Guess Collection - DeKalb County Court of Ordinary
Introduction: The Guess Collection consists of miscellaneous DeKalb County court documents over the period of 1844 to 1950. Included are tax records, land deeds, voter records, petitions, and various other documents.
Provenance:. In the early 1970’s, Judge William Marion Guess, Sr. placed these documents in the care of the DeKalb Historical Society. The Guess Collection is currently on loan from the DeKalb County Court of Ordinary. Judge Guess was a judge in DeKalb's Recorder’s Court from 1968 to 1976. He was also a mayor, city councilman, and city attorney for Stone Mountain. Judge Guess lived from 1907 to 1987.
Single photocopies may be made for research purposes. Citation should be as follows:
Description of specific item; Guess Collection, DeKalb Historical Society Archives.
Processed by Karrmen Currin, DHS intern, 1999.
Size: 5 document boxes
Description
The Guess Collection documents a century of life in DeKalb County through court documents, petitions, voter records, tax records, and other documents. The collection spans 1844 to 1950, with the majority of the items from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The collection consists of five boxes: Box 1, Miscellaneous Court Documents; Box 2, Petitions and Voter Records (Court of Ordinary); Box 3, Documents Relating to Land, Roads, and Animals; Box 4, Court Vouchers; and Box 5, Documents Relating to Taxes/Treasurer’s Records. Box 1 is divided into special areas of interest, including documents pertaining to women and children, African-Americans, the Confederacy, etc. Of particular interest is the 1862 bill of sale for a slave in Folder 2.
Box 2 contains mostly petitions for the levying of school taxes in the early twentieth century. Of particular interest are the signed petitions and lists of voters for each election. These documents are separated into DeKalb County districts. Box 3 contains original land deeds for DeKalb and Fulton Counties. These deeds often give detailed descriptions of land lots and are quite useful in tracing ownership of land. Box 4 contains court vouchers, including jurors’ receipts, pauper’s fund and jail fund receipts. Finally, Box 5 contains taxes and treasury records for DeKalb, including special receipts of John Steward, a wealthy Panthersville/Lithonia landowner, and J.A. Mason, a DeKalb County treasurer later prosecuted for mismanaged funds.
Additional notes concerning order and contents are written on some folders. Chronological order within category has been used whenever possible, and undated items usually precede dated ones.
Folder List
Box Folder Contents Date(s)
1 1 Documents Pertaining to Widows, Orphans, 1844-1929
and Children
2 Documents Pertaining to African-Americans ca. 1860-1926
3 Documents Pertaining to the Confederacy 1867-1903
4 Creation of Kirkwood Militia District 1900
5 Letters Excusing Roadhands from Work 1901-1902
6 Road Hands Lists 1901
7 Misc. Court Documents, DeKalb County 1866-1896
8 Misc. Court Documents, DeKalb County 1901-1950
9 Misc. Court Documents, Fulton County 1925-1938
10 Misc. Documents undated
2 1 Petitions and Voter Records, 1908-1935
Avondale (Ingleside)
2 Petitions and Voter Records, 1908
Caldwell School District
3 Petitions and Voter Records, 1909-1930
Chamblee, Dunwoody, Doraville
4 Petitions and Voter Records, 1920-1937
Clarkston, Rehobeth
5 Petitions and Voter Records, 1928-1933
Cross Keys
6 Petitions and Voter Records, 1920-1925
Decatur
7 Petitions and Voter Records, 1906-1923
East Atlanta, Kirkwood, McWilliams,
Oakhurst
8 Petitions and Voter Records, 1905-1907
East End
9 Petitions and Voter Records, 1912-1925
East Lake
10 Petitions and Voter Records, 1937-1938
Glen Haven
11 Petitions and Voter Records, 1920-1938
Lithonia
12 Petitions and Voter Records, 1920-1933
Mountain View
13 Petitions and Voter Records, 1909-1933
Redan
14 Petitions and Voter Records, 1927-1929
Southwest DeKalb
15 Petitions and Voter Records, 1920-1924
Stone Mountain
16 Petitions and Voter Records, 1909
Tucker
17 Petitions and Voter Records, 1918-1925
DeKalb County (general)
3 1 Misc. Original Deeds, DeKalb County 1848-1945
2 Misc. Original Deeds, Fulton County 1856-1921
3 Original Deeds for Lot 119, Clarkston 1892-1919
4 Original Deeds for Stone Mountain Lot 1897-1917
5 Petitions Concerning Obstructions of` 1873-1937
Roads and Lands
6 Original Estray (Animal) Records 1866-1928
4 1 Pauper’s Fund Receipts 1894-1896
2 Jury Vouchers, Court of Ordinary 1894-1897
3 Original Jurors’ Receipts, Superior Court 1895-1896
4 Common Fund Receipts 1895-1896
5 Jail Fund Receipts 1895-1896
6 Superior and Ordinary Court Jurors’ Receipts 1895-1896
7 Bridge Fund Receipts 1895-1897
5 1 Road Tax Record 1901
2 Tax Collector’s Receipts 1901
3 Tax Collector’s Receipts 1901
4 Documents Relating to J.A. Mason Case 1889-1896
5 Receipts, Taxes & Monies Collected, 1866-1891
John B. Steward
6 Insurance & Personal Bills, 1867-1891
John B. Steward
7 Misc. Documents and Receipts 1853-1934
