Jeff Davis

I received an interesting query from loyal reader "Katy" via the 12MC Google+⁽¹⁾ account the other day. She was looking for examples of towns that were named after people that included the namesakes’ first and last names.⁽²⁾ Several possibilities came to mind and one name in particular, Jefferson Davis, kept recurring.

Jefferson Davis — which I’ll mention primarily for the international audience less familiar with United States history — was the first and only President of the Confederate States of America (1861-1865). His name still invokes a wide spectrum of reactions based upon specific points of view about the Civil War, the Confederacy, Reconstruction and the evolution of the New South. I won’t wade into that topic except to note that different parts of my family fell onto both sides of that conflict so I’m abundantly aware of the range of considerations. I’ll take the cowardly exit and focus solely on the use of Jefferson Davis as a geographic identifier.

The largest territorial expressions of Jeff or Jefferson Davis occur at the U.S. county level: Jeff Davis Counties in Texas and Georgia; Jefferson Davis Parish in Louisiana; and Jefferson Davis County in Mississippi. Additionally there is a Jeff Davis Township that is a part of Little River County, Arkansas. Their formations tend to cluster chronologically at either side of the flip between the 19th and 20th Centuries; far enough removed from the Civil War to not seem treasonous while close enough to be a part of the emotional fabric of people directly involved.

View Jeff Davis in a larger map

Jeff Davis County, Texas

Texas was part of the Confederacy, however it seemed odd to find a county named for Davis so far out along the western edge of this immense state. It actually hearkens back to an earlier history, though.

The direct association between Jefferson Davis and the Civil War is so strong that his earlier life often goes unnoticed. Davis graduated from the prestigious U.S. military academy at West Point, fought as a Colonel in the Mexican-American War, served in the US Congress, and completed a term as Secretary of War during the Franklin Pierce administration (1853-1857). The county in Texas drew indirectly from Davis’ term as Secretary of War.

Fort Davis was established in west Texas in 1854 to protect travelers along the San Antonio-El Paso Road who were being attacked by Native American tribes including the Mescalero Apache (defending their homeland). The fort was named for the Secretary at the time, Jeff Davis. That was nothing unusual. Nobody could predict how his role would change.

Confederate forces captured Fort Davis without firing a shot in 1861 in what would certainly be an important symbolic victory albeit the Union Army wasn’t much of a threat in this remote corner. The Handbook of Texas, published by the Texas State Historical Association noted that the real threat were actually the Mescalero Apache who were described as "unimpressed" by the change of leadership at the fort. Confederate forces abandoned the fort a year later after ongoing harassment and ambushes led by the Apache.

McDonald Observatory; Jeff Davis Co., TX — View Larger Map

Jeff Davis County is notable for a couple of other reasons:

• It shares a border with Mexico at a single point; a nearly impossible capture for county counters who adhere to every border variation.
• It’s home to the Davis Mountains which the handbook of Texas called the "highest mountain range located entirely within the state of Texas," and also named for Jeff Davis. McDonald Observatory was built in the dark skies of the Mount Locke summit at 6,791 feet (2,070 metres) and is accessible by the "highest state maintained road in Texas."

Jeff Davis County was established in 1887. One could argue whether the name truly referenced the antebellum Jeff Davis or reflected lingering Confederacy nostalgia, however, it’s undeniable that a prior connection existed.

---

Jeff Davis County, Georgia

I wish every state had its own version of the Handbook of Texas. It would make research a lot easier. My problem with Texas was culling and summarizing (a nice problem to have); with Jeff Davis, Georgia I had a deficit of information. What little I found confirmed that the county was named for the former Confederate president in 1905.

View Larger Map

Jeff Davis Co. was an outgrowth of Appling and Coffee Counties. It was necessitated by the growth of the town of Hazlehurst which became the seat of government for the new county. Hazlehurst started as a rail town during the Reconstruction era and grew from there. The town’s history page noted: "Georgia’s 142nd county would have been named Cromartie County if not for a custom to name counties only after deceased citizens." John Cromartie was Appling County’s state legislative representative, and very much alive at the time, while Davis had passed away in 1889.

