Allon & Rollo
Mysteries of Allon and Rollo Unraveled Reprinted from the January 7, 2010, edition of "The Georgia Post."
By Billy Powell
Powell, a newspaper columnist and author, has a penchant for history and loves to research and write about people, places, and events from the past.
Railroad enabled sand manufacturing in Crawford County
When the Atlanta and Florida (A&F) Railroad officially opened its 105-mile rail line from Atlanta to Fort Valley in November 1888, the abundant white sand in south Crawford County became a valued commodity. Before advent of the railroad, there were no means to transport sand to distant locations. The railroad first used sand to increase traction between engine wheels and tracks by dropping small amounts of sand as the engine rolled along. Sand was first loaded into open boxcars using shovels and wheel barrows. Today, the white sand is washed from hillsides with high speed water hoses. Electric pumps then deliver the watery slurry to equipment that removes the water and impurities to produce the purest form of silica sand. The sand is loaded into railroad cars for rail shipment and onto trucks for highway transportation. Sand for commercial distribution is sent to a processing plant where it is dried in kilns, separated into various particle sizes, and bagged in 50 and 100 pound bags. It has been said that if all the sand from the Crawford County sand pits were removed from Atlanta, its skyline would disappear.
Atlanta Sand and Supply Company
Numerous land owners have owned sand pits over the last 100 years, but the dominant supplier in the region has been the Atlanta Sand and Supply Company, which has been in operation for 106 years. It started in 1903 when Frank B. Jamison (Frank D. Jamison’s grandfather) purchased land from Annie M. Rollo, the wife of John W. Rollo. The Rollo family earlier had purchased 916 acres of land from W. P. Carr (1853-1930) in 1898. The company is the premier manufacturer of high quality silica sand in the state of Georgia. It produces sand for a wide variety of uses including construction sand, industrial sand, and sand for golf courses and athletic fields. The company employs from 30 to 50 personnel. Although the old A & F rail lines from Gaillard to Atlanta have been abandoned, sand is still shipped from Allon through Fort Valley by rail. Sand is first delivered to the Arriscraft Company near Lee Pope (manufacturers of brick and stone), and subsequently to Fort Valley where it is shipped to Atlanta, and points north via the old Central of Georgia rail lines. Frank B. Jamison owned a highway paving company in Atlanta before starting up his sand operation in Crawford County in 1903. The second generation owner was Frank B’s son: Melville Ames Jamison. The third generation owners were Melville’s two sons: Frank D. and Pyott. The fourth generation and current owners are Frank D’s three children: Frank Dugger Jamison Jr. of Colorado, Rebecca Jamison Coil of Fort Valley, Melville (Mel) Jamison of Macon, and Pyott’s two sons: Curt and Larry Jamison of Atlanta. The company president, headquartered in Macon, is Jeff Avant. The General Manager is Eric Barger and the Plant Superintendent is James Wallace (Wally) Dean. Former superintendents were Joe Parker and Dan Scarborough.
Railroad Flag Stops, 1888-1954: Rollo and Allon
After the train left Gaillard heading south toward Fort Valley, there were two railroad stops in the sand pit area. The first was named “Rollo” and the second was called “Allon.” Rollo is about three quarters of a mile from Gaillard, and Allon is approximately three quarters of a mile from Rollo. Leaving the sand pit, the next two train stops before reaching Fort Valley were Zenith and Lee Pope.
Rollo named after a woman: Annie M. Rollo
Crawford County history books state that Rollo was named after “Mr.” A. M. Rollo, who for the past hundred years was thought to be a man. The census records of 1900 (sheet 4B, Militia District 529, dated June 1900) show that A. M. Rollo was, in fact, a woman. Her name was Annie Maria Ficket Rollo (1842-1927; born in South Carolina), the wife of John Wesley Rollo (1838-1913; born in Montgomery, Alabama). They were married in 1863 and had one daughter, Luela Rollo (1865-1881). The entire Rollo family is buried in Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta. All sand sold by the Atlanta Sand and Supply Company over the past 106 years has carried the trademark “Rollo.” Historians should emend their records to reflect that Rollo and its sand were named after a woman.
Mystery: the naming of Allon
The naming of Allon has been a perplexing mystery. Crawford County history states that Allon was named by a “Frenchman” named Grief Cheves and that the term Allon means “in the woods.” The truth of the matter is that Grief Cheves was not a Frenchman, but was descended from a family in Scotland. His parents were from the town of Bucan in the Aberdeenshire District of Scotland. Grief’s parents came to America during the 1770s, but his grandparents and other family members stayed behind. Genealogical records indicate that Grief was born in what is now Abbeville, South Carolina in 1785. Before coming to Crawford County, he earlier lived in Greene County, Georgia, and also Morgan County, Georgia. Further, there is no French term “Allon” which means “in the woods,” as the Crawford County history books attest. In fact, Allon is not in the French dictionary nor is it a colloquial or idiomatic French expression. Neither could Grief Cheves have named the place after a family name, as no one in his ancestry carries the surname Allon.
