"I was born in Tiff County, Georgia. I came to old Milton when I was 16 and settled on JonesBridge Road and stayed at the home of my Grandmother Mrs. Temperance Jane Benson. I stayed in that community exclusively for about 64 years till l994. I've seen a lot of changes around Alpharetta and Newtown and when I came there Old Milton was in existence and did not change to Fulton until January 1932, and if I remember correctly Alpharetta didn't have a paved street in it. I could be wrong, but I think I'm right, and Roswell didn't have any paved roads coming through the town except one that ended at Roswell Cemetery. My Mother and my brother came later and we lived with my Grandmother, and then we moved out to ourselves. We farmed-- we grew cotton and corn and I remember 1935, we lived on Old Alabama Road with Mr Walter Long and his wife Mrs Lilia. Our cotton was up and ready to chop, and it was in the spring, the snow came and it nearly killed our cotton and I can remember that."

"A mail carrier, from Roswell, but he was from Newtown and he was good to everybody, his name was Roy Reeves. I met him at the mail box one day and told him I broke my hoe handle. He said not to worry about it tomorrow he would bring me one, and he did. He accommodated the people so much."

"Then we moved over to Jones Bridge in l936 I do believe and that's the year of the Gainesville storm and then we moved up the road to live with ______ Brumbelow and farmed until I married in 1938 and that year my brother, my Mother and I had more crops than we could tend to. We picked 7 bales of cotton. I married Ben G. Jackson, a veteran of World War I, and moved into his house and stayed there until 1994 when I moved into Dogwood Square. I lived in that house exclusively."

"In April, 13 years and one day, he passed away. He had something, I think it was cancer, we don't know, the doctors couldn't diagnose it then. He left me with a 17 day old child to raise. I thought my life had ended-- I could not go on. Something helped me and each day was better."

"He had a little country store in Roswell on Canton Street with his cousin Paul Lane. His Dad got sick and he wanted to be with him so he moved his store and put it in one room of his house. He had a small place across the road. When he passed away I had never done anything or worked anywhere and I just tried and I made it. I lived single before I married Edward Jones, and he was a native of Newtown. His daddy lived out on the River on old Jones Bridge. The road was named after his ancestor. Life just started changing and I made it."

"I remember the old cemetery and when Miss Lucie moved to Norcross, she had all of her family's bodies moved over there. The cemetery was on the left going toward the river. There was a little driveway going up there. The last person living there was Tom Ferrea, I believe, and his wife Jane who was John Spruell and Steve Spruell's sister. That was the last account that I have had of anybody living there. Bill's family, known as little Bill, his family came here from Virginia and his grandfather followed a girl to Georgia and that's why the Jones family came to Georgia. He was an engineer and built railroads and moved to Mississippi. He moved his family."

"Tautomer school was near to the old Stapler place. Near the old Pleasant Hill Church, the crossroad on Old Alabama Road toward Duluth. Will Brumbelow lived there and the next house was Walter and Ida Long, just along at the top of the hill was a road to the right by the old Mackieye Church and it came back into Jones Bridge about a mile from the river through Jack Stapler's yard between that road was Tautomer School. It was just a little country school. Did you ever know Dorothy Thomason Cooper? Did you ever know Maude and Johnny Allen? Well Fanny Maw, we call her Fanny Maw, she was a widow woman and she lived behind where I lived on Jones Bridge at the dead end of that road that ran between Palmer Young's store and the line. She had three girls. Alice went mental and she had to go to Milledgeville and Maude never did marry and Sally married a Thomason. Willie Bell, I believe, is his name, and they had one daughter. Dorothy Thomason went to that school and the Benson's went to that school. I think Glen went to Newtown. I'm sure the Jones' went to Tautomer. There were twelve in that family, as long as they lived on that side of the river."

"Well I don't know too much about the Newtown school. Down in Newton where -------- Deola and Glen's all buried. We were down there one day walking through the cemetery and Glen said this is where we played ball when I was a child and I would like to be buried here. The Benson's are buried further down toward the church. There are some old timers there."

