Mike McKinney (militiaman)
Michael McKinney | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 18, 1840 Monroe County, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Died | August 9, 1925 (aged 84) Blue Ridge, Georgia, U.S. |
| Allegiance | Confederacy |
| Branch | Georgia Militia |
| Rank | Colonel |
| Battles / wars | American Civil War |
| Spouse(s) | Hepsy Adeline McClure |
| Children | 11 |
| Relations | Carol M. Highsmith (great-granddaughter) |
Colonel Michael McKinney (October 1, 1840 – August 9, 1925) was an American businessman, a militiaman in the American Civil War, and the founder of Blue Ridge, Georgia. He established the town in 1877 when he built the first store and dwelling.[1]
Biography
McKinney was born on October 18, 1840,[2] in Monroe County, Tennessee, to James Isaac McKinney and Sarah Hawkins McKinney.
He was in the Georgia Militia during the American Civil War.
On April 2, 1861, he married Hepsy Adeline McClure. They had eleven children.[1]
McKinney was a pioneer railroad man and helped get the Marietta and North Georgia Railroad to pass through Blue Ridge, Georgia.[3]
In 1877, McKinney built the first store and dwelling in what became Blue Ridge, Georgia, becoming the first citizen of the future town.[1][2] He built his home, the Colonel Michael McKinney House, in what is now the downtown of the city.[4]
He died in Blue Ridge on August 9, 1925.[5] A funeral was held at First Baptist Church in Blue Ridge and all stores in the town were closed in mourning. At the time of his death he was survived by 98 grandchildren and great-grandchildren.[1] He was buried in the McKinney Cemetery in Fannin County.
References
- ^ a b c d "Obituary for Colonel Mike McKinney (Aged 83)". The Atlanta Constitution. August 11, 1925. p. 4. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
- ^ a b Highsmith, Carol M. (2017). "Gravestone in Blue Ridge of Col. Michael McKinney and his wife, Hepsy Adaline McClure McKinney, (identified here as just "A McKinney"), founders of the community in far-northwest Georgia, near the Tennessee line". Retrieved February 5, 2025.
- ^ "Escape to Blue Ridge". Escape to Blue Ridge. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
- ^ Highsmith, Carol M. (2017). "In the mountains of northern Georgia in a settlement called Chestnut Gap, this is the home built for Col. Michael McKinney and his wife, Hepsy Adaline McClure McKinney, founders of the city of Blue Ridge in far-northwest Georgia, near the Tennessee line". Retrieved February 5, 2025.
- ^ In Memoriam -- Col. Mike McKinney & Hepsy Adeline McClure. September 1937.