The Weems family stands as one of the most venerable lineages in Henry County, rooted in the Southern expanse of the county within the Luella district. Historical records attest to their prominence as both substantial landowners and slaveholders, their wealth predominantly amassed through the cultivation and exportation of cotton across the state.
The inaugural Weems settlers in Henry County were Samuel and Mary Weems, who migrated from South Carolina. They established their homestead on present-day Hampton-Locust Grove Road, and among their descendants, two notable figures emerged in my family research: Thomas Dixon and Samuel Rosamond Weems. These brothers, diligent in acquiring vast tracts of land, eventually came to possess half of what we now recognize as Luella by the mid-19th century. The other portion of Luella was primarily owned by the Pullin family, residing on the opposite side of the community. In contemporary terms, the entire Weems family estate commanded a staggering value of approximately $4 million.
Their financial prosperity rested heavily on the labor of enslaved individuals, positioning the Weems family among the foremost purchasers of enslaved people in Henry County, rivaled only by the Low family of McDonough. With this affluence, the family transcended into notoriety and significance, stepping into the realm of local politics. Samuel, the patriarch, undertook an unsuccessful bid for the state legislature in 1833 but later secured the role of justice of the peace with minimal opposition from locals. When the Civil War erupted in 1861, the Weems family funded the creation of a Henry County Regiment, known as "The Weems Guard," which played a pivotal role alongside the Zachry's Rangers of McDonough in constituting Henry County's fighting force during the conflict.
However, the intersection of family and wealth often begets conflicts. After Samuel's death in 1855, tensions among his children surfaced, culminating in a legal dispute over the disposition of land and other assets. The Georgia Supreme Court upheld the decision of the Henry County Superior Court, quashing any lingering legal disputes but leaving emotional wounds in its wake.
During Sherman's occupation of Henry County, the Weems family received forewarning of approaching troops. Thomas Dixon Weems, aware of General Sherman's affiliation with the Freemasons, strategically displayed the Square and Compass on a bedsheet hanging from the second-floor porch. The gesture, lore has it, spared the Weems family home from harm, though the gin houses and other external structures were not as fortunate.
Post-Civil War, the family faced the imperative to emancipate all enslaved individuals on their property, marking the end of their dominion over the Cotton Economy in Henry County. The Weems family, over time, relinquished extensive acreage to neighboring landholders and formerly enslaved individuals who had once toiled on the family estate. Today, remnants of the family estate persist in the form of slave cemeteries, the family burial ground, and the imposing house constructed by Thomas Dixon Weems.
