Coffee County was created by act of the legislature on February 9, 1854, and was named for Gen. John Coffee, who served in the Indian Wars and was a member of Congress from 1833 to 1836. He built the Old Coffee Road, which forms part of the border between Berrien and Coffee Counties, to transport troops and supplies to Florida. Among the first county officers were Sheriff B.H. Tanner, Ordinary Thomas Mobley, Clerk of Superior and Inferior Courts Whittington Moore, Tax Receiver John W. Machet, Tax Collector James R. Smith, Coroner Sim Parker, and Surveyor Carver.