Austin Dabney
Austin Dabney lived from 1765-1830. He was born in Wake County, North Carolina, in the 1760’s. His parents are unknown. He was a mulatto slave which meant he had a black and white ancestry. He was owned by Richard Aycock. In the late 1770’s he moved with Aycock to Wilkes County, Georgia. Soon afterward the Georgia militia was called for the American Revolution war. Aycock did not want to join, so he sent Austin as a substitute. At first they did not let him in, saying he was a slave, but Aycock claimed he was a free slave. Dabney became an artilleryman under Elijah Clarke. He proved himself to be a good soldier. He was with Elijah Clarke, during the battle of Kettle Creek. He was known to be the only black soldier to fight in that battle, which took place in Washington on February 14, 1779. In The battle of Kettle Creek he got shot in the thigh while saving Elijah Clarke and was crippled for life. That is why he was considered a hero in the American Revolution. After Dabney got shot, a white soldier named Giles Harris took him home and cared for him until he recovered. Austin Dabney never forgot their kindness and a close bond formed between Dabney and the Harris family. On August 14, 1786, after the death of Richard Aycock, the legislature of the state of Georgia officially liberated Dabney from Aycock, by giving 70 pounds to Aycock’s descendents.
Because of his military service during the war, he was granted 50 acres in Washington County, which also made him the only African American to be granted land by Georgia. He also received a state pension, which is a regular payment after one’s retirement from an invested fund, to which that person has contributed during their life. The pension started at $60 a year in 1789, but rose to $96 a year in 1816. Dabney lived a prosperous life. After Harris’s family helped him recover after he got shot in the thigh, he became indebted to them, and worked for them for the rest of his life. Dabney also paid for William Harris, Giles’s son, to attend Franklin College, which is now called the University of Georgia. He continued to support William while he studied for the bar with Georgia attorney Stephan Upson and throughout his studies in Athens. Although Dabney was now a freed slave and a war veteran, his race prevented him from participating in any land lotteries in the early 1800’s.
Now a state legislator, Upson supported Dabney and provided for a resolution to provide him with land not distributed in 1819. After some time Dabney received 112 acres of land in Walton County in 1821. Some people in Madison County did not think that blacks and whites should be treated equally (at least in land allocations), so when Dabney received 112 acres of land, unrest began to spread. They were highly incensed that a mulatto Negro, could own land that belonged to freemen. Even after Dabney received the land, he still worked and helped the Harris family. In the year 18, he moved to Madison County, taking with him his benefactor and family. In Madison County, he became for his great fondness for horses and the turf. His good temper and courteous behavior changed some attitudes toward him. Dabney died in 1830 at Zebulon, only 9 years after he received 112 acres of land. He left all his money and property to the Harris family after his death. In return the Harris family buried him in the family plot at Pike County. 5 years after Austin Dabney’s death in 1835, William Harris named his son Austin Dabney Harris, in Dabney’s honor. In February of 1998 U.S. senator Max Cleland of Georgia, honored Dabney on the on the senate floor for his was service and close relationship with the Harris family.
The descendents of the Harris family still live on the land where Austin Dabney and William Harris are buried today, at Zebulon, at Pikes County. Many things were written about Austin Dabney in the past years. Some of the Authors include Carl E. Scott (Georgia black revolutionary patriot) and Michael Thurmond. Though Austin Dabney is with us no more, his legacy lives on in our hearts.