Jefferson Davis Memorial State Park

On the night of May 9, 1865, Jefferson Davis, traveling south with his family and a small escort to avoid Union cavalry trying to intercept him, reached the site of the present Jefferson Davis Memorial State Park, one mile north, and made camp. He did not know that the 1st Wisconsin Cavalry had discovered his passage in Dublin two days earlier and was in close pursuit, or that the 4th Michigan Cavalry had learned of his proximity in Abbeville earlier that day. The 1st Wisconsin camped well north to avoid discovery and prevent his escape under cover of darkness. During the night, members of the 4th Michigan learned the location of his camp by posing as members of his escort. Just before dawn, both regiments closed in, each unaware of the other's presence, and after an unfortunate collision in which two Michigan soldiers were killed, seized Davis and his party. Sponsored by the United Daughters of the Confederacy, the Annual Pilgrimage on June 3rd, the anniversary of Davis' birth, attracts hundreds of visitors to the park to honor the memory of the only President of the Confederate States of America.

Georgia · United States