Since the arrival of Spanish explorers, colonists, and missionaries in the early 1500s, Liberty County has been a microcosm of American history. Later settled by Puritans in the mid-1700s, this coastal community nestled midway between Savannah and Darien was honored with the name "Liberty" for providing two of Georgia's three signers of the Declaration of Independence. Liberty County and her citizens have played significant roles in every period from the Civil War and Reconstruction to the civil rights movement and the Iraq War. From the sparkling waves lapping on St. Catherine's Island and the mysteriously beautiful tidewater to the piney sandhills of Hinesville and Fort Stewart, the land of Liberty has provided history with a dramatic backdrop.
A lifelong resident of Liberty County, author Meredith R. Devendorf blends scholarship with a passion for local history. She earned an honors degree in history from Amherst College and holds master's degrees from Duke University and the University of Mississippi, where she served as a graduate fellow at the Center for the Study of Southern Culture. Images were culled from a wide variety of archival and private collections, including previously unpublished photographs by Liberty County historian Julia King.