his aunt and uncle in a family of thirteen children. At just fourteen years old, he apprenticed as a carpenter. However, in 1769, George left Virginia and moved to Georgia to apprentice with a lawyer. Beyond all expectations, George Walton pushed past every barrier to play a vital role in the founding of our country.
George Walton, Signer of the Declaration of Independence
George Walton quickly became involved in the fight for independence. He served as secretary of the Provincial Congress and then president of the Georgia Council of Safety. In 1776, he was elected to the Second Continental Congress, where he voted on and signed the Declaration of Independence. Only 26 years old, he was one of the youngest men to sign the document.
In addition to serving in the Congress and signing the Declaration, George Walton led a distinguished career. As a colonel in the Georgia Militia, he fought in the First Battle of Savannah. During the battle, he was shot and then captured by the British. Colonel Walton was a prisoner of war for ten months. After his release, he returned to his unit and fought for American Independence.
Throughout his life, George Walton not only served in the Continental Congress, but he was also twice governor of Georgia, a U. S. senator, three times chief justice of Georgia, and later as the state expanded, a circuit court judge. Walton lived his life in service to his state and his nation, serving in all three branches of government and the military.
Most importantly, George Walton shows us that life is full of possibilities. He pushed past every boundary and rose to serve his country. He gives us a unique lens to view our founders.
The British inform Gen. Lincoln that Col. Walton had been exchanged and is no longer a prisoner of war. Earlier in August 1779, the Continental Congress had appropriated $500,000 for the pay of Georgia troops with the instruction that the money be provided to the Governor and Executive Council of Georgia as “established agreeable to the Constitution” of the state. After his release, Gen. Lincoln sends Col. Walton to Augusta to call the legislature in accordance with the new State’s constitution.
As Governor Walton navigates the twists and turns of politics in early Georgia, he must have also worried for the fate of his young wife Dorothy. On November 18, 1779, Thomas Morris wrote a letter to George Walton, which he probably would have received weeks later during the Christmas season. Morris tells that Mrs. Walton had been taken by the British to St. Johns in Antigua where she ‘awaited efforts to secure her freedom.’
George Walton is in Philadelphia as a delegate to the Congress. Back at home, much of Georgia was in the hands of the British. Walton and the other Georgia delegates, William Few and Richard Howley, are concerned that a potential peace settlement under uti possidetis might leave much of the south in British control. George Walton was likely at work on Observations Upon the Effects of Certain Late Political Suggestions. Soon, the Georgia Delegates would present the paper arguing that all the states had joined the war together and that none should be left under British control.