"Naomi Chatham taught at both Tautomer and Newtown."

"The Scott's lived in Newtown, they are all gone now except Audrey, the youngest girl is still living--she married Herbert Fields and the last account I had of her she was in a personal care home somewhere around Roswell."

"I had a hard life, I had a good life. Did you ever see the cookbook we did in Old Timers in Ocee?" Please read a part of it to me. I can't see to read any more and I just like to hear it." **********

"I cooked three 'coons in my life. I've got to tell you this after I married Bill. Our neighbor came by and he had a 'coon. We asked what are you going to do with that. He said he was going to cook it. This man was Howard Chester and he went hunting somewhere around Manchester or Gay Georgia and he told Bill that if he got a 'coon it would be in our mailbox. The next morning the 'coon was in our mail box. Bill cleaned it and I cooked it. The Gibson's lived over there, Pop and Mom Gibson, I told her we were going to have 'coon, she said invite me and poppa, we want to come, we got another one and I cooked that thing, par boiled it with an onion to get the wildness out of it and put it in a big old baking dish and put a little sauce over it and it was as good as any pork you ever ate in your life. There wasn't much of it you could eat, it was the back bone and stuff like that had some meat on it, and I had to get up and get some hot biscuits for the table and when I got back my plate was empty. Mrs. Gibson had reached over there with her fork and said you don't need that and I'm gonna eat it. Poppa Gibson walked up to the mail box because the mail didn't go down that road. He would whistle or something and my two little old grandsons would run down to the road and he just loved them and petted them and always brought them a pack of gum."

"As I went to the doctor, not changing the subject, last Thursday, I walked in and who did I see but Virginia. As we walked in there was Joe. We got on in the doctor's office, and Diane, Ricky's wife, was with her and we seen Edwin Chester and his wife, and you know she was in the office at Amy L. Dodd and Nancy and her, she told Edwin to get up and move cause me and Nancy's got to chat. It was like a little family reunion."

"The people who used to live in Newtown are gone now. Roger was the last Brumbelow and he's gone. Not any left."

"Let me show you what I've got on my bed. I can't get around I fell several times. One time 911 had to come and pick me up, you know they are not allowed to pick you up here. Have you seen this? (Afghan from Old Timers at Autry Mill) There is my store. And here is the members of the club, I'm the fifth one somewhere. This is called bridging the year, and I've got a copy of that I will give you. I don't know who has copies of the pictures. I don't have any of them."

"I never knew that the bridge across the river where the Medlocks lived was a toll bridge. I've got a copy of bridging the years, I'll give to you, I love to hear it and since I can't read it I'd love to hear it will you read it to me? I can't see to read, I can't read my mail and if I write anything down I have trouble reading it and I have to write with a felt tip pen." ******

"Are you familiar with the old Holcombe house? Down at the end of Nesbit Ferry down at the river. Now my Mother was born there and Uncle Willie. See that window, I can't see it but one of them has a water bucket and a wash pan in it. Now Grandpa Benson's sister was Addison W. Holcombe's wife. He was the one the road was named after and this is a picture one of these ladies right here is my mother and that is "Pink" Nesbit. And that was Aunt Ida and that girl - that was my mother. My grandmother and Aunt Catherine was sitting here. These others I don't know. The little boys were Oscar and Carl Benson. Where is that newspaper thing I had? Now was in the paper not too long ago and a lot of it was misrepresented, but the girl who lives there now was Mrs Ellen's granddaughter. Allison W. Holcombe was a state senator and he ran a tin yard in Marietta, Georgia, and he had slaves and my grandfather and Uncle Willie was born in South Georgia and he moved up here and moved in the house with Mr. Holcombe and lived there until just a year or two before he died. This is Peggy Hatch who owns that house now and she has remodeled it, I understand, and she lives there now. She has invited me to come down but I'm not able to go.****(Maybe some of us can take you down) All right, if you can put my buggy in the car. It's not heavy."

