Born:
England, about 1735
Died: Savannah, May 19, 1777
Signed
Declaration of Independence, Governor
 The
political turmoil that possessed the
state of Georgia is in many of the tales
of the early days, but no biography
highlights the political process of
those years more than that of Button
Gwinnett. Unsuccessful in business he
reached his zenith as a politician of
the revolution. It also killed him.
Elected
to serve in the militia, Gwinnett turned
this down because of the controversy it
caused. He had fought hard to wrest
control of the assembly from the elitist
"city" party, so-called
because they drew strength from
Savannah. Instead he attended the
Continental Congress. As did the other
Georgians, he voted for and signed the
Declaration of Independence.
Returning
to Georgia, a long-standing feud with
Lachlan and George McIntosh erupted.
When Gwinnett was elected governor to
replace the late Archibald Bulloch,
George was the only member of the
assembly to vote against him. Gwinnett,
as president, assumed command of the
army and ordered an abortive attack on
the English and Loyalists at St.
Augustine in East Florida. McIntosh was
subject to the whim of Gwinnett, which
infuriated the general. The expedition
to Florida ended a miserable failure and
Lachlan placed full blame for the
disaster on Gwinnett, publicly calling
him a scoundrel. On May 16, 1777, the
two fought a duel near Savannah. Three
days later, Button died from his wounds. |