Where did the name “Allon” come from?
Since there is an abundance of Black Jack oak trees in Allon, considerable speculation has centered on application of the Hebrew term “Allon,” which means “oak tree.” Also, it is highly possible that “Allon” was taken from the Bible. In I Chronicles 4:37 (KJV), we read of Allon, a leader of the Jewish tribe of Simeon. In Joshua 19:33 (KJV), it was an ancient town in northern Israel. Sidney Goodrich’s grandfather, Milton Reed, was a noted Bible scholar and a close friend of the Chevis family. The likelihood exists that Reed suggested the name “Allon.”
Mystery Unraveled
Through the research of a genealogist extraordinaire, the reason behind the naming of Allon has been uncovered. It turns out that Grief Cheves’ parents hailed from Buchan, Scotland, which bordered the Ythan river and was considered the gateway to the beautiful, ancient city of “Ellon.” The word “Ellon’ is derived from a Gaelic term and is pronounced “Allon.” The evidence is great that Grief Cheves named the area “Allon” after the ancient city of Ellon, Scotland, the beloved homeland of his parents. It is reasonable to assume that Grief’s parents had frequently visited the beautiful, historic city of Ellon (less than 15 miles away) during their years of residence in Scotland and had spoken fondly of the enchanting city to their son while he was growing up in America.
Cheves Cemetery found
Grief Cheves is buried in a family cemetery near the home of Helen Smith Cummings near Zenith on Cummings Road. Mrs. Cummings, her husband the late Johnson Cummings, stated that Grief Cheves owned a large plantation including the Allon sand pits. Courthouse records reveal that he owned three 200-acre land lots. Mrs. Cummings’ home stands on former Cheves property. Grief’s tombstone reads that he died on January 11, 1858 at the “age of 72 years, 3 months and 2 days.” This would place his birth in October 1785. Also buried there are his second wife (Mary Howard Cheves: died 1840) and his third wife (Elizabeth Patterson Cheves: 1811-1894). Four plantation slaves with the Harris surname (Willie, Jessie E., Buck and Sarah A.) are also buried in the Cheves lot.
Alternative theory on the naming of Allon
Since Grief Cheves died 30 years before the railroad arrived, historian Sidney Goodrich offered an alternative theory. He believes that Grief’s son, James Byron Chevis (who changed surname spelling) actually supplied the name “Allon.” He could have done so at the time the railroad began operations there around 1907. This theory has definite merit in that James Byron Chevis (1849-1912) was alive when the railroad came through Crawford County. Being a revered history teacher at Vanderbilt University, he no doubt was knowledgeable of Ellon’s rich history and being of Scottish descent, could well have named the place “Allon” after the beloved city of his grandparents. Chevis’ great granddaughter, Fay Woodward of Vienna, concurs in Goodrich’s assessment.
James Langdon Chevis
James Langdon Chevis (1880-1951) was the son of James Byron Chevis (who changed Cheves to Chevis), and the grandson of Grief Cheves. James Langdon operated the “Allon Sand Company” from roughly 1920 to 1929 at which time the Great Depression hit, causing him to close down operations. He subsequently moved to Tampa, Florida, and died in Vienna, Georgia. He was named after Langdon Cheves (1776-1857), a South Carolinian, who became the ninth Speaker of the U. S. House of Representatives in 1814, and for a short time, when there was no Vice President, was next in line to the Presidency. Evidence points to Grief Cheves and House Speaker Langdon Cheves being first cousins: Grief’s father, Thomas Cheves, and Langdon’s father, Alexander, were brothers. James Langdon Chevis had a daughter, Ruth Chevis (1917-2001), who married Henry Woodward of Vienna.
Shootout at the Allon Commisary
Henry Woodward, now 95, possesses extensive records on the Cheves family. Woodward tells the story of a robbery at the Allon commissary, circa 1920. James Langdon Chevis (nicknamed Lonnie) was manning the store when a robber entered, demanding money. Lonnie reached for the cash drawer where he secretly kept a gun. “When he wheeled around to fire, the robber shot first, wounding Lonnie,” stated Mr. Woodward. “As Lonnie slumped to the floor, he unloaded his revolver, a bullet striking each button on the intruder’s shirt, killing him instantly.” Lonnie survived. “Lonnie was a fine man and a wonderful father-in-law,” commented Woodward. Sidney Goodrich added that his grandmother, the legendary railroad personality, Jennie Reed, and Lonnie were related by marriage and that Lonnie often visited her General Store and home at Gaillard.
My appreciation to Crawford County historian, Sidney Goodrich, and my brother, Dwayne Powell, an accomplished genealogist. Without their expert help, this story would not have been possible.
A huge thanks goes out to Mr. Billy Powell for sharing this information and photos with us!
Click on the photos for a larger view...
This page was last updated Monday, February 01, 2010
Copyright ©
Kim Gordon ←
Webmaster
All Rights Reserved
