Background
Twiggs was born in Maryland in 1750, and his family moved to Saint George’s Parish in Georgia in 1751.
Twiggs was born in Maryland in 1750, and his family moved to Saint George’s Parish in Georgia in 1751.
Twiggs had six children with the most notable being American Civil War General David Emanuel Twiggs.Another son was United States Marine Corps Major Levi Twiggs. Twiggs served as a Lieutenant in a militia company raised in Saint Paul"s Parish (current-day Richmond County, Georgia), and he was promoted to Captain on June 3, 1774. He led a company that was commanded by Colonel Samuel Jack during the Revolution.
Twiggs was later promoted to Colonel, then Brigadier General (August 18, 1781), and finally Major General (September 8, 1791).
He was wounded in a battle in Camden, South Carolina. However, he continued to serve in the military after the Revolution.
Twiggs participated in the commission that selected the site for the University of Georgia in Athens, served as a trustee to that insitituion and contributed money for the building of the initial UGA Chapel on its campus. He was also appointed Justice of the Peace for Burke County, Georgia in 1782 and served as a state Senator from Richmond County in 1791.
Through a series of land purchases, Twiggs built Good Hope Plantation which stretched throughout Richmond County and into Aiken County, South Carolina.
He died at his plantation in 1816 and was buried there.