Smyrna Churchyard

Smyrna Churchyard is a Georgia historical marker in Wilkes County, dedicated 1953.

Located at the intersection of South Smyrna Church Road and Lincolnton Road (US 378) near Washington.

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This burying ground was laid out in 1788 when Sir John Talbot gave two acres of his vast estate for use as a Presbyterian Church and churchyard. Sir John was descended from the Earl of Shrewsbury. His own son, Matthew Talbot, served as a Superior Court judge, President of the Georgia Senate in 1811, 1817-22, and as Governor of Georgia from Oct. 24 to Nov. 5, 1819. Both are buried here. W. H. T. Walker, Confederate General killed in the Battle of Atlanta, was a descendant of Sir John Talbot. The Presbyterians moved to a new building in Washington in 1825.

Maps this old were drawn largely by eye, so places on them can sit miles from where they really are. The pin is ours and marks the marker's location today.

TodayHistorical map

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David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries

Historical maps covering this location

1794 · Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
1795 · State of South Carolina. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
1816 · Georgia. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
1816 · Georgia (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
1824 · Georgia. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)

Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia, 1794, covering the location of Smyrna Churchyard, with a pin at the marker's coordinates — Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia, 1794, covering this location. David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries. The pin is ours, placed from the marker's coordinates.

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This historical marker is part of the Georgia Historical Marker Program and was erected by the Georgia Historical Commission. Marker texts and locations come from the Society's own marker database.

Smyrna Churchyard

Historical maps covering this location

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