LOTTERY GRANTS
TO
REVOLUTIONARY VETERANS
COMPILED BY ALEX M. HITZ

Following the fiasco of the bounty grants of 1784, the State of
Georgia did nothing for its veterans of the War of the Revolution
until 1818. It will be recalled that bounty grants had been given to
many more noncombatant citizens than to soldiers of the Continental
Line, Georgia Line and Georgia militia , and that soldiers of the line
had received less land than the citizens or militia .
Thirty-five years after the signing of the Treaty of Paris , a
limited class of Revolutionary veterans was given a preference under
the Act of December 15 1818, which set up the Third Land Lottery of
1820. In this Land Lottery, as also in the later ones, every bache-
lor with three years residence in Georgia was allowed one draw and
every married man with like residence w a s allowed two draws. If such
bachelor or married man was an invalid or indigent veteran of the War
of the Revolution, he was allowed two additional draws. His military
record was not limited to service in or under the State of Georgia;
nor was the previous receipt of a bounty grant any bar. When entering
his name for two veteran's draws in the Land Lottery, the applicant
was required to take the following oath, in addition to the oath as
to three years residence, namely
"I (A. B.) do further swear that I was an officer
or soldier (as the case may be) during the Revolu-
tionary War, that I was engaged in the service of
the United States , and that I am an invalid or
indigent officer or soldier (as the case may be) of
the Revolutionary War".
Belated recognition of the services of all Revolutionary vete-
rans was made by the Act of June 9 1825, establishing the Fifth Land
Lottery of 1827. Every veteran with three years residence in Georgia
was allowed three draws if unmarried or four draws if married, regard-
less of where he had enlisted or in what regiment he had fought. The
two additional draws, less any fortunate draw in the Third Land Lot-
tery , were available to every veteran who could take the following
prescribed oath before the registering officials , namely:
"I do solemnly swear ( or affirm) that I served as
a soldier In the armies of the United States during
the Revolutionary War a tour or tours of duty, and
am entitled to a draw or draws according to the pro-
visions of this Act; so help me God".
Exactly the same preference was Given to all Revolutionary
veterans by the Act of December 21 1830, setting up the Sixth (Chero-
kee) Land Lottery of 1832. Service in the United States armies was
the criterion - the State of enlistment and place of service was not
material . However, a veteran was denied any additional draws if he
had drawn two Land Lots (as a veteran) in the Land Lotteries of 1820
and 1827, and he was allowed only one additional draw if he had pre-
viously drawn one Land Lot. At the time of entering his name he was
required to take the following oath , namely:
"I do solemnly swear ( or affirm ) t h a t I served as
a soldier in the armies of the United States during
the Revolutionary War a tour or tours of duty, and
that I did not any time during the said war bear arms
or act as a spy or emissary against t h e United States ,
or in any manner aid or abet the enemy thereof , and am
entitled to a draw or draws according to the provisions
of this Act, so help me God.
Inasmueh as every person claiming Revolutionary service was
required to swear to his claim before fit and proper persons appoin-
ted for that purpose by t h e Inferior Court of the county of his residence,
and inasmuch as those neighbors would know the truth or falsity
of every claim, there can be but little doubt that every man styled
or identified as "Rev. Sol." or "Rev. So" or R. Sol." or " R e S."
on the Land Lottery lists and records was actually a veteran and
former soldier of the United States army in the war of the American
Revolution .
The following list includes all of those veterans (2069 in
number) who were "fortunate drawers" in the Third (1820), Fifth
(1827) and Sixth (1832) Land Lotteries. The spelling of first and
last names has been carefully checked against three original official
sources. Whenever a name did not appear exactly the same in all three
places, those spellings which were in agreement have been accepted
as the veteran's correct name. The name of a county following a vete-
ran's name shows his residence as of the date of the indicated Land
Lottery.
The office of the Secretary of State does not have, in either
the Surveyor General Department or the Department of Archives and
Hfstory, any record of other Revolutionary veterans who may have en-
tered their names for draws but were not "fortunate drawers".
Revolutionary veterans did not receive any preference, nor
were they designated as such, in the First (1805), Second (1807) or
Fourth (1821) Land Lotteries.
Under the words "Fortunate Draw' the first column indicates
the Land Lot number and the second column indicates the District
number and the occasional number found in the third column indicates
the Section.