1785 George Walton Autograph Legal Opinion — Declaration of Independence Signer & Chief Justice of Georgia
Exceptional 1785 Manuscript Legal Opinion in the Hand of George Walton, Signer of the Declaration of Independence
An exceptionally important original manuscript document written and signed by George Walton (1749/50–1804), one of Georgia's three signers of the Declaration of Independence, while serving as Chief Justice of Georgia.
Dated December 16, 1785, this document concerns the controversial post-Revolutionary treatment of Malcolm Brown, the former secretary and aide to General Andrew Williamson, who had been placed under South Carolina's Act of Banishment and Confiscation.
According to the contemporary extract from the Georgia Council minutes, information had been received that Brown had arrived in Savannah from England aboard the ship Roman Emperor. The Council requested the opinion of the Chief Justice and Attorney General as to whether Georgia law authorized the Executive to take cognizance of the matter.
Walton responded in his own hand with a substantive legal opinion concerning the effect of South Carolina's banishment and confiscation legislation upon persons residing in Georgia. His opinion discusses the penalties imposed upon persons covered by such acts—including banishment and confiscation of property—and concludes that the matter was not merely cognizable by the Executive but constituted a particular duty of the Governor.
The document is signed “Geo Walton” at the conclusion of the opinion.
A Significant Revolutionary-Era Legal Document
George Walton was one of only three Georgians to sign the Declaration of Independence. During the Revolution he served in Congress and in the Georgia militia, was wounded and captured at the Battle of Savannah, and later became Governor of Georgia. Following the Revolution, he served as Chief Justice of Georgia, beginning in 1783.
This document dates from the earliest years of Georgia's post-Revolutionary judicial system and illustrates the unresolved legal problems surrounding Loyalists, confiscated property, banishment, and the authority of one state to act upon legislation originating in another.
The individual at the center of the controversy, Malcolm Brown, was associated with General Andrew Williamson, whose Revolutionary allegiance became deeply controversial. Brown himself remained subject to South Carolina's confiscation proceedings for years after the war.
The document therefore provides a remarkable primary-source window into the continuing political and legal consequences of the American Revolution.
Document Features
- George Walton (1749/50–1804) — signer of the Declaration of Independence
- Signed in his capacity as Chief Justice of Georgia
- December 16, 1785
- Entire legal opinion handwritten by Walton
- Contemporary extract from the Georgia Council minutes
- Concerns Malcolm Brown, Andrew Williamson's former secretary/aide
- Concerns South Carolina's Act of Banishment and Confiscation
- Directly addresses interstate legal authority and Loyalist property
- Original 18th-century paper
Condition: Very Good for an original 1785 manuscript. Period paper with original folds, light foxing and staining, minor edge wear and fold creasing. The manuscript remains remarkably legible, with the Walton handwriting and signature exceptionally well preserved.
Exceptional 1785 Manuscript Legal Opinion in the Hand of George Walton, Signer of the Declaration of Independence
An exceptionally important original manuscript document written and signed by George Walton (1749/50–1804), one of Georgia's three signers of the Declaration of Independence, while serving as Chief Justice of Georgia.
Dated December 16, 1785, this document concerns the controversial post-Revolutionary treatment of Malcolm Brown, the former secretary and aide to General Andrew Williamson, who had been placed under South Carolina's Act of Banishment and Confiscation.
According to the contemporary extract from the Georgia Council minutes, information had been received that Brown had arrived in Savannah from England aboard the ship Roman Emperor. The Council requested the opinion of the Chief Justice and Attorney General as to whether Georgia law authorized the Executive to take cognizance of the matter.
Walton responded in his own hand with a substantive legal opinion concerning the effect of South Carolina's banishment and confiscation legislation upon persons residing in Georgia. His opinion discusses the penalties imposed upon persons covered by such acts—including banishment and confiscation of property—and concludes that the matter was not merely cognizable by the Executive but constituted a particular duty of the Governor.
The document is signed “Geo Walton” at the conclusion of the opinion.
A Significant Revolutionary-Era Legal Document
George Walton was one of only three Georgians to sign the Declaration of Independence. During the Revolution he served in Congress and in the Georgia militia, was wounded and captured at the Battle of Savannah, and later became Governor of Georgia. Following the Revolution, he served as Chief Justice of Georgia, beginning in 1783.
This document dates from the earliest years of Georgia's post-Revolutionary judicial system and illustrates the unresolved legal problems surrounding Loyalists, confiscated property, banishment, and the authority of one state to act upon legislation originating in another.
The individual at the center of the controversy, Malcolm Brown, was associated with General Andrew Williamson, whose Revolutionary allegiance became deeply controversial. Brown himself remained subject to South Carolina's confiscation proceedings for years after the war.
The document therefore provides a remarkable primary-source window into the continuing political and legal consequences of the American Revolution.
Document Features
- George Walton (1749/50–1804) — signer of the Declaration of Independence
- Signed in his capacity as Chief Justice of Georgia
- December 16, 1785
- Entire legal opinion handwritten by Walton
- Contemporary extract from the Georgia Council minutes
- Concerns Malcolm Brown, Andrew Williamson's former secretary/aide
- Concerns South Carolina's Act of Banishment and Confiscation
- Directly addresses interstate legal authority and Loyalist property
- Original 18th-century paper
Condition: Very Good for an original 1785 manuscript. Period paper with original folds, light foxing and staining, minor edge wear and fold creasing. The manuscript remains remarkably legible, with the Walton handwriting and signature exceptionally well preserved.
