By Brandon Hembree
There are at least two other communities in Georgia called Sugar Hill. Both have similar origin stories to our own city in Gwinnett County. One community is in Hall County, between Gainesville and Jefferson. It is listed on most modern maps, along with communities like Talmo and Pendergrass. The other Sugar Hill community is on the outskirts of Unadilla in Dooly County. The Sugar Hill Bed & Breakfast on Sugar Hill Road in Unadilla is a great place to stay if you are inclined to stray away from our own city. In modern times; however, there is only one official city in Georgia called Sugar Hill. It is our own city and it was incorporated by the General Assembly in 1939.
Long before our community became Sugar Hill, the area was referred to as the Sugar Hill Militia District. Up until around 1851, there was actually a significant settlement in the area called Orrsville. It is this community’s past that has been lost to the ages, but its history is important to know. The settlement was a key contributor to the development of this part of the county and Sugar Hill.
The early settlement of Orrsville was named after William Orr. Historical documents teach us that William was originally from Jackson County. He acquired land along the eastern side of the Chattahoochee River around 1832, as well as a ferry lot on the western side in 1833. William owned a mercantile that was located on the Gwinnett County side, close to where the modern-day bridge crosses into Forsyth County. The mercantile and ferry crossing were likely where the remnants of the old Strickland Bridge are and between Daves Creek and Richland Creek. Remains of the old bridge can still be seen when the water levels are low.
The exact location of the community has been hotly debated, with both Forsyth County and Gwinnett County claiming rights. Old maps dating to around 1839 clearly show it on the eastern side of the river. The settlement had a U.S. Postal Office, and because of this, it is thankfully identified on many old maps. The ferry crossing, important during its time, was commonly referred to as Orr’s Ferry and this likely contributed towards the settlement being named Orrsville. References to Orrsville can actually be found on maps dating up until 1874.
The history of Orrsville has been pieced together from various documents over the years, including a merchant’s daybook from 1836. The daybook is interesting because it gives clues to the size of the settlement and needs of the community. Even with months missing from the daybook, William had done business with nearly 200 customers at a value of over $4,000 in transactions. Items available to the customers ranged from saddles to gold pans. With Sugar Hill’s history of gold mining, the listed price of 75 cents would have been a bargain.
Many of the early settlers mentioned in William’s daybook would stay in the area and influence the creation of Sugar Hill. Even starting at the beginning of the alphabet, surnames documented in the daybook are recognizable in modern-day Sugar Hill. Surnames like Bagley, Bennett, Barker, and many others are common in our community today and can be found on grave markers in the Sugar Hill Baptist Church Cemetery.
No physical traces of Orrsville are known to exist, and amateur historians have tried to determine the exact location of the mercantile and settlement. Despite this lack of tangible evidence, the legacy of Orrsville is still very strong. Sugar Hill recently acquired nearly 70 acres near the Chattahoochee River. The property has been named the Retreat at Orr’s Ferry, paying homage to the pioneer settlement that sowed the seeds for the beginning of our own community called Sugar Hill.
