On Feb. 12, 1825, a group of Creek Indians led by William McIntosh signed the Treaty of Indian Springs, in which they ceded all of their remaining lands in present-day Georgia. Subsequently, in an act of June 9, 1825, the General Assembly provided that the land ceded by the treaty be divided into five sections, surveyed into districts and land lots, and distributed by land lottery (Ga. Laws 1825, p. 3). On Dec. 14, 1826, the legislature redesignated the five land sections as the counties of Lee, Muscogee, Troup, Coweta, and Carroll (Ga. Laws 1826, p. 57). As provided in that act:

". . . all that part of the territory lately acquired from the Creek Indians, lying between the Flint and Chattahoochee rivers, immediately above the old lines of Early county, and known as the first section, shall form one county to be called Lee."

Despite the fact that the five counties were not named until Dec. 14, 1826, June 9, 1825 is generally accepted as the date of their creation, for that was the date of the act establishing their respective boundaries.

Later, Randolph County (1828) and Sumter County (1831) were created entirely from Lee County. Also, parts of Lee County were used to help form Marion County (1827) and Terrell County (1856).

According to most sources, Georgia's 61st county was named for Virginia politician Richard Henry Lee (1732-1794), a leader in the American colonies' independence movement. However, the legislation creating Lee County makes no mention of who was being honored, and it may have been noted Revolutionary War hero Col. Henry "Light Horse Harry" Lee (1756-1818). While visiting at the home of Nathanael Green's daughter on Georgia's Cumberland Island, Col. Lee died in 1818. Eight years later, the General Assembly created a new county named Lee. Contemporary evidence as to which Lee the legislature was honoring has yet to be discovered. However, in his Historical Collections of Georgia published in the 1850s, George White credited the honoree as Richard Henry Lee.

Historical Maps

 

1822

 

1826

 

1830

 

1834

 

1839

 

1846

 

1855

 

1863

 

1864

 

1865

 

1874

 

1883a

 

1885b

 

1885

 

1895

 

1899

 

1904

 

1910

 

1915

 

1952

 

1955

 

1970a

 

1970b

 

1999

 

2001a

 

2001b

Go to Historical Atlas of Georgia Counties

Go to Lee County Courthouse page