Rainwater Ford? –I wanna go there!

 Joshua Rainwater was my third great grandfather. Born the 13th of November 1791 in South Carolina, Joshua was the seventh child of eleven born to Solomon Rainwater and Ruth Felton. I have enjoyed learning about Joshua and have appreciated the fact that he has been a little easier to research than some ancestors. He apparently had some money and appears to have been at least a little more educated than some and that has made all the difference. I am going to take a couple of posts to share some of what I have learned about him.  While technically I should probably start at the beginning,  I’ve decided instead to share something fun about him, just because.

On page 222 in  “Haralson County, A History” by Lois Owens Newman I found an interesting write up about Joshua. Included in the article about him is the following information :

 “The Rainwater property, lot 157 lies along the Tallapoosa River and it is on this lot that the well known Rainwater Ford is located.  The Ford is still in use. (1990.)” 

I was able to locate a deed that confirmed that Land Lot 157 did indeed belong to Joshua. In 1832, he purchased Land Lot #157 in the 8th District from Abner Carter for $100.00.  Joshua’s property consisted of 202 1/2 acres and was then located in Carroll County, but due to county line changes, that property is now in Haralson County.

What a fun discovery!  I was able to locate the Rainwater Ford on the following map on the University of Texas Libraries website, “Perry-Casteneda Library Map Collection”   found under “Georgia Historical Topographic Maps.” (map in public domain)

Rainwater Ford Published by the U.S. Geological Survey

This landmark still bears the Rainwater name today and I was able to find a satellite view of the ford on the following website:   Rainwater Ford (The location of the ford is marked by the pin.)

Sometimes my ancestors almost seem mythical, like they existed only as a story, so I love it when I can find something absolute that truly says, ” I really lived and I was here.”  It’s so fun to have physical evidence of their existence.  In addition, I now have another place to add to my “What to see when I go to Georgia” list.

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