Hog Mountain
A Project Proposal by: Chason McKay
“E-N-C-Y-C-L-O-P-E-D-I-A”
This is the first word Monna ever learned how to spell. She taught it to herself. Rather she was practically forced to learn the word since the cover of an encyclopedia was the only thing to read in the outhouse of her childhood home.
Not far from this childhood household is her current home. 743 Hog Mountain Road. Here, she raised my mother and my uncle. Though my mother moved to Columbus, GA with my father, my uncle has remained, building his own home at 744 Hog Mountain Rd. What is so compelling about Winder, GA?
The location has a deeply rooted history. In 1786, after a ceremonial passing of the Peace Pipe, Creek Indians traded what is now Barrow County to Richard Easley, Abednego Moore, and Josiah Strong of Effingham County for a mere 14 pounds of beads. This land would be known as Beadland. As the Cherokee and Creek Indians were slowly removed from their lands, the white men took over Georgia. The Native Americans were totally eradicated by the 1840s.
The purchased land eventually came to be modern Barrow County, for which the city of Winder would be the county seat. In the present day, Winder is full of energy, growth, and opportunity. The population of 70,001 boasts a title of “America’s Top 15 Fastest Growing Economies.” This Innovation Crescent, a coalition of over a dozen bioscience and economic development entities, provides visitors with the Fort Yargo State Park, the Château Élan Winery and Resort, and the Barrow County Museum.
About 200 years ago, between 1810 and 1830, my great-great-great-great-great-great grandfather, Matthew Matthew Brown, an Ulster-Scot, left Northern Ireland to join just over 4,000 people in Hog Mountain, Gwinnett, GA, accompanied by his young family. His son, John Brown, was the first to start a family in the United States. These men both maintained professions as farmers in America. Fortunately, my family moved from Ireland at least 15 years before the potato blight, avoiding certain collapse of the family’s finances and possibly even its livelihood.
As Matthew Brown arrived in Georgia, a stage coach road was constructed between Mule Camp Springs (later Gainesville) and the village of Hog Mountain. This road was known as Hog Mountain Road, not only for the raised ground upon which the area rests, but also because farmers used the path to drive their hogs to markets through the area. For centuries, it was believed that hogs could not swim without their trotters cutting their own gullets. For this reason, farmers took the high ground of Hog Mountain, for the raised land had no flowing water. Five years later, the county’s first hotel was built and named the Hog Mountain House. A mail route from Hog Mountain to Gainesville was authorized in 1821. Nine years later, Friendship Baptist was named the first Baptist church in the county. The area was developing and growing in population.
On July 7, 1914, Barrow County was created by merging Gwinnett, Jackson, and Walton counties. It was named for David “Uncle Dave” Barrow Jr., the chancellor of the University of Georgia at the time. Throughout his tenure as the university’s chancellor, Barrow transformed a collection of colleges into a modern university, all while creating new buildings, schools, and equal opportunities for students, regardless of gender. Outside of his university duties, Uncle Dave (a nickname coined by university students) served on the Board of Jeanes Fund at Booker T. Washington’s request. As a member of the board, Barrow’s vote was catalytic in the ruling that black workers should be paid equally for equal work.
Barrow County’s largest city is the county seat of Winder, within which lies the current home of my grandmother, Marilyn Brown Lee. Every generation prior to Monna’s has resided on Hog Mountain Road. Though the names of the towns, cities, and counties have changed, my family has stayed within the same tiny radius within a small part of Georgia.
As she looks over her garden in her back yard, Marilyn Lee recalls a childhood riddled with alcoholism and abuse. At school, she was a member of the exclusive “Foxy Five.” When coming home, her mother would be blacked out near the couch, while her father, if not in prison, would be at the liquor store, spending the few extra dollars he had on cheap booze. Her fondest memories were of her father pacing the house gagging uncontrollably. “This meant he was going to be sober for a couple of days.” Often, her dinner would consist of a single fruit taken from the apple tree down the road. Unable to afford proper hygiene, my grandmother would sometimes clean her teeth using a twig from a tree in the backyard and a handful of mint leaves. It wasn’t until she met Thomas Michael Lee that she was able to escape her hellish lifestyle.