"Remember, Addison W. Holcombe's wife, Catherine, was my Grandpa's sister, That makes her my great aunt. She was my Mother's aunt. "(Tape recorder ran out)

The following written history of Ruth's family history was furnished by her:

HOLCOMB BRIDGE ROAD

Although historical records are sketchy, we do know that Robert McAfee was given permission by the Georgia Legislature in 1834 to erect a toll bridge across the Chattahoochee River. The original bridge was constructed within a few feet of where the existing Holcomb Bridge is located.

Mcafee built a wooden covered bridge with stone buttresses. The hand built columns were never mortared, but instead wool was placed between the heavy flat stones in such a way that one of the columns still stands today, 150 years after its construction. Not surprisingly, the road we know today as Holcomb Bridge Road was called McAfee Bridge Road during pre-Civil War times.

When Mr. Mcafee's daughter, Susan, married Jackson Gregory, he gave his daughter and new son-in-law approximately 900 acres of land on the northwest side of the Chattahoochee River along with the toll rights to McAfee Bridge. Jackson Gregory collected the tolls and lived in the two-story log cabin that was built in 1835 by his father-in-law for the Gregorys. In 1862, Gregory sold his farm, the log cabin and the rights to the bridge to Addison Holcombe.

In July of 1864, the McAfee Bridge took on military importance as it was the only bridge over the Chattahoochee River in the immediate area. It is believed that Union Brigadier General Kenner Garrard wanted to capture the bridge so Federal troops could skirt the east end of Atlanta and destroy the railroad lines cutting off any reinforcements.

Confederate troops were determined, however, to hold the bridge. On July 9, l864 General Garrard wrote Sherman, "All is quiet in my front; but the regiment I sent to take the bridge eight miles above failed and I find some considerable force there. They can keep the enemy from burning the bridge, but cannot get possession of it ..."

Another attempt was made to take control of the bridge. This time, Federal cavalry, under the command of Colonel Eli Long, was successful in seizing control of the bridge. To guard the bridge, the log cabin, which Holcombe purchased from Jackson Gregory, was confiscated by Union troops along with a cabin across the river. Both cabins apparently provided a good view of the bridge.

On July 17, the Second Cavalry Division of the Army of Cumberland under General Kenner Garrard's command crossed over the bridge. Although the evidence is not conclusive, it is most likely that Union soldiers destroyed the bridge to prevent the Confederates from pursuing them to Atlanta. Union soldiers were said to have destroyed the bridge by piling wheat from Holcombe's nearby field inside the bridge and setting it afire.

After the Civil War, A. W. Holcombe built a ferry in the same location as the destroyed covered bridge. Holcombe's ferry, as it was called, was owned by Addison, but was operated by a distant relative, Richard Holcombe, since Addison had no sons of his own to operate the ferry.

Not until 1906 was a new bridge, named after A. W. Holcombe, erected replacing the ferry. The same stone piers of the McAfee Bridge, built in 1835, were used to support that bridge. The present day bridge was built in 1960 a few yards upstream from the old bridge. Somewhere over the years, the letter "e" was dropped from the end of Holcombe's name and the road which had been in existence several decades prior to Holcombe's purchase of his Milton County farm as eventually given the name, Holcomb Bridge Road.

THE HOLCOMBE HOMESTEAD

The Holcombe homestead, which stands today, is located off Holcomb Bridge Road overlooking the Chattahoochee River. The northern half of the home was originally a four room, two story log cabin built by Robert McAfee in 1835 as a wedding gift for his daughter and son-in-law, Jackson Gregory.

In 1862, Jackson Gregory sold his farm, the log cabin and the toll rights to Addison Holcombe. Having had his Marietta house destroyed by Sherman's Union Army in 1864, Holcombe moved into the two story log cabin with his wife, Mary.

