Dooly County was created on May 15, 1821 by an act of the General Assembly (Ga. Laws 1821 Extra. Session, p. 3). [Click here to read the legal description of Dooly County's original boundaries.] Dooly, Houston, Monroe, Fayette, and Henry County were created in that order by the Georgia Land Lottery Act of 1821, which was enacted at a special session of the General Assembly four months after the Creek Indians ceded lands between the Ocmulgee and Flint rivers (see map) on Jan. 8, 1821 in the first Treaty of Indian Springs. Dooly County was organized by an act of the legislature approved Dec. 24, 1821 (Ga. Laws 1821, p. 44). Later, portions of Dooly County were used to create the following counties: Worth (1853), Wilcox (1857), Crisp (1905), and Turner (1905).

Georgia's 48th county was named for Col. John Dooly (1740-1780), who commanded a regiment at the the Battle of Kettle Creek in 1779 and was killed at his home by Tories in 1780.

Historical Maps

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Go to Historical Atlas of Georgia Counties

Go to Dooly County Courthouse page