The earliest settlers from Tennessee that we have record of were the two Byrom brothers that came to this area when the area was a part of Mexico. The Byrom brothers were seeking a location as they traveled to the area in their cowboy clothes. They went out to the area that is known as Throckmorton today, but didn’t like what they saw further out west, and found their way back to where the sandy loamy soil of the area that was soon to become Onega.

The settlers of DahlOnega, Georgia were driven out of that area which possessed a large gold mine from which the Cherokees had recently harvested 6 million dollars in gold by the currency standard of that day. The Cherokees didn’t want to give up their land, because they had built nice fine homes and barns and were making progress with raising their families and building towns and churches.

The federal government issued the order to all Native Americans (regardless of age or social status) of the DahlOnega region of Georgia and other points in the Cherokee Nation to move west of the Mississippi River or face death by firing squad. This order pertained to children as well.

My grandfather, Wood Goin’s grandmother, Eliza Wood Williams was forced to leave her job where she was teaching the Cherokee prisoners in the Cherokee prison system in Milleadgville, Georgia. The prisoners were taught photography and other vocational subjects.

I am not sure if she was blind when the removal order was issued, but I do know that she was totally blind when she arrived and settled on what we now call Black Jack Road. My grandfather was born in Mileadgville, Georgia on November 18, 1870 to Eliza Wood Goin. His grandmother was born on January 17, 1807 in Mileadgville, Georgia as well.

At some point in time from her birth and the Civil War, they were a part of the group of Native Americans that were forced to leave their homes and move and begin settling in the Onega Black Jack community.

Among other families that were arriving in the Black Jack community were the Williams, Slatons, Wilsons, Plunks, Belews, Hollars and Rogers. The Plunks occupied the area north of Black Jack Road about ½ mile while the Williams owned the area to the extreme west end of Black Jack Road and then on to the east end of Black Jack is where Sanford Slaton lived and what later became the Merry Land Farm in the 1930's.

During the 1850's, a few businesses began locating a couple of blocks east of the current downtown area. Those businesses included a blacksmith shop, a few small structures of wood construction, a small early day drug store.

It was discovered that a few small ventures were not on land that was secured by a deed and suddenly the few early day structures were deliberately set a blaze and the town experienced its first disaster. Many disasters have occurred in the Onega area until it successfully swapped its Indian name and acquired another name that was pulled out of a hat in the 1880's after the railroad came through.

The photo was provided by Edith Perle Simpson. It is of the early day Drug Store that was owned by Paul Holmes. Edith Perle didn’t have all of the people in the photo identified. She knew that the person on the far left was Dr. Bates. She doesn’t know the next two. Her Dad, Clyde Simpson was behind the counter and the man to the far right is Paul Holmes.

She explained that her Dad was working in the Holmes Drug Store before he acquired the store and with some extensive restructuring, the business then became the Clyde Simpson Drug Store. The exact year is not known but it is thought to be in the early 20's.

One of my 84-year-old customers thinks that the person next to Dr. Bates is a Henderson and the next unknown is thought to be A.G. Ferguson. If perhaps we find that this is in error, we will make the proper identification and make the necessary corrections and publish again.