Godfrey was incorporated by the Georgia Legislature on July 25, 1906, but the community's roots reach much farther back. Local lore places the earliest geographic reference to a settlement there under the name Hamburg. By the early 1800s it was known as Antioch, after the original Antioch church built there around 1809, and by 1839 the area was known as Evansville, perhaps for a local academy that existed there. One of the earliest industries was a grist mill operated by the Walton family and known as Walton’s Mill, which was eventually destroyed by fire around 1950. Mary Perkins Walton, a descendant of the Walton family, married Dr. James Ervine Godfrey, a former Confederate surgeon. Through her family, Dr. and Mrs. Godfrey acquired land in the area and owned a plantation called Egypt, and for a time the community took that name as well. The community was later named for Dr. Godfrey around the time the post office opened in the late 19th century. By 1867, two Baptist churches and one Methodist church had been established, and the first school within the community was established in the early 1900s. At its economic peak, the town included eight stores, a bank, barber shop, livery stable, icehouse, cotton gin, warehouse, peach shed, railroad depot, post office, and Walton’s Mill. Godfrey depended on the Central of Georgia Railroad for passenger service, mail service, and the transportation of commodities. Though no longer incorporated, Godfrey remains a significant part of Morgan County history.