Key Facts

Snapshot:	farmer
Parents:	32Russell Knight 33Elizabeth Price
Born:	13 June 1870 Riddleville, Washington County, Georgia
Died:	27 February 1947 Samoset, Manatee County, Florida
Buried:	Midway Church cemetery, Treutlen County, Georgia Coordinates: N32.44111 W82.58975

16George Washington Knight was born on 13 June 18701 in Riddleville,2 Washington County,3 Georgia to parents 32Russell Knight4 and 33Elizabeth Price.*

The 1880 census shows 16George with his family:4

1880: 16George's family in militia district 1253 (map), Washington County, Georgia. Full page.4

16George married his first cousin 17Alice Knight in Washington County on 29 July 1894.5 At the time, 16George was 24, and 17Alice was about 18.

1894: 16George's and 17Alice's marriage certificate. Full page.5
(17Alice's name is incorrectly written as "Addis.")

By 1900 16George had moved his family a miles southeast of Riddleville to militia district 1384 (map).6 Their oldest son, "Sun" (The 1910 census clarifies that his name was actually John.7), was supposedly born in April 1894,6 even though 16George and 17Alice didn't marry until July 1894.5 A premarital birth is possible, but a mistake on the census form seems much more likely.

1900: 16George's family in militia district 1384 (map), Washington County, Georgia. Full page.6

By 1910, they had moved to Montgomery County.7 Their youngest son George Lee makes his first appearance in this census; today he is buried beside his parents at the Midway Church cemetery in Treutlen County.

1910: 16George's family in Orland, Montgomery County, Georgia. Full page.7

By 1920, two children had moved away.8

1920: 16George's family still in Orland. Full page.8

16George's wife 17Alice died in January 1930.9 By the time the 1930 census was taken a few months later, 16George had moved in with his daughter Ella, who had meanwhile married a man named Lewis Davis, although I've been unable to find their marriage certificate. Ella's younger brother George Lee Knight was living with them, too.10

1930: 16George living in the home of his daughter Ella in Orland, militia district 1687 (map), Treutlen County, Georgia. Full page.10

16George moved to Florida in 1939 or so.3 The 1940 census shows him living with his grandson Ottis Knight at 1415 Third Avenue, Manatee, Manatee County, Florida.11 (Ottis is the son of 16George's oldest son John Knight.12,13) The corresponding modern address would be 1415 Third Avenue East, Bradenton, Manatee County, Florida, but no such address exists. (The Manatee County Property Assessor recognizes lots at 1414 and 1416 Third Avenue East,14 but not at 1415. Perhaps the 1415 lot was "absorbed" into an adjacent lot.) The census notes that he was 72 years old, unable to work, and had completed through the third grade.11

1940: 16George living with his grandson in Manatee County, Florida. Full pages: 1, 2.11

16George was still living with his grandson in Florida in 1945. Consistent with the 1940 census, this census describes him as "unable [to] work" and that he'd completed the third grade.15

1945: 16George still living with his grandson in Florida. Full page.15

16George died of a heart attack in Manatee County, Florida on 27 February 1947 at age 77.1

16George's death certificate1

His remains were sent back to Georgia and buried at the Midway Church Cemetery in Treutlen County. His grave is at coordinates N32.44111 W82.58975.16

16George's grave at Midway Church Cemetery, Treutlen County, Georgia16

As one may notice from the above photograph, the groundstone bears no inscription, and the headstone (as well as the headstone for his wife 17Alice) seems comparatively modern. I later learned that their grandson Billy Knight (son of 8Bryant), wanting to ensure that his grandparents' graves were properly identified and remembered, commissioned headstones and had them placed at the graves decades after their deaths. Unfortunately, Billy was unable to remember/distinguish 16George's grave from 17Alice's, so the headstones' locations may actually be inverted.17

His obituary was published in The Soperton News a few days later:3

Footnote:

*

32Russell Knight married his wife 33Elizabeth Price in 1856,18 and the census shows that they were still married in 1880.4 Since 16George was born in 1870,1 33Elizabeth is very likely his mother. (However, there are some odd patterns apparent in 32Russell's family's earlier census listings. Those oddities are discussed in his profile.)

Sources Cited:

1: Manatee County, Florida death certificate 3765 for George Washington Knight. Obtained from the Bureau of Vital Statistics, Florida Department of Health on 14 June 2013.

2: World War One Draft Registration Cards. Bryant Knight, born 18 June 1896, Harrison Station, Georgia. NARA microfilm publication 1509. FamilySearch, <https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/KZZN-N1V>, accessed 1 April 2012.

