Old News Stories Before there was a Murray County, Georgia, this area was The Cherokee Nation. No newspapers existed until Feb. 18, 1828, when the first issue of The Cherokee Phoenix was published at New Echota, the national capital of the Cherokees. When the State of Georgia, forced that newspaper to cease publication May 31, 1834, the area had no other newspaper for nearly fifty years. The next newspaper in the area was The Murray County Gazette, published at Spring Place. This paper published only 3 issues in May and June 1879, then ceased to operate. The North Georgia Times was published at Spring Place starting in October 1881. For most of the time since, there has usually been a newspaper in the immediate area. The foregoing explains why it is extremely difficult to find newspaper articles covering events that occurred in this area prior to the 1890s. None the less, this collection of newspaper articles, many from newspapers published far from Murray County, captures the flavor of the news of our past. Simply deciphering some of the faded text was a challenge. Some of the words, even whole paragraphs were simply illegible. To make the articles easily readable all have been transcribed and set in Times New Roman type. Of course a few errors must have occurred during transcription; however, many of the original articles contained words spelled differently than today. Don't fret the small stuff, just enjoy! Click on the event you want to read about. First issue, Cherokee Phoenix, 1828 Cherokee Phoenix Publishes Laws, 1828 Chiefs Send Messages to Legislature, 1828 Cherokee Invents Alphabet, 1829 Cherokee Newspaper, 1828 Gold Discovered! 1829 Gold Diggers Expelled From Cherokee Lands, 1830 Cherokee Population, 1830 Article Cherokees Send Memorial to Congress, 1830 Congress for Rights of States, 1830 Georgia Extends Laws Over Cherokees, 1830 Georgia Claims Cherokee's Gold, 1830 Just Waiting for June 1, 1830 Stealing Cherokee Horses, 1830 Connecticut Visitors to New Echota, 1830 Rev. Worcester Removed From Postal Job, 1831 Missionaries Being Persecuted, 1831 Missionaries to Cherokees Sentenced, 1831 Cherokee Phoenix Loses Printer, 1831 Cherokee Newspaper, 1832 Guard Halts Teaching Black Boy, 1832 Georgia Surveys for Land Lottery, 1832 Editor Cherokee Phoenix Resigns, 1832 George Tassel Convicted, 1832 Land Lottery Winners, 1832 Crimes in Georgia's Land Lottery, 1832 Sheriff Rapes Woman at New Echota, 1833 Governor Speculates in Land Lottery, 1833 Indian Massacre! 1833 Chief Ross, John Howard Payne Arrested, 1835 Joseph Vann Forced From Home, 1835 Andrew Jackson's Letter to Cherokees, 1835 Troops to Protect White Settlers, 1837 Col. Bishop Controls Murray Election, 1837 Troops for Removal of Cherokees, 1838 Two Brief Articles On Cherokee Removal, 1838 Gen. Scott Addresses Cherokees, 1838 Indians to Oversee Cherokee Removal, 1838 Deaths of Two Ridges and Boudinot, 1839 Death of David Vann, 1843 Steamboat "Lucy Walker" Explodes, 1844 Visitor Describes Spring Place Mission, 1853 Secession Convention in Atlanta, 1861 Georgia Votes to Leave Union, 1861 Union Has Support in Ga. Mountains, 1861 Dalton Morganton Railroad, 1870 Camp Meeting, 1875 Jail Break at Spring Place, 1876 Train Hits Wagon, 1876 Spring Place Statistics, 1878 Murray Damaged by Storm, 1878 Murray County Gazette Founded, 1879 Sumach Community, 1882 Andy Rowland Captured, 1884 Posse Kills Murderer Pettis, 1884 Three Cruelly Whipped, 1886 Railroad From Dalton to Spring Place, 1888 Negro John Duncan Killed, 1889 Lynching of Thomas Hill, 1893 Thomas Hill, Lynched or Liberated? 