Georgia Forestry Commission

About forestry service, 30673, Washington, GA, US, Georgia

Washington is the county seat of Wilkes County, Georgia, United States. Under its original name, Heard's Fort, it was for a brief time during the American Revolutionary War the Georgia state capital. It is noteworthy as the place where the Confederacy voted to dissolve itself, effectively ending the American Civil War. The population was 4,134 as of the 2010 census. The city is often referred to as Washington-Wilkes, to distinguish it from other places named Washington. == History == Heard's Fort was established in 1774 by colonist Stephen Heard. The settlement served as the temporary capital of the new state of Georgia from February 3, 1780, until early 1781. === American Revolutionary War === The Battle of Kettle Creek, one of the most important battles of the American Revolutionary War to be fought in Georgia, was fought on February 14, 1779, in Wilkes County, about eleven miles (18 km) from present-day Washington. The American Patriots were victorious, taking 75 prisoners and killing roughly 70 Loyalists, while losing 32 of their own men. === American Civil War === As a child, Alexander H. Stephens had studied at the school in Washington presided over by Presbyterian minister Alexander Hamilton Webster.