Once the Cherokee Indians were removed from northwest Georgia, newcomers began arriving in large numbers to settle the vacated lands. Among the first of these to arrive in Dade County were the Brock and Morrison families, who will be the focus of this year’s annual Dade Historical Society Cemetery Walk on Saturday, May 18. (See front page of paper or Donna Street’s article immediately preceding this one for further details about participating.)
The original Brock settler here was one Benjamin Brock, who was born in North Carolina in 1797 to the Reverend Nathaniel Brock (1757-1815) and his wife, Sarah Eaton (1766-1861). The rest of Benjamin’s siblings were apparently content to remain in North Carolina, but Benjamin and his wife, Rebecca Kimbrough, whom he married in 1826 before leaving his home state, departed from there and headed south. By 1840, they had at least nine children and were living in what is now western Walker County. By 1860, they had relocated to Dade and were well established in the community.
While many if not most of the early settlers of the county were relatively poor folks, the Brocks were well-heeled when they arrived. The 1870 census is the only one in which citizens were asked about their financial worth. From this we know that, in 1870, just after the Civil War when so many people in the South were in dire financial straits, Benjamin Brock was listed as having $6,000 of real property (houses, land, etc.) and $4,000 in personal property (savings, bank assets, et cetera.)
In 1860, before the war, he was the owner of 16 slaves, so his net worth was probably a great deal more at that time. With his assets and his advantages, he built a magnificent dwelling, which locals today often refer to as the Vice House. It stands on Creek Road just across from the Brock Cemetery where Benjamin, his wife, many of his children and their descendants, as well as a number of friends and connections of the Brocks, are buried. This cemetery is one of the county’s most beautiful resting places, situated on the western slope of Lookout Mountain and shaded by trees of many different varieties. The earliest marked graves in the cemetery date from the 1860s and it remains an active burialground today.
Among Benjamin and Rebecca Brock’s many children, perhaps the one most celebrated in the county during his lifetime was their son, Dr. William Eaton Brock (1832-1881), a physician who served the people of Dade for a number of years but lost his life at a relatively young age due to a freak accident.
He doctored residents all over the county, including the prison population at Cole City, and was instrumental in the establishment of Trenton Methodist Church. One night, as he arrived home from a house call, something happened with his horse and he was severely injured while trying to descend from his buggy. He lingered for about two weeks and then died. His obituary in the Trenton newspaper of that day is a real tribute to the regard in which he was held.
Dr. Brock was the father of eight children who lived to adulthood and most of them were distinguished members of the community, as well. His oldest son, James Russell Brock (1861-1917), is one of the featured characters who will be portrayed on the Cemetery Walk. His was a very unique and tragic story and I hope you can come and hear it.
Another son of Dr. William Eaton Brock was Benjamin Taylor Brock (1866-1940), who seems to have been involved in almost everything that went on in Trenton during his lifetime. He married Sara Frances “Sallie” Cureton, member of another long-established local family, was a successful store owner and, for many years, was publisher of the local newspaper. When the Spanish-American War broke out in 1898, he helped organized a unit of cavalrymen from among the local citizens and went off to war. He lived in what locals call the “Brock house” across the railroad from the depot in Trenton.
His brother William Hershell Brock (1880-1971), another son of Dr. Brock and a Spanish-American War volunteer, also spent his life in Trenton, was a merchant and, for some time, served as postmaster.
And last but not least to be mentioned as a child of Dr. W. E. Brock was his daughter Allie Hassell Brock (1871-1957), who married William Granville Morrison and produced 12 children, many of whom, in their turn, were movers and shakers in the community and farther. Her marriage is also the event that united the Brock and Morrison families and began the burials of Morrisons, as well as Brocks and their connections, in the Brock Cemetery.
One of Allie Brock Morrison’s sons, Douglas Eaton Morrison (1893-1973), and his wife, Catherine Clarke Morrison ((1903-1990), a native of the state of Maine, are two more of the characters who contributed greatly to our county and will be portrayed during the walk on Sunday. Several of her other children will be featured as well for their accomplishments.
Allie Hassell Brock’s husband was William Granville Morrison (1852-1940), known by his friends as Bud. His father, William Douglas Morrison (1823-1855), was born in North Carolina as was his mother, Harriet Pace (1826-1884). W.G.’s father died here when the son was only three and, in subsequent censuses, it appears he was raised by his mother and his aunt.
However, despite the fact that growing up without a father was probably difficult, the family had adequate financial resources. Although there is no record of slave ownership, in 1870 the Morrison family had real assets of $3,000 and personal wealth amounting to $2,000, so that William Granville Morrison had a comfortable if not privileged childhood.
He was a successful businessman, the operator of a very lucrative general store in Trenton. A portrait of him painted late in his life shows an elegant, silver-haired man of great self-confidence who exuded success and satisfaction. Several of his and Allie Brock’s children, other than Douglas Eaton, will also be recognized at our event as they were well known in Dade County and made contributions of different kinds to their community.
Perhaps the preeminent individual who will be featured Sunday is a man who is neither a Brock nor a Morrison but is, nevertheless, buried with them. His name was George Washington Harris (1814-1869) and he was a nationally-known author in his day. Although born in the North, he came south as a young man and became acquainted with the Appalachian or, as we often call it, the “hillbilly” culture. His ability to create characters from within that culture and to paint pictures of them that were of interest to a national audience drew him some significant admirers during his day, including Samuel Langhorne Clemens who became Mark Twain and acknowledged Harris as one of his guides and inspirations.
Until recently, no one knew where Harris was buried when he died, probably a victim of murder, but as a result of the labors of an Alabama college professor and his students, he was discovered about 10 years ago to lie here in Brock Cemetery beside his wife and among people who were undoubtedly his friends and fellow soldiers.
There is more to learn about these stories and much more to hear that is totally new. In addition, the Brock Cemetery is such a beautiful and serene place that you will enjoy the experience of just being there. Please come and join us on Saturday afternoon.
--Joy Odom
hujodom149@gmail.com
