Button Gwinnett State
Historical Marker
Located on US 17 at Midway Church, Midway,
Ga.
(Text)
BUTTON GWINNETT
In this, Saint John's Parish,
(now Liberty County), lived Button Gwinnett, signer of the Declaration
of Independence, member of the Continental Congress, Speaker
of the Assembly, and President of the Executive Council. He also
was a member of the Convention that met in Savannah in October,
1776, in which he played a prominent part in drafting the first
Constitution of the State of Georgia.
Born in Gloucestershire, England,
in 1735, son of a Church of England vicar, Button Gwinnett came
to Georgia in 1765 and acquired a store in Savannah. He shortly
purchased St. Catherines Island in this parish. He moved to the
island at once and engaged in farming and cattle raising. His
business was transacted in Sunbury, then a thriving port.
On May 16, 1777, Mr. Gwinnett
was mortally wounded in a duel fought on the outskirts of Savannah
with Gen. Lachlan McIntosh, dying on May 19. Mr. Gwinnett's grave
is supposedly in Savannah, but its exact location is unknown
and unmarked. One of his rare autographs sold for over $50,000.
089-2 GEORGIA
HISTORICAL COMMISSION 1954
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