In 1874, Holcombe built onto his home and invited the Bensons, his wife's side of the family, to move in with them. Holcombe added two rooms on the south side of the log house, and a long back shed room to be used for a kitchen and dining room. Later, the log cabin was finished with planking.

The Holcombes and the Bensons lived in the home until the death of Mary Catherine Holcombe in 1901. Addison and Mary Holcombe are buried in the Kirkland-McAfee cemetery located on the Gwinnett County side of the Chattahoochee River within view of the home they lived in for over a quarter of a century.

THE LIFE AND TIMES OF A. W. HOLCOMBE

Addison Warren Holcombe was born in South Carolina on May 23, l817. In 1830, at the age of thirteen, he left his family and ventured out on his own. He traveled to Jefferson, Georgia, where he apprenticed as a tanner. He later returned to South Carolina and in 1835 married Mary Catherine Benson. While in South Carolina he served ten years as a Colonel of a regiment of calvary and court records also indicate he was active in business.

In 1850 Holcombe moved back to Georgia. By 1860 the Holcombe family was living in Cobb County and shortly thereafter he volunteered for military service with the Kennesaw Dragons. The Dragons, the first military unit organized on record in the county, was commanded by Francis W. Capers of the prestigious Georgia Military Institute of Marietta. By the winter of 1861 war between the states was considered inevitable and preparations for the war were well under way.

By 1864 General William T. Sherman's Union Army was trampling through Georgia. Sherman"s strategy was to take the horrors of war to the South. His goal was to "ruin Georgia" by "making desolation everywhere". He accomplished his goal by destroying the railroad, factories, cities and farms in his path. In November of l864 Holcombe"s Marietta house, along with the Georgia Military Institute and every other substantial building in the community, was burned by Union troops.

After the war, the Holcombe family settled down in Milton County (present day Fulton County). Holcombe purchased a 934-acre farm on the Chattachoochee River and became known as one of the prominent farmers of the county. Today, Holcombe's Pond is situated on land that once was a part of Holcombe's Milton County Farm.

Not only was Holcombe a prominent farmer of his day, he also owned several businesses. He had a livery stable, blacksmith shop and tanning yard in Marietta, a hotel in downtown Atlanta (near the historical Biltmore Hotel), a ferry operation crossing the Chattahoochee River and a commercial mill pont for grinding grain.

Although there are no records that Holcombe had previously held public office, he was elected as a delegate to the Georgia Constitutional Convention of l868. The purpose of the Convention was to frame a new Constitution and Civil Government for the State of Georgia as a qualification for readmission in the Union.

A. W. Holcombe's most notable life achievement may have been his leadership given in the Convention. He was referred to in a biography of a delegate to the Convention as "One of the heroes of that Convention and deserves the lasting gratitude of Georgia." Another delegate describes his actions as "Bold and fearless in the defense of his people and their rights".

The Convention completed its work in March of 18 68 and the new Constitution was ratified by the voters the following month. Slavery was abolished and blacks were given the right to vote. The state capital was moved from Milledgeville to Atlanta and the legislature was made to consist of 44 Senators and 175 members of the House.

Holcombe's conduct at the convention catapulted his public career. In July he was elected to the Georgia Senate from the Thirty-Ninth District and served in that body for two years. He was admired and respected by his peers and was considered one of the prominent statesmen of his day. He was described as an eloquent, talented speaker, having a booming voice.

A popular figure among citizens of his District, he was agin elected by an overwhelming majority to the 1877 State Constitutional Convention. In l878 he served a second two-year term as the Senator for the Thirty-Ninth District. Holcombe's political career was best summarized by a colleague who said of him, "The Senator will be remembered with admiration for his fearless advocacy of the right."

Soldier, businessman, farmer, statesman - Holcombe's life encompassed them all. On August 12,1888 Addison Warren Holcombe died in Norcross, Georgia, at the age of 71. He was survived by Mary, his wife of 53 years.