Birthplace of Benjamin Harvey Hill 1 mile
Jasper County, Jasper County, Georgia
Marker Inscription
Birthplace of Benjamin Harvey Hill 1 mile. Senator Benjamin Harvey Hill (1823-1882), first to proclaim the New South industrial rather than agricultural, was born one mile from here. When he was 12 years old his father, John Hill, moved with his family to Long Cane, Troup County. Sen. Hill, opposing secession, became one of the leaders of the Confederacy and was considered the ablest supporter of President Jefferson Davis. A silver-tongued orator, he was instrumental in the removal of Federal troops from the South after the war. The Hill home has been reclaimed. This town, Hillsboro, was named for Isaac Hill, pioneer settler. 079-3 GEORGIA HISTORICAL COMMISSION 1957
Erected by Georgia Historical Commission
The Story
A mile from this spot in 1823, Jasper County produced Benjamin Harvey Hill, a lawyer whose silver tongue would carry him into the U.S. Senate and the front rank of Confederate politics. Though he had argued against secession, Hill became one of Jefferson Davis's ablest defenders, and after the war he pressed for the withdrawal of Federal troops from the South. He is remembered as an early voice for a "New South" built on industry rather than cotton alone.
Why it matters
Hill embodies the wrenching choices of the Civil War generation and the fitful, contested effort to imagine a Southern economy beyond the plantation.
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Related people
- · Benjamin Harvey Hill
- · Jefferson Davis
- · John Hill
- · Isaac Hill
Themes & tags
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