County of WM: Paulding County
Location of courthouse: W. Memorial Dr. & Main St., Dallas
Elevation: 1,043'
Population: 12,415 (2013)
The Person: John Paulding:
Birthdate: October 16, 1758
Birthplace: Peekskill, Westchester County, New York
Death: February 18, 1818 (59) Westchester County, New York, United States
Place of Burial: Peekskill, Westchester County, New York, United States
Immediate Family: Son of Joost Paulding and Sarah Paulding
Husband of: Sarah Paulding; Hester Paulding - Sirrine and Esther Paulding
"John Paulding (October 16, 1758 – February 18, 1818) was an American militiaman from the state of New York during the American Revolution. In 1780, he was one of three men who captured Major John André, a British spy associated with the treason of Continental general and commandant of West Point Benedict Arnold. Andre was convicted and hanged.
"While visiting his future wife, Sarah Tidd, Paulding was captured by Tories, or Loyalists, led by his future brother-in-law. He was held in the notorious "Sugar House" prison in New York City in 1780, then occupied by British forces. He escaped by jumping from a window. He went to the livery stable of a friend and acquired a German military Jäger or Hessian coat, green with red trim, associated with the British mercenaries, which he wore to evade notice.
"As part of an armed patrol in Westchester County, with fellow militiamen David Williams and Isaac Van Wart, Paulding seized British Major John André, who had left Benedict Arnold after discussing the latter's defection to the British and betrayal of the patriots. This site is now commemorated as Patriot's Park in Tarrytown, New York. André, seeing Paulding's Hessian coat, may have assumed him to be a member of the "cowboys," or pro-British marauders who raided the Neutral Ground for cattle and supplies. Searching André for valuables, they discovered documents of his secret communication with Benedict Arnold. The militiamen, all local yeomen farmers, refused André's attempt to bribe them, and delivered the officer to the Continental Army. Arnold's plans to surrender West Point to the British were revealed and foiled, and André was convicted and hanged as a spy. With George Washington's personal recommendation, the United States Congress awarded Paulding, Williams, and Van Wart the first military decoration of the United States, the silver medal known as the Fidelity Medallion. Each of the three also received federal pensions of $200 a year. New York State granted them each lands for farms.
"The celebrated trio were commemorated far and wide as popular heroes after the patriots won the war. By an act of Congress, the new state of Ohio (1803) included the counties named Paulding, Van Wert (anglicized spelling), and Williams. Paulding was held in particularly high regard by early American historians, as the standard 19th-century accounts credited him with the decision-making and initiative at the scene.
"Though hailed as national heroes, Paulding and the others also received criticism. The divisions in society continued after the war. At his trial André insisted the men were mere brigands; sympathy for him remained among some more elite American quarters, which included some Loyalists. (André's reputation was high in England, where his body was returned and he was buried in Westminster Abbey). Representative Benjamin Tallmadge of Connecticut, who had been present as an American officer in Westchester County in 1780 and had a low opinion of the three militiamen, had accepted André's account of his capture and search. Tallmadge persuaded Congress to reject a requested pension increase in 1817 for the men. He assailed their credibility and motivations.
"Despite this slight, the men's popular acclaim generally increased throughout the 19th century, although opinion on their motives and actions remained divided. Some modern scholars have interpreted the episode as a major event in early American cultural development, representing the apotheosis of the "common man" in the new democratic society." ~ Wikipedia
The County:
"Paulding County was founded on December 3, 1832 as Georgia’s 89th county. Paulding County is named after John K. Paulding, a Revolutionary War hero, who captured the British spy Major John André. Major André was an accomplice to Benedict Arnold in the attempted surrender of the fort in West Point, New York to the British Army.
"Van Wert became the county seat. Van Wert was named after Issac Van Wert, another Revolutionary War solider who participated in the capture Major John André. In the Gold Lottery of 1832, Paulding County was seperated into forty-acre “gold lots”. People came from other parts of Georgia and other states to seek gold; however, many were not successful. Some of the immigrants remained in the county for agricultural purposes thus farming became the main occupation for Paulding County. Primary crops grown in Paulding County were cotton, corn, wheat, and tobacco.
"Although the Removal Act was passed in 1830, most Cherokee Indian tribes that had inhabited much of Georgia did not leave Paulding County until 1838 on the Trail of Tears.
"Between 1832 and 1874, parts of Paulding were annexed into Carroll, Cobb, Polk and Douglas counties. On December 20, 1851, a section of Paulding was used to form Polk County and the county seat of Van Wert was included in Polk County. Dallas became Paulding Countys new seat in 1851. Dallas is named after George Mifflin Dallas, Vice President of the United States under James Polk. On May 14, 1852, Dallas was founded on land deeded from Garrett H. Spinks and became incorporated in 1854. Paulding County has two other incorporated cities, Hiram and Braswell" ~ Paulding County History
Marker at Courthouse:
PAULDING COUNTY
"Created December 3, 1832, and named for
John Paulding, one of the captors of
Major Andre, accomplice of Benedict Arnold.
Van Wert, the first county seat,
was named for another of the captors.
When Polk County was created in 1851,
Dallas became the Paulding county seat.
"Construction of the Seaboard and Southern
Railroads through the county, and introduction of the textile industry, were of
much importance to county growth.
"In 1864 major battles were fought at New
Hope and Dallas." ~ Georgia Historical Commission, 1953