Major William Horton
Born in England
Came to Georgia in 1736
Died at Savannah in 1748
These are the remains of Hoton´s tabby house. Major Horton of Oglethorpe´s Regiment, the first English resident of Jekyll Island, erected on the north end of Jekyll a two-story dwelling and large barn. He cleared fields here for cultivation of crops which supplied the settlers at Frederica on St. Simons Island, a neighboring island, who would have suffered except for this assistance. Major Horton cut a road across the north end of Jekyll, running east and west, from this tabby house to the beach. This road is still known as the Horton Road.
Major Horton was a trusted officer chosen by James Oglethorpe for important missions. Upon Oglethorpe´s final return to England in 1743, Major Horton succeeded him as commander of the military forces of the Colony of Georgia
Poulain du Bignon, owner of Jekyll Island after the Revolutionary War, repaired the Horton tabby house and made it his home. As the du Bignon family grew, wooden wings were added to the house.
GHM 063-15 GEORGIA HISTORIAL COMMISSION 1956
Plaque courtesy Lat34North.com.
Original page, with additional info, here.
Photo credit: Byron Hooks of Lat34North.com.