{"id":9114,"date":"2011-08-23T17:45:14","date_gmt":"2011-08-23T22:45:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.howderfamily.com\/blog\/?p=9114"},"modified":"2022-02-11T18:38:32","modified_gmt":"2022-02-11T23:38:32","slug":"bibb-monroe-resolved","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.howderfamily.com\/blog\/bibb-monroe-resolved\/","title":{"rendered":"Bibb-Monroe Border War Resolved. Maybe."},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Who says that Twelve Mile Circle can\u2019t break a story? I stay away from the major geographic developments because I figure everyone else will cover them. South Sudan, anyone? You saw no mention of it that on 12MC. The smaller stories, the ones few care to follow and even fewer dare to understand? Well those are perfect fodder for this website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have been stalking the many twists and turns of the border dispute between Bibb and Monroe Counties in Georgia since I first became aware of it January 2009. I\u2019ve never been to either place and I have no stake in its outcome. My interest rests solely on the possibility that a county line might change. This is an extremely rare event so I find the story fascinating. I set up a Google Alert<\/a> and I received an email with article links once every few months as the dispute progressed through various government wickets. I\u2019m nothing if not patient.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

A Decision at Hand<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Border
Border of Bibb and Monroe Counties GA in January 2009<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

This morning, August 23, 2011, Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp held a press conference to announce his decision. He stated that he believed Bibb County met the necessary burden of proof to support its position. He set aside Terry Scarborough’s 2009 survey that favored Monroe County. The border will remain in its current place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kemp said he had reasonable doubts about the exact original location of Torrentine\u2019s Ferry, the Nineteenth Century starting point for the boundary. It could have been where Scarborough marked it in 2009 or it could have been somewhere further upriver. Kemp reviewed all of the documentation and he personally visited the disputed area. In conclusion, he said that a change would have too big of an impact on the lives of the people affected unless he knew where to draw the line with certainty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He stressed that the two sides could continue to work together to come up with a better solution or the Governor could always commission another boundary survey. However, Kemp decided to keep the border in place as currently configured.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Previous Developments<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Readers who have not followed 12MC for the last three years are probably wondering how we got here. Let\u2019s review.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I set up the general situation in Bibb-Monroe Border War in Georgia<\/a> and updated it in Bibb-Monroe Revisited<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n