1893 Roper Survives to Testify Against kuklux, 1894 Men Who Tried to Kill Roper Are Sentenced 1894 Miss Lucy Hill Thrown By Horse, Dies, 1895 Reign of kuklux, 1895 Murray's Talc, 1897 Colonel Carter's Funeral, 1897 Dr. Bagwell's House Fire, 1899 Dalton-Alaculsey Charter Amended, 1901 Dalton-Alaculsey Railroad, 1902 Chatsworth Mine Ships First Gold, 1904 Rural Free Delivery Mail Service, 1904 Mrs. Lee Denies Part in Husband's Death, 1905 L&N Announces New Route, 20 Stations, 1906 New Town of Eton Planned, 1906 Legislator Ramsey Killed, 1906 Ramsey's Killer Convicted, 1906 Last Living Confederate Congressman, 1906 Visitor Describes Spring Place in 1907 Sheriff Ben Keith Shot, Dies, 1907 Sheriff Keith Dead From Wound, 1907 Chatsworth and Spring Place in 1908 Harper to Hang for Killing Sheriff Keith, 1908 Chatsworth as of 1909 Girl Assaulted, Family at Church, 1909 Mail Delivery in 1909 Harper's Sentence Commuted to Life, 1909 Election for Courthouse Move, 1912 Fish Replaced After L&N Wreck, 1912 John Howard Payne's Prison Razed, 1913 First Court to be Held at Chatsworth, 1913 Supreme Court to Decide on County Site, 1914 Dr. Bradford's Auto Wreck, 1914 Major Fire at Spring Place, 1914 L&N Wreck at Howard's Siding, 1914 "Short Dog" Train Stays On, 1914 Tablet Dedicated at Vann House, 1915 Chatsworth Holds Parade in Dalton, 1915 New Jail Being Built at Chatsworth, 1915 Bids Sought to Build Courthouse, 1916 Work Starts New Courthouse, 1916 Old Courthouse Sold for $5.00 in 1916 Spring Place Courthouse Sold, 1916 L&N Seeks Train Service Changes, 1920 Brick Kiln Collapse, Pastor Killed, 1920 Murray's New Consolidated High School, 1920 Moonshiners Shoot Out, 1922 Tablet Honoring Payne Dedicated, 1922 Search for Relics of Ancient Race, 1923 Mount Vista Lodge Hotel to Be Built, 1926 DeSoto Era Sword Found, 1928 Eula Elrod Thompson Confesses, 1928 Eula Confesses Again, 1928 Eula Not First Women Sentenced to Death, 1928 Eula's Sentence Commuted, 1928 County Sells Convict Camp, 1929 Electricity Turned On, 1929 Fort Mountain Accepted, 1929 Payne Was Not Prisoner in Vann House, 1930 Spring Place Presbyterian Church Demolished, 1932 New Scenic Highway to Ellijay, 1933 Box Company Founded at Chatsworth, 1934 Recalling Pioneering Days of Chatsworth, 1934 CCC Camp's History, 1934 Eula Elrod Thompson Pardoned, 1936 Home Spread Tufters Petition Govt., 1939 Eula Elrod Thompson Murders Brother, 1941 Murray's Cannery, 1941 Crown Chenille Founded, 1941 Government Orders Blackout, 1941 L&N Asks Permission to Close Ramhurst Station, 1941 Pay for Dinner at Pines With Scrap for War, 1941 Murray's First War Casualty, 1942 Junk Needed for War, 1942 Junk to Build Bombs, 1942 Gas Rationing, 1942 V-Mail, 1942 Wartime Tire Purchases, 1942 Tire Rationing Rules, 1942 Old jail Cell Sold as Scrap, 1942 Turn In Old Parts, 1942 Bones of Six Found in Fire Debris, 1942 Mark Pulliam Sentenced for Killing Family, 1943 The Pulliam Family Tragedy, 1942-43 Growing Food for Troops, 1943 Ration Books in 1943 Companies Reverting to Peacetime Manufacturing, 1945 Chatsworth Has Youngest Mayor In US, 1946 Man Leaves Timber to Fund Hospital, 1949 Hall's Trees to Pay for Hospital, 1949 L&N's "Flamingo" Derails in Murray, 1949