---

Jefferson Davis Parish, Louisiana

Birthplace of Louisiana Oil Industry – View Larger Map

Jefferson Davis Parish in Louisiana came into creation within the same basic time period, 1912. It was one of five parishes carved from what was known as "Imperial" Calcasieu Parish, a behemoth of more than 3,600 square miles. I couldn’t find much more information about the circumstances of its naming, although I will note that I’m fascinated by a couple of completely unrelated bits of trivia:

• This is part of Acadiana – Cajun Country – so it’s interesting to see a departure from French to a Confederacy theme.
• Jennings, a town in Jefferson Davis Parish, is credited as the birthplace of Louisiana’s oil and gas industry based upon the first oil well placed on the Mamou Prairie near Evangeline in 1901. "To date, over 220,000 wells have been drilled in Louisiana." Here’s a slightly less known fact: that first well, the Heywood #1 Jules Clement well, was actually over the border in neighboring Acadia Parish (map). Just sayin’.

---

Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi

Jefferson Davis represented Mississippi both as a member of the House of Representatives and as a United States Senator. It’s not unexpected that Mississippi created a Jefferson Davis County in 1906. The African American population of said county was 57.38% in the 2000 Census, though. I’m a little puzzled that the name hasn’t been changed.

View Larger Map

Beyond the borders of Jefferson Davis County and farther south along Mississippi’s Gulf coast in Biloxi stands Beauvoir, the home where Jefferson Davis spent his final years. It is also the site of the Jefferson Davis Presidential Library. Both properties were damaged extensively in Hurricane Katrina in August 2005, and the library is scheduled for its grand re-opening in June 2013 after extensive renovation.

I don’t have the ability to discuss all 115 geographic features named either Jeff Davis or Jefferson Davis in the US Geological Survey database, although they include mountains, valleys, streams, reservoirs, buildings and schools. A surprising number of them are located outside of the traditional Southern states, too.

---

⁽¹⁾12MC is pretty active on Google+ and Twitter; consider joining up if you enjoy Twelve Mile Circle. Those outlets allow me to share items that don’t make it onto the pages here. Links are available at the top of the page and in the column to the right.
⁽²⁾Katy offered Maxbass, ND and Carol Stream, IL. I’m still exploring possibilities and will likely feature this in a future article. Feel free to add other examples in the comments and you may find yourself mentioned on 12MC!

Confederate Yankees

The Confederate’s Army of Northern Virginia surrendered at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865. That was essentially the end of the Civil War although others continued the fight briefly afterwards. The former Confederate states all regained representation in the United States Congress within the next few years. Eventually they all formally terminated their succession by decrees or legislation. The last place to officially rescind its succession was… Town Line, New York?!?

For the benefit of 12MC readers from outside of the United States, let’s turn to a map.

View Larger Map

Notice the location of Town Line, NY. The nearest state that seceded from the Union was Virginia. A town just outside of Buffalo joining the Confederacy is downright confounding. It shouldn’t happen. It reminds me of Winston, Alabama, the southern town that wanted to remain with the Union, except in the opposite extreme. Town Line did not rejoin the United States formally until 1946, at least according to them. The U.S. Government would contend that they never had permission to leave so they never could have left, but that would ruin the story so I’m going to conveniently ignore that.

The best source for a bit of historical background and the story of Town-Line’s return is the Buffalo History Gazette, and I’d recommend you take a look. A corroborating source is Jamestown wgrz.com. There’s also a bit of skepticism so feel free to make up your own mind.

As the story goes, Town Line (so named because it was founded on the line between the towns of Lancaster and Alden) was a community of German descendants and recent immigrants, in a strongly Democratic pocket surrounded by Republicans. Residents differed culturally and politically from their neighbors. They were predisposed to be upset when Abraham Lincoln, a Republican, won the presidential election of 1860. There were a couple of incidents that might be more speculation or perhaps revisionist history than factual, including treatment of prisoners of war and the actions of runaway slaves at a nearby underground railroad site. Whatever the reasons, the town voted 84 to 40 to secede during the summer of 1861. Several men also left town to join the Confederate Army.