Thomas Michael Lee, or Mike to those that knew him well, is my late grandfather. Though he suffered from polio, he was steadfast in any field he wished to conquer. He led boys to championships in baseball and football. He drove cars and flew planes. He graduated from the University of Georgia to become the principal of a local Barrow County school. According to my grandmother, his greatest accomplishment was bringing her joy.
After his death, Monna experienced a severe depression, a burden that is common among the women in my family. This lasted for several years until she discovered a grief group that proved to be extremely beneficial. She has since become one of the most influentially benevolent role models in the lives of many. My grandmother would not hesitate to buy a hot meal for someone if they needed it more than her, even if it came down to her last dollar. Regardless of her opinion of an individual, she will hear and consider his or her words. If one is without money, she will offer that person work. Her character goes beyond her heart of service and into a heart for adventure.
My favorite photo of her is one in which she is racing down my driveway on a Razor scooter while giggling through clenched fifty-cent fake teeth from Publix. She is always up for shenanigans, and is rather exciting for a woman of her age. And for a woman who has lived in the same town for her entire life, Marilyn Lee has recently enjoyed traveling the world. With the money set aside for my mother’s portion of the will, Monna took my mom and other adults in my family to Hawaii, for she preferred to use the money in a way that allowed her to spend time with her loved ones. Several years ago, we conquered Italy together, which proved to be quite the journey. She even regularly travels to Mexico with only a few of her girlfriends.
Through my grandmother, I wish to explore my roots and find the beauty within Winder, GA. With her help in the realm of birth dates and residencies of our ancestors, I was able to trace our lineage to Ireland. Of course, she had a nickname and a story for each member along the way. Living in a
small town for 200 years paves the way for a deep-seated reputation, and I want to explore this and more. I want to discover what causes a family to stay rooted in an area for so long. Though this project, I intend to investigate the many ways Barrow County has changed as time has passed, as well as what is in store for the future of this community. Since my grandmother is the last living relative of her generation, it is another priority of mine to preserve her life through this project, translating her encapsulating memories to text in order to share with my family and those to come.
Interview Questions:
1. How is your garden looking? Are the tomatoes alive still?
2. Do you miss anything from your childhood?
3. Describe a day of your childhood in detail with sights, sounds, and smells.
4. What is it like to be financially comfortable now?
5. Did you have to fight for yourself as a child?
6. What kid of support did you siblings give you if any?
7. How do you feel about living in Winder your entire life?
8. I’ve noticed that you have begun traveling recently. Why is that?
9. What kind of a reputation did the Brown’s have in Winder?
10. Tell me a story. Anything.
11. What was it like in Winder after Papa died?
12. Do you like living so close to family? Deron especially?
13. What was it like growing up in Barrow County?
14. What’s it like now? If it has changed, how do you feel about that?
15. What are your thoughts on the future of Barrow County?
Working Bibliography
History of Hog Mountain
Cates, Onald W., and Alice Lillian Smythe McCabe. Index to J. V. Flanigan’s Volume II, History of Gwinnett County, 1818–1860. Vol. II. Lawrenceville, GA: Gwinnett Historical Society, n.d. N. pag. Print.
History of Hog Mountain/Origin of Name
Hiland, Harriet. “Hog Mountain.” Creative Loafing Atlanta. N.p., 16 Dec. 2000. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
Timeline of Hog Mountain
McGuire, Tony. “Community History.” History around Hog Mountain Farm. N.p., 4 Oct. 2014. Web. 23 Sept. 2015.
Famine and Ireland: Immigration to United States
O’Neill, Joseph R. “The Irish in America.” The Irish Potato Famine. Edina, Minnesota: ABDO, 2009. 76–87. Print.
Origin/History of Barrow County
Sauls, Cheryl. “Barrow County.” New Georgia Encyclopedia. 30 April 2013. Web. 23 September 2015.
