"The Point," eight miles east of here, was where early settlers crossed into Georgia. After this area was ceded, Governor Wright opened a post at the confluence of the Broad and Savannah Rivers called Fort James. "The Point" became the gateway for settlers from Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina, who registered there and secured their tracts of land. A land court at Dartmouth, which grew up around the fort, was held from September 1773 through June 1775 to open this section. In 1777, all this ceded land was created into Wilkes County by the state constitution.