View Larger Map

Things didn’t go so well for the Confederate sympathizers of Town Line as the war progressed. They were harassed and many of them fled across the nearby border into Canada. The whole secession vote had little meaning to the pro-Union residents who remained in Town Line by the end of the war and memories began to fade over ensuing decades. The hamlet’s unusual status wasn’t rediscovered for another sixty or seventy years.

Reunification effort went along in fits-and-starts. It came up occasionally and was voted down by the residents. Maybe they liked their unique status. Eventually President Truman weighed-in on the issue, somewhat tongue-in-cheek:

There are few controversies that are not susceptible to a peace time resolution if examined in an atmosphere of tranquility and calm rather than strife and turmoil. I would suggest the possibility of roast veal as a vehicle of peace. Why don’t you run down the fattest calf in Erie County, barbecue it and serve it with fixin’s in the old blacksmith shop where the ruckus started? Who can tell? The dissidents might decide to resume citizenship.

This spurred the residents of Town Line to — finally! — rejoin the union on January 26, 1946, by a vote of 90 to 23. The last stronghold of the Confederacy fell.

This odd legacy is commemorated even to this day on the patch of the Town Line Volunteer Fire Department, the "Last of the Rebels 1861-1946."

My Ridiculous Historic Parallel

My interest in history is probably as great as my interest in geography, a theme I’ve commonly woven into the Twelve Mile Circle. Keeping that in mind, I’ve grown ever-excited as events commemorating the 150th anniversary of the U.S. Civil War approach. Activities will escalate rapidly on April 12, 2011 with the anniversary of the Confederate attack on Ft. Sumter [my visit] and continue with intensity for another four years.

Commemorations will even take place in my little corner of the world. That website reminded me of a very basic geographic fact: the capital of the United States had the misfortune of finding itself suddenly bordering enemy territory. A line of artillery placed atop Virginia’s Potomac River ridgeline — the very home of the Confederate’s leading general, Robert E. Lee — would have reduced the city of Washington and all its iconic structures to rubble. That’s exactly why the Union army marched across the river within 12 hours of Virginia’s secession and seized the highlands for the duration of the war. They then constructed a ring of 68 forts completely around the city [my visit to one] and dug in for the next four years.

This got me thinking about what would happen geographically if one or more states decided to secede today. Could a split ever replicate the situation of a capital city suddenly abutting "enemy" territory? I considered that as a purely hypothetical scenario. I don’t know of any reasons why this would ever happen. Neither would I wish to trivialize or diminish the very serious causes behind the Civil War a century and a half ago, so I hope nobody takes it that way.

However, if we were to start splitting individual states from each other for whatever reason, which state (now national) capitals would suddenly appear vulnerably along a border? I know it doesn’t make much difference today with bombers and long-range missiles and such, but let’s suspend our disbelief for a moment and go with it. The list is smaller than I imagined.

View Larger Map

Trenton seems to be the best example. Nothing but the Delaware River separates the capital of New Jersey from Pennsylvania. Technically the same is true for Carson City, Nevada although Lake Tahoe might serve as an effective buffer from California. Juneau, Alaska sits on an international border today (remember the trick question?) although the habitable portion clings to the Gastineau Channel with huge mountains and an icefield separating it from Canada. Plus, Canada doesn’t seem to have much of a desire to invade Alaska anytime soon.

A few others come close. Cheyenne, Wyoming is about ten miles from Colorado. St. Paul, Minnesota is maybe thirty miles from Wisconsin. Providence, Rhode Island extends nearly to Massachusetts but nearly everything in Rhode Island is near a border, so is it even a useful example?

---

View Larger Map

An even better instance exists just a bit further north. This is all that separates Ottawa, the Canadian capital, in the province of Ontario from the province of Québec. Should Québec ever secede from Canada, well… let’s just hope it ended amicably.