Milton History
Northern Georgia, including Fulton County, was originally part of the Cherokee Indian Nation. Native American Cherokee Indians and European settlers lived in peace together until the State of Georgia appropriated the Cherokee’s land in 1830 and then arbitrarily carved the land into counties and distributed parcels to bidders during the 1832 land lottery. The remaining Cherokee Indians were expelled to what is now Oklahoma on the infamous Trail of Tears in 1838-39.
|
The County of Milton was created in 1857 out of portions of Cherokee, Cobb and Gwinnett counties. It was named after Lieutenant Colonel John Milton who was Georgia's first secretary of state. John Milton saved Georgia’s official records from destruction by the British during the American Revolutionary War and he was elected to office three times. The City of Milton derived its name from Milton County.
|
 |
Milton survived a potentially disastrous boom/bust economic cycle
Because of the nutrient-rich farming land and the availability of cheap slave labor, Georgia’s cotton plantation owners in the area thrived and the economy boomed. During this period of prosperity, many opulent mansions were built in Milton. Cotton was king and Milton County’s cotton was renowned for its high quality and prolific yield. Milton County remained a part of Georgia from 1857 to 1931. By that time, devastating boll weevil infestations during the 1910’s and 1920’s had almost destroyed Milton County’s single industry economy. Roads were unpaved, schoolrooms were dilapidated, and health care was generally poor. On January 1, 1932, Milton County was merged with Fulton County through an act of the state legislature to save it from bankruptcy during the Great Depression.
The result of the merger between the two counties was lower taxes, a steady program of improvement in the public school system, and a revitalized economy as Georgia progressed through World War II and into the affluent second half of the 20th century. In January of 2005, State Representative Jan Jones introduced a bill to incorporate the city of Milton. The bill gave residents in the area 1 year to debate the merits of the proposal and 6 additional months before a referendum would be held. On July 18, 2006, 85% of voters approved the referendum to incorporate Milton as a city.