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In 1777, one year after the Declaration of Independence, the Executive Council redesignated the "ceded lands" of the Creek and Cherokee Nations as Wilkes County, making it one of the eight original counties of the new State of Georgia. The lands were acquired by the Royal Governor, James Wright, from the Indian tribes in satisfaction of debts due to the traders.
Wilkes County was names for John Wilkes, a Colonial supporter in the British House of Commons, who became one of the earliest martyrs in England to the right of a Free Press.
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