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1827 Georgia Land Lottery

Georgia Land Lotteries

Georgia distributed public lands by lotteries open to all citizens of the state, with special consideration given to Revolutionary War veterans in the 1820, 1827, and 1832 lotteries. Although all the land lottery lists are extremely valuable as finding aids, the 1805 lottery list is notable because it is the only complete list of all entrants; the other lists include only fortunate drawers. Each lottery distributed different lands, and had similar, but differing rules of eligibility.

Seven times between 1805 and 1832 Georgia used a lottery system to distribute the land taken from the Cherokee or Creek Indians. These lotteries were unique to the state; no other state used a lottery system to distribute land. Lot size varied widely, even in the individual lotteries. The largest lots distributed were 490 acres in the 1805 and the 1820 land lottery. The smallest lots were the 40-acre gold lots distributed during the Gold Lottery of 1832.

Many people, including the state of Georgia, combine the Land Lottery of 1832 and the Gold Lottery of 1832 and represent it as a single lottery; however, both the enabling legislation and the drawings themselves were independent, hence there were seven lotteries, not six.

Prior to 1803 Georgia distributed land via a headright system. Designed to prohibit corruption, the system actually encouraged it. During early administrations the government abused this system and created what today is generally known as the Yazoo Land Fraud. These abuses led to the adoption of the lottery system in May, 1803 under governor John Milledge. The first lottery under the new system occurred in 1805.

Almost ³/₄ of the land in present-day Georgia was distributed under this lottery system. During the 27 years that land was distributed under the system the rules and the methods of the lottery remained virtually unchanged. Applicants could be white males over 18 (or 21 depending on the lottery), orphans, or widows. Fees depended on the lottery and the size of the lot won, but in general they only covered the cost of running the lottery. The state did not profit from allocating these lands. Fractional lots were sold in each of the lotteries and some lands, especially those near major rivers, was exempt from the lottery. These were distributed by the state using alternate, frequently corrupt, methods.

George Parrish, Jr.
Georgia Archives

For each person subscribing to a lottery a ticket was placed in the barrel. Since each lottery was over-subscribed, blank tickets were added to compensate for the over-subscription. According to the state archives, no record remains of the people who drew the blank tickets after the 1805 lottery.

1827 Land Lottery

See land Lottery Winners

Participants had to be citizens of the United States and residents of the State of Georgia for the three years immediately preceding the Act of 1 January 1827. Previous winners, with exceptions noted below, were prohibited from participating. Any person who refused to serve in the military forces after volunteering, or having been drafted, or was a deserter, was prohibited from participating. Any person who left the State of Georgia to escape the laws of the state, to avoid paying debts, or who had not paid all their taxes was prohibited from participating. Convicts in a penitentiary could not apply for draws, but their children were treated as if they were orphans. In addition, participants had to meet one of the following eligibility requirements.

Free white male, 18 or over, one draw.
Free white male, 18 or over, with a wife, or a legitimate male child aged under 18, two draws.
Widow, one draw.
Family of orphans aged under 18, father deceased, one draw.
Family of more than three orphans, both parents deceased, two draws, to be applied for in the county of residence of the eldest orphan.
Family of one or two orphans, both parents deceased, one draw, to be applied for in the county of residence of the elder orphan.
Every male or unmarried female aged 10 or over but under 18 and an idiot, a lunatic, insane, blind, or deaf, one draw, to be applied for by their legal guardian.

Additional draws were available for those who qualified in the following categories.

Widow, husband killed or died in service or on a return march in the wars against Great Britain or the Indians, one extra draw.
Orphan, father killed or died in service or on a return march in the wars against Great Britain or the Indians, one extra draw.
Every man disabled in the wars with Great Britain or the Indians, one extra draw.

Special Exceptions

Every Revolutionary War veteran who had not drawn a lot for his service in the previous lottery, regardless of other successful draws, two extra draws.
Every Revolutionary War veteran who had drawn a lot for his service in the previous lottery, regardless of other successful draws, one extra draw.
Widow of a Revolutionary War veteran, one extra draw.
Every person who had previously won as an orphan, and was 18 or older on 1 January 1827, one extra draw.
All persons who had previously won as orphans, and were under 18 on 1 January 1827, as a family of orphans, one extra draw.
Children of convicts and illegitimate children were treated as orphans.
The wife or children of any man who was absent from Georgia for 3 or more years were treated as a widow and orphans, and any lots won were vested in them as those the absent husband were deceased.
Any man who served in his own right (not as a substitute) for a 3-month tour of duty during the “previous” war with Great Britain or the Indians, one extra draw.

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