Georgia was the youngest of the thirteen original colonies. At the Provincial Congress which convened in Savannah, January 20, 1776, there were elected five delegates to the Continental Congress, namely: Dr. Lyman Hall, Button Gwinnett, George Walton, Archibald Bulloch, and John Houston. Of these Button Gwinnett, Dr. Lyman Hall, and George Walton were present at the session of the National Assembly, which convened in Philadelphia on May 20th, and pledged Georgia with the United Colonies on July 4, 1776, by affixing their signatures to the Declaration of Independence.

Button Gwinnett, the subject of this sketch, was said to have been born in England about 1732. He was a merchant in Bristol, England, from which place he emigrated to America in 1770, located in Charleston, S. C., and in 1772 moved to Savannah, Georgia, at which time he bought a large part of St. Catharine's Island, and engaged in farming. He died tragically on May 27, 1777, as a result of a pistol shot wound in a duel with General Lachlan McIntosh, near Savannah on the morning of May 16, 1777.

The records give only limited information, and from careful investigation, at times it appears that the statements do not bear out the correct facts with regard to the biography of Button Gwinnett. In Harper's "Cyclopaedia of United States History," Page 190, Vol. 4, the statement is made that Gwinnett was "cautious and doubtful, and took no part in political affairs until after the Revolutionary War was begun." Also that McIntosh challenged Gwinnett for a duel. Subsequent acts would not indicate that the first statement conforms to his real temperament, and it appears from the best obtainable data that Gwinnett issued the challenge to McIntosh. It is true that having been a resident of America only a few years, he was in some doubt at first as to whether he would support the colonies, or throw his influence against them, but he was a man of strong convictions, ambitious, and possessed of great force of character, and his brief political career was meteoric. Unfortunately his strong prejudices and desire for political preferment led to the tragedy of his premature death.

He located in Georgia in 1772, was elected a delegate to the Provincial Congress, which convened in Savannah, January 20, 1776, and by this congress was made a delegate to the Continental Congress, which convened in Philadelphia, May 20, 1776. July 4, 1776, he signed the Declaration of Independence. He became a member of the Council of Safety, and was an important factor in framing the first Constitution of Georgia.

Archibald Bulloch, who was the first President and Commander-in-Chief of Georgia, died suddenly in Feb. 1777. Button Gwinnett, on March 4th, was elected to fill this vacancy until a Governor could be duly elected. Col. Lachlan McIntosh had been promoted to the rank of Brigadier-General, and was placed in charge of the Militia of Georgia. Button Gwinnett was envious of this promotion of General McIntosh, and through jealousy and revenge he so interfered with the military affairs as to seriously jeopardize discipline, and create insubordination towards General McIntosh as Commander-in-Chief. Personally ambitious, Gwinnett planned an expedition against Florida, and further humiliated and insulted General McIntosh by ignoring him as Ranking Military Officer of Georgia, and took command of the expedition himself. It is a matter of historical record that the expedition was a complete failure.

John Adams Treutland was elected Governor over Gwinnett. McIntosh had become a warm supporter of Treutland, and openly denounced Button Gwinnett as a scoundrel. As a result, Gwinnett challenged McIntosh for a duel, which was promptly accepted, and fought with pistols at a distance of eight feet, near Savannah, May 16, 1777. At the first shot both were wounded, Gwinnett's leg being broken and he fell. It is said he asked his seconds to raise him that he might shoot again, but his request was denied, and he was taken from the field. The weather was very warm, and septic fever soon developed, which proved fatal on the 27th of May following.

Thus ended the meteoric life of Button Gwinnett, who, within the short space of less than two years, sprang from obscurity into prominence, and whose life was brought to a sudden and tragic end at the hands of another, and whose grave today is in some obscure and unknown spot.