Daniel McGirt: A St. Marys Turncoat

By Molly Silver

e was a dead shot with a rifle. He was an H infamous cattle rustler. He was a “nefarious villain.” He was Daniel McGirt. Or

McGirtt. Or McGirth. Just as there are many versions of this St. Marys resident’s name, there are many versions of his biography. We will present his story so that you can decide whether he was a lawless rogue or a misunderstood Patriot.

Daniel McGirt was probably born in the Camden District of South Carolina in the mid-1700s. He became a trapper and hunter and married into a well-respected family. Legend holds that he served the continued ...

PDaniel McGirt PA St. Marys Turncoat

Georgia Patriot militia as a talented scout during the Revolutionary War until a traumatic episode spurred his defection.

In late 1776, McGirt was scouting for the Americans along the St. Ilia (present-day Satilla) River in Georgia when he came upon a Patriot colonel who coveted his beautiful mare, Grey Goose. Stating a lowly private did not deserve a horse of that quality, the colonel attempted to confiscate the mare. McGirt refused to surrender her, causing the colonel to court-martial, whip, and jail him.

One version of the story states that McGirt escaped, summoning his horse with a sharp whistle. While riding off to join the Loyalists, he roared he would enact “vengeance against all the Americans for his ill treatment.” In another version, he bided his time and when he and his brother were placed on guard duty at Wright’s Fort south of Kingsland, the two stole all the Patriot horses and delivered them to the East Florida Rangers, a Loyalist militia which rewarded McGirt with a promotion to lieutenant colonel. Georgians recount the tale of his defection in a less favorable light, without either the court martial or Grey Goose.

In his new position, McGirt assembled a group of Loyalist refugees and escaped slaves and launched frequent raids against Georgia Patriots as far north as Savannah. He ravaged South Georgia plantations for several years, stealing thousands of head of cattle (10,000 in 1777 alone), horses, crops, and everything else of value to supply the British and Loyalists.

At the Revolution’s end, McGirt began to raid indiscriminately, making enemies of both the Spanish and Americans. In 1784, the Spanish jailed him in St. Augustine and confiscated his Florida lands, but he soon escaped and returned to Georgia. He was arrested again in 1795 near the Florida/Georgia border but was soon on the loose once more. In 1787, he was confined in a Cuban prison, but by the next year he was free and back in Florida. Immediately, he was shipped to the Bahamas. Twice he escaped and twice he was shipped back. In 1797, McGirt, still actively engaged in banditry, was arrested outside Savannah, but his detention was apparently short-lived.

Despite McGirt’s clashes with Spanish officials, the East Florida Governor restored to him land granted to his father years before. This tract is now a valuable piece of Jacksonville real estate, stretching from Roosevelt Mall at Roosevelt Boulevard to the Ortega River, once called McGirt’s Creek. Some even say this river sheltered his pirate ship and its banks housed loot from his raids. A memento of McGirt’s tenure here is McGirts Boulevard, a road stretching along the south bank of the Ortega River.

Just as there are multiple tales of McGirt’s defection, there are several stories surrounding his demise. In one, he was imprisoned in an unlit cell at a St. Augustine fort with only a small opening for receiving food. Here he died after many years of confinement. In another version, he escaped this fort to live out his days among the Native Americans. However, it is most likely that by the close of the 1700s, he had settled near St. Marys, Georgia, and married a sister of St. Marys founder William Ashley, owner of the land on which Orange Hall now stands. From this home base, McGirt continued his illegal activities until his death, probably in 1804.

Many of these fantastic life events are mere conjecture, mainly because McGirt had instilled such fear among Georgia Patriots that legends grew around him. However, now it is your turn to decide: was Daniel McGirt a wronged Patriot or a self-interested scoundrel? Whichever side you choose, we all can agree that his escapades make for a captivating story.

Molly Silver is owner and tour guide at Molly’s Old South Tours, offering daily tours of St. Marys and Cumberland Island. Learn more about McGirt and the murder and chaos that took place in St. Marys on a Murder, Mayhem, and Martinis Walking Tour. For information and reservations, visit mollysoldsouth.com or call 904-735-8243.

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