Burton's Ferry

Front: One mile west is the S.C. landing of Burton’s Ferry. The ferry was opened in 1765 by Robert Dunn on a 440-acre tract on the west (Ga.) banks of the Savannah River. In 1772, Thomas Burton acquired the tract and took up residence. He also outfitted boats and had a road cleared through swamp on the ferry’s S.C. side. In 1773, the colonial Ga. government granted Burton a franchise for the ferry. Reverse: During the Revolutionary War, Patriot soldiers were posted on the east (S.C.) side of Burton’s Ferry. In the 1770s-80s they skirmished with British troops stationed across the Savannah River in Ga. The ferry landing was an American supply point during the Battle of Brier Creek (1779), a major British victory that took place west of the river in Screven County, Ga.