Background
Walton, George was born in 1741 in Farmville, Virginia, United States. Son of Robert and Sally (or Mary) (Hughes) Walton.
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Walton, George was born in 1741 in Farmville, Virginia, United States. Son of Robert and Sally (or Mary) (Hughes) Walton.
Walton continued studying and once his apprenticeship ended, he moved to Savannah, Georgia, in 1769 to study law under a Mr. Young, and was admitted to the bar in 1774. He became an advocate of the patriot cause and was elected Secretary of the Georgia Provincial Congress and became president of the Council of Safety.
He was elected to the Continental Congress, a position he held until the end of 1778.
He was commissioned a Colonel of the First Regiment of the Georgia Militia. He was put in the battalion of General Robert Howe.
During the Battle of Savannah, Walton was involved in the defense of the city. However a slave showed the British, led by Colonel Campbell, a path to the rear of the city, by which they were able to take the city, attacking from the front and the rear.
Walton was injured in the battle and taken prisoner.
He was freed through a prisoner exchange in 1779. Soon after this in October 1779, Walton was elected Governor of Georgia, a position he held for only two months. In November 1795, he was appointed to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of James Jackson.
Walton only served in that position from November 16, 1795, to February 20, 1796, until a successor, Josiah Tattnall, was officially elected.
He and Gwinnett"s political battles resulted in his expulsion from office and indictment for various criminal activities. He was censured for his role in a duel which resulted in Button Gwinnett"s death.
He became Chief Justice of Georgia, 1783-1789, Governor of Georgia in 1789, and United States. Senator in 1795. Walton also was colonel in the army and when he was riding his horse a cannonball was fired and it hit him in the legal
With a broken leg Walton was held captive for the British army for two years.
He was exchanged for a British naval officer and released, despite his having been a signer of the Declaration, which, technically, made him a traitor to the British crown. The offices he held were:
Continental Congress (1776-1778)
Colonel of the First Georgia Militia (1778)
Governor of Georgia (1779-1780)
United States. Congress (1780–1781)
Chief Justice of Georgia (1783-1789)
Governor of Georgia (1789-1790)
United States. Senator (1795-1796)
He died in Augusta, Georgia on February 2, 1804, at his home, College Hill, near Augusta. Walton County, which is about 30 miles east of the city of Atlanta, is named for him.
There are also at least two schools that bear his name.
George Walton Comprehensive High School in Marietta, Georgia and George Walton Academy, a private school in Monroe, Georgia.
Member Committee on Resolutions, Committee of Correspondence. Member group that called and organized Georgia Provincial Congress, Liberty Pole, 1775. Member Georgia Constitutional Convention of 1788.
Member United States Senate from Georgia, 1795.
February 20, 1796; member commission to locate Franklin College.
Married Dorothy Camber, 1775, 2 children.