3: "Last Rites for George Knight Sunday," The Soperton News (Soperton, Georgia), Thursday 6 March 1947

4: 1880 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). Militia district 1253, Washington County, Georgia. Enumeration district 138, page 384, dwelling 143, family 143, Russell Knight household. NARA microfilm publication T9, roll 171. Internet Archive, <https://archive.org/stream/10thcensus0171unit#page/n149/mode/1up>, accessed 9 October 2021.

5: Washington County, Georgia. Marriage book G (1890-1895), page 508, marriage of George Knight and Addis Knight. FamilySearch, <https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/KXVQ-KG3>, accessed 17 April 2013.

6: 1900 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). Militia district 1384, Washington County, Georgia. Enumeration district 97, sheet 6, dwelling 124, family 124, George Knight household. NARA microfilm publication T623, roll 228. Internet Archive, <https://archive.org/stream/12thcensusofpopu228unit#page/n478/mode/1up>, accessed 29 April 2014.

7: 1910 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). Orland, Montgomery County, Georgia. Enumeration district 138, sheet 4B, dwelling 68, family 68, George W. Knight household. NARA microfilm publication T624, roll 201. Internet Archive, <http://archive.org/stream/13thcensus1910po201unit#page/n280/mode/1up>, accessed 4 May 2013.

8: 1920 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). Orland, Treutlen County, Georgia. Enumeration district 126, sheet 17B, family 211, George Knight household. NARA microfilm publication T625, roll 280. Internet Archive, <http://archive.org/stream/14thcensusofpopu280unit#page/n1138/mode/1up>, accessed 4 May 2013.

9: Treutlen County, Georgia death certificate 2241 for Allice Knight. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3GX-DXZW-2?i=198&cc=1385727>, accessed 26 July 2019.

10: 1930 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). Orland, militia district 1687, Treutlen County, Georgia. Enumeration district 142-4, sheet 7A, dwelling 129, family 132, Lewis Davis household. NARA microfilm publication T626, roll 388. Internet Archive, <http://archive.org/stream/georgiacensus00reel388#page/n673/mode/1up>, accessed 22 May 2013.

11: 1940 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). Manatee, Manatee County, Florida. Enumeration district 41-9, sheets 13A and 13B, household 249, Ottis Knight household. NARA microfilm publication T627, roll 599. Ancestry.com, accessed 25 May 2013. The images are also available on Familysearch.org: Sheet 13A is at <https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-1961-27768-7210-6?cc=2000219&wc=MRY6-4HD:790105401,796351801,796383001,952054901>, and 13B is at <https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-1961-27768-7354-51?cc=2000219&wc=MRY6-4HD:790105401,796351801,796383001,952054901>.

12: 1920 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). Orland, Treutlen County, Georgia. Enumeration district 126, sheet 10A, family 121, John Knight household. NARA microfilm publication T625, roll 280. Internet Archive, <http://archive.org/stream/14thcensusofpopu280unit#page/n1138/mode/1up>, accessed 10 October 2021.

13: 1930 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). Soperton, Treutlen County, Georgia. Enumeration district 3, sheet 1B, dwelling 13, family 13, John Knight household. NARA microfilm publication T626, roll 388. Internet Archive, <http://archive.org/stream/georgiacensus00reel388#page/n673/mode/1up>, accessed 10 October 2021.

14: Manatee County, Florida. Manatee County Property Assessor, profiles for parcels 3198900309 (1414 3rd Ave E) and 3198900359 (1416 3rd Ave E). , accessed 26 May 2013.

15: 1945 Florida State Census. Samoset, Manatee County, Florida. Precinct 26, page 3, lines 1-4, Ottis Knight household. Florida State Archives microfilm series S1371, roll 27 (FHL microfilm 2425197). FamilySearch, <https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-266-11776-9695-35?cc=1457855>, accessed 29 April 2014.

16: Tombstone of George W. Knight, Midway Church Cemetery, Treutlen County, Georgia at coordinates N32.44111 W82.58975. Photograph taken by 1Bryant Knight, 12 June 2009.

17: Interview with Billy Knight (son of 16George), 27 December 2014. A partial transcription of the interview is available.

18: Washington County, Georgia. Marriage book B (1852-1860), page 275, marriage of Russell W. Knight and Elizabeth Price. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-LBZ6-WYR?i=376&cc=1927197&cat=287695>, accessed 10 